Patiently Waiting

One of the "borrower benefits" of my student loan is that after 3 years of on time payments, there's a little relief on the interest rate. I may have mentioned this before. In less than a month and a half the rate will go from 4.75 to 3.75%. Way cool. Not that it was bad before, or that it will make a huge difference, but every little bit counts. Part of me wishes they would adjust the payment to reflect the new rate, but part of me is glad to see the balance go down more quickly. According to my spreadsheet, the payoff date will go from January of 2026 to July of 2024. I was a little surprised to see it's only a year and a half difference, but I suppose I've paid a big chunk of the interest already.

This is a little more motivation to pay off my car loan early. Once the rate drops on the student loan, my car loan will be at the highest rate. The interest also isn't tax deductible and the collateral is a depreciating asset. Plus, once I knock out the car loan, I can fixate on the student loan. I have no idea anymore where the Roth IRA fits in this plan. I've been so concentrated on getting my down payment together for a house.