How can you manage student loan payments?

• Sign up for autopay. Falling behind on your student loan payments can lead to late fees, and if you were to become truly delinquent, you could face even bigger troubles, such as wage garnishment. To avoid these problems, you can enroll in autopay, in which you move money automatically from a checking or savings account to your student loan provider. In addition to staying current on your loan, you might earn a .25 percent rate reduction, which is offered by many lenders and loan services to those who enroll in autopay. 
• Refinance your loan. With a steady income, a reasonably good credit score and a manageable number of other debts, you might be able to refinance your student loan and reduce your interest rate, which will enable more of your monthly payments to go toward the principal. 
• Look for employer benefits. Some employers — typically the larger ones — offer student loan repayment help to employees, so check with your human resources department. 
• Make extra payments. If you feel strapped just making your regular student loan payments, you may not be able to make extra ones. But if you can afford to add to your payments consistently, you could pay off your loan earlier than you had thought. But just because you make an extra payment, the money doesn't necessarily go toward reducing your principal — student loan services generally apply payments first to late fees and then to accrued interest. If you pay online, you should have an option to apply extra payments to the principal. Your loan servicer could also provide you with other ways of paying more toward principal.
• Choose a payoff strategy. If you have multiple student loans, and you can make more than the minimum payments, you may want to be strategic in how you pay off your loans. You could choose