How I Paid Off $30,000 of Debt in 10 Months - Sequins & Sales (2024)

Lifestyle ·

This is a post that I have been ITCHING to write for months now! Once I realized that we would likely not be traveling anywhere for the remainder of 2020, I focused all of my energy into how I can pay off my student loans quickly, and in less than one year. I HATE debt and having anything outstanding, so this was a really important task for me. In this post, I’m going to share How I Paid Off $30,000 in 10 Months and what steps I took to achieve this!

I do want to preface this by saying I have a full-time job and a profitable side hustle, so that really helped with this process. I don’t want to lie to you and say “oh I just cut out all fast food and coffee” because that’s not what happened! I worked really hard, grew my side hustle, and put most of that money towards my debt. I did also use saving tactics as well though!

How I Paid Off $30,000 of Debt in 10 Months - Sequins & Sales (1)

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How I Paid Off $30,000 of Debt in 10 Months - Sequins & Sales (2)

Debt Repayment Chart

One of the main reasons I wanted to pay off all of my debt this year was because most of the student loan companies paused interest + payments since we’re living through a pandemic. I knew this would be my chance to not rack up even more money, and to also pay them off with a deadline that I had set in my mind. My goal from the beginning was to pay off all of my debt in less than 12 months, and I have now been able to achieve that!

Below is a chart of how much money I paid towards my loans over the past 10 months. You’ll see that for some months, I put more towards my debt than others! Honestly, as long as I made one payment a month, I was happy with myself. You can see the breakdown below, and the fact that I paid $6,000 off the bat. I did this because I wanted to get rid of all the interest I’d accrued while in school so I could actually start paying on the principal!

How I Paid Off $30,000 of Debt in 10 Months - Sequins & Sales (3)

My Financial Situation

I wanted to start by briefly explaining my financial situation because I know everyone’s is not like mine. I do have a full-time career as well as a monetized side hustle. I started monetizing my blog about two years ago now (I didn’t want to work part-time in retail anymore LOLZ) and this has really helped with my debt repayment! Wanna start a blog for your side hustle? Read about how (here).

Almost every dollar I’ve made from blogging this year I have put towards my loan payments! At the start of the year/during the beginning of the pandemic, I always made sure to save enough for one loan payment from my work paychecks. Blog campaigns are hit or miss, so to cover myself in case work didn’t come in, this was my plan of action! Once we hit June, everything picked up a bit so I didn’t worry as much about using this tactic.

How I Paid Off $30,000 of Debt in 10 Months - Sequins & Sales (4)

Debt Repayment/Money Saving Tips

I wanted to also give some debt repayment tips! Some of these you’ve probably heard before, but these are small steps I took to save money and make sure I wasn’t spending money where I didn’t want to! This was honestly pretty easy since I couldn’t really go anywhere or do anything for three months. My biggest cut backs were on ordering Postmates because I refused to leave my apartment from March – May. Below are all the tips to start with:

  1. Check to make sure you aren’t paying for any random subscriptions! I used the Truebill app to do this.
  2. Cutting back on my Starbucks runs! Now, this isn’t going to save you thousands of dollars, but even a couple hundred a month will help pay off the interest.
  3. Delete those food delivery apps! My biggest issue is being too lazy to cook after work. It’s also so easy to just get food delivered. Delete the apps so you aren’t tempted to order food!
  4. Set up your bank account to save automatically. Whenever I spend money from my checking account, some automatically goes into my savings! Even a couple dollars here and there adds up. I’ve been able to add $1,000 to savings this year just by doing that!
  5. Start saving small! Telling yourself to save a huge chunk of money every paycheck will just overwhelm you! Start with $20, then move on to $100, and if you can go even higher, slowly work your way up!
  6. Use your tax refund to pay off debt. Since I basically am a freelancer with my side hustle, I end up paying taxes now. That said, if you just have a regular full-time job, put your tax refund towards your debt!
  7. Use the “24-hour” rule! If you really want to purchase something that isn’t an essential, make yourself wait 24 hours before purchasing. Chances are you’ll forget about it and/or not want it anymore!
  8. Unsubscribe from marketing emails. I know my biggest spending issue is getting emails with “70% OFF CLEARANCE” (I’m looking at you J.Crew Factory) because I will immediately open it. Avoiding the temptation of spending and shopping will help in the long run!
  9. Sell your old clothes and use only that money to buy new ones! There was a time where I did this and it honestly felt good to not spend additional money on clothes. Some great places to sell clothes are Poshmark (an app), Uptown Cheapskate, and Plato’s Closet!
  10. Turn your A/C up during the day (in the summertime). I can’t do this now because I’m working from home (Thanks, COVID), but when I worked in an office I did! Keeping your apartment a little warmer when you aren’t there, and turning it down at night, will save money in the long run!

These are 10 ways that I have found have made it easier to save and pay off my student loan debt! I also have a post that will give you 20 more ways to save money which you can read (here). I understand that not everyone has the same budget, and that not all of these tips are realistic! My goal here is to tell you what has worked for me, and/or give you some new tips you might not have known previously!

How I Paid Off $30,000 of Debt in 10 Months - Sequins & Sales (5)

I hope you guys enjoyed this post! I honestly focused all my spare time, energy, and money paying off my debt because I didn’t want to deal with it anymore. This year mentally was hard, but not being able to go anywhere and also not having interest made this a lot easier to do. I hope the tips in this post will help you pay off your debt too!

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to subscribe below! I send out a weekly newsletter every Tuesday with fashion tips, lifestyle hacks, post recaps, and so much more. It’s also where you’ll get exclusive content not featured on my blog or in my social channels. If this sounds interesting to you, sign up below!

