As is the case with most of these posts, I feel happy, shocked, and a bit like I don’t know what to say. While I knew I had to reach this milestone fairly quickly to achieve my goal of getting under $60,000.00 this year, this happened much sooner than I expected due to the biggest monthly payment I have ever made, on March 1st, and University B paying out my vacation leave. I will get into the weeds of my March payments on April 1st, so for now, let’s just take a gander at my PenFed student (educational) loan payoff screen:

Unreal. As has been the case in the past, it was difficult to find someone else who blogged about this particular milestone so I headed over to DDSW’s page. (It’s been a while since I linked to her blog so if you haven’t read it, I would suggest you grab a cup of your favorite warm beverage and head on over.) Rereading her blog as I reach each of these milestones is helpful from more than a celebratory perspective. Her posts provide insight into what she was thinking (usually strategic) financially at the time and help me reflect and plan without needing to bother the Pennyfolk. In the post linked above, she talks about feeling like she has turned the corner with her debt and refinancing. This resonates with me. For whatever reason, even though it’s still a five-figure debt, there is something about seeing that first number decrease…

A refinance is food for thought. I LOVE PenFed thus far and would like to keep them as my lender, however, their lowest interest rate is 2.89%. As my rate is fixed at 3.50%, getting something lower AND fixed might be tough. But it won’t hurt to ask. As you can see above, my loan will now accrue interest at a rate of $7.595545 a day or $227.87 a month. While that is far less than it has been at any (non-pandemic) point in my journey, I would never object to it being lower. I think given my significant increase in income, I might apply for a refinance after I reach my goal this year. Yea, no need to hedge with “if,” it’s now just a matter of time.

As always, I want to thank all of the Pennyfolk who read (and especially those who engage) my blog. You all are appreciated far more than you know.