Parent PLUS debt down: $15,523.86
Mortgage lowered: $0
Overall debt reduction: $15,523.86
Parent PLUS debt remaining: $18,999.94
Parent PLUS projected payoff: August 2020
That’s not a typo, friends, those are real numbers. Probably my most epic debt reduction month ever! And here’s how it happened:
Typical payment: $2,283.75
Sold a car: $3,400
Annual gift: $10,000
As you may remember from years past, my father gifts my siblings and me $10,000 every year. For many years now, I have thrown that gift immediately toward my Parent PLUS loans. As painful as it is for me to see that money go as quickly as I receive it, I’m glad I’m using is as wisely as I can right now.
The $3,400 was a nice surprise…I’ve had my second car for sale since September, and while I had had a few inquiries there was no real interest in it until after our first snowstorm. In one week I had about 5 people actually wanting to look at it. The winner was a man who drove 5 hours to get it, and on the way home from buying it the transmission on his other vehicle (which was identical to the car he bought from me except a year older) went out. So it was a blessing for both of us that he bought it. I had considered banking that money for a future vehicle, but then WWDRD (What Would Dave Ramsey Do?) kicked in and I threw that to my debt as well.
I still paid $285.81 in interest, but the days of $200+ interest are OVER! Now that my loan is under $19,000 (and yes, I paid $20 extra so I could say that, even if it’s only for today haha!), my interest every month should be nearly half of that, THANK GOODNESS.
One other note about my mortgage payment this month…as I do every year, I pay my mortgage and a few other bills every other week throughout the year so that when December rolls around I can skip the December payments and use that money for Christmas/birthday gifts instead. It’s a method that always works well for me.
After all that fun, it’s back to normal starting in January…well as normal as my life ever gets anyway! 
Happy New Year, my friends!
