Should You Pay Off Student Loans or Invest? A Framework for Every Income Level
Above 7% interest, pay off your loans first. Below 5%, invest—especially with an employer match. Here's how to decide where every dollar goes based on your rate.
Naomi Castellano
After a decade managing procurement budgets at a Fortune-500 logistics firm in Denver, Naomi Castellano walked away from the corporate ladder to figure out why so many of her colleagues were still drowning in student loan debt well into their forties — and what nobody had bothered to tell them sooner. She now leads a small research and writing team in Salt Lake City, digging into federal loan servicing policy, SAVE plan mechanics, and the fine print that borrowers rarely read until it's too late, and she presented her findings on income-driven repayment gaps at the 2023 Mountain West Financial Empowerment Summit. Her work has been informed by CFPB complaint data, Federal Student Aid publications, and a stubborn belief that the right question almost always matters more than the conventional answer.
Student Loan Capitalization: What It Means and Why It Quietly Grows Your Balance
Unpaid interest folded into your principal can raise your starting balance by 10–20% before your first payment is due. Here's how capitalization works and what it costs you.
How a Nursing Student Paid Off $60,000 in Loans Before Her Fifth Work Anniversary
At a 0.67 debt-to-income ratio, a $60,000 nursing school balance is hard but beatable—no second job required. Here's the math and the plan that made it work.
5 Mistakes Graduate Students Make When Taking Out Federal Loans
At 7.94% interest with no accrual grace period, grad loans compound fast. Here are 5 graduate student loan mistakes that quietly cost borrowers thousands.
Income-Driven vs Standard Repayment: Which Plan Costs Less Over Time
If your loan balance tops 1.5x your salary, income-driven repayment likely saves you money. Below that threshold, the Standard Plan wins. Here's how to know which side you're on.
Student Loans for Nursing School: How Healthcare Students Can Borrow Smarter
The NURSE Corps Loan Repayment Program can cover up to 85% of your nursing school debt—but only if you know how to use federal aid first before turning to private loans.