Photos byHannah Lozano

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How I Paid Off $30,000 of Debt in 10 Months - Sequins & Sales (2024)

FAQs

How fast can I pay off 30k in debt? ›

If you only make the minimum payment each month, it will take about 460 months, or about 38 years, to pay off that $30,000 balance. And, you'll pay a staggering $54,359.80 in interest charges along the way, which means the interest you pay will be well above the original principal balance you started with.

How can I pay off $30000 in debt in one year? ›

The 6-step method that helped this 34-year-old pay off $30,000 of credit card debt in 1 year
  1. Step 1: Survey the land. ...
  2. Step 2: Limit and leverage. ...
  3. Step 3: Automate your minimum payments. ...
  4. Step 4: Yes, you must pay extra and often. ...
  5. Step 5: Evaluate the plan often. ...
  6. Step 6: Ramp-up when you 're ready.

How long does it take to pay off the $10000 debt by only making the minimum payment? ›

1% of the balance plus interest: It would take 29.5 years or 354 months to pay off $10,000 in credit card debt making only minimum payments. You would pay a total of $19,332.21 in interest over that period.

How to get out of $20,000 debt fast? ›

If you have $20,000 in credit card debt that you need to pay off in three years or less, you have multiple options to consider, including:
  1. Take advantage of a debt relief service.
  2. Consolidate your debt with a home equity loan.
  3. Take advantage of 0% balance transfer credit cards.
May 22, 2024

How to pay off a $30,000 loan fast? ›

5 Ways To Pay Off A Loan Early
  1. Make bi-weekly payments. Instead of making monthly payments toward your loan, submit half-payments every two weeks. ...
  2. Round up your monthly payments. ...
  3. Make one extra payment each year. ...
  4. Refinance. ...
  5. Boost your income and put all extra money toward the loan.

Is 30k a lot of debt? ›

Owing $30,000 in credit card debt can feel overwhelming, but there are ways to pay it off. For example, it may help to get in touch with a debt relief company. You can also review your budget to get rid of excess spending and get creative with your monthly payments to pay your debt off faster.

What's the fastest way to pay off debt? ›

Pay off your most expensive loan first.

Then, continue paying down debts with the next highest interest rates to save on your overall cost. This is sometimes referred to as the “avalanche method” of paying down debt.

How long should it take to pay off a 30000 loan? ›

It will take 41 months to pay off $30,000 with payments of $1,000 per month, assuming the average credit card APR of around 18%. The time it takes to repay a balance depends on how often you make payments, how big your payments are and what the interest rate charged by the lender is.

How do I pay off debt if I don't make a lot of money? ›

  1. Step 1: Take Inventory of Your Debts. ...
  2. Step 2: Create a Realistic Budget. ...
  3. Step 3: Avoid Any New Debts. ...
  4. Step 4: Try the Debt Avalanche Method. ...
  5. Step 5: Consider the Debt Snowball Method. ...
  6. Step 6: Increase Your Income. ...
  7. Step 7: Negotiate a Better Rate. ...
  8. Step 8: Increase Your Credit Score.
Apr 16, 2024

How to pay off $5000 in debt in 6 months? ›

If you can afford to pay off your debt during the promotional APR period, a balance transfer card may be your best bet. For example, with $5,000 of debt, a six-month intro APR balance transfer card would allow you to pay off your debt interest-free with $833.33/month payments.

How long would it take to pay off $25,000? ›

$25,000 at 20%: Your minimum payment would be $666.67 per month and it would take 437 months to pay off $25,000 at 20% interest. You would pay $41,056.85 in interest over the life of the debt.

What is the lowest you can settle a debt for? ›

Depending on the situation, debt settlement offers might range from 10% to 80% of what you owe.

How to get out of 30k debt fast? ›

It will take effort, discipline and, perhaps, some outside help, but you can make it if you do the following:
  1. Make a list of all your credit card debts.
  2. Make a budget.
  3. Create a strategy to pay down debt.
  4. Pay more than your minimum payment whenever possible.
  5. Set goals and timeline for repayment.
  6. Consolidate your debt.
May 23, 2024

How do you clear debt you can't afford? ›

You can apply for your own bankruptcy or a creditor can make you bankrupt. Your financial affairs will be dealt with by the official receiver. Valuable assets are usually sold to raise money to pay your creditors. At the end of your bankruptcy most debts are written off.

How do you pay off debt when you are broke? ›

How to get out of debt when you have no money
  1. Step 1: Stop taking on new debt. ...
  2. Step 2: Determine how much you owe. ...
  3. Step 3: Create a budget. ...
  4. Step 4: Pay off the smallest debts first. ...
  5. Step 5: Start tackling larger debts. ...
  6. Step 6: Look for ways to earn extra money. ...
  7. Step 7: Boost your credit scores.
Dec 5, 2023

Is 30k in loans bad? ›

If you racked up $30,000 in student loan debt, you're right in line with typical numbers: the average student loan balance per borrower is $33,654. Compared to others who have six-figures worth of debt, that loan balance isn't too bad. However, your student loans can still be a significant burden.

How can I pay off 10k in debt fast? ›

7 ways to pay off $10,000 in credit card debt
  1. Opt for debt relief. One powerful approach to managing and reducing your credit card debt is with the help of debt relief companies. ...
  2. Use the snowball or avalanche method. ...
  3. Find ways to increase your income. ...
  4. Cut unnecessary expenses. ...
  5. Seek credit counseling. ...
  6. Use financial windfalls.
Feb 15, 2024

How to get out of $40,000 debt fast? ›

To pay off $40,000 in credit card debt within 36 months, you will need to pay $1,449 per month, assuming an APR of 18%. You would incur $12,154 in interest charges during that time, but you could avoid much of this extra cost and pay off your debt faster by using a 0% APR balance transfer credit card.

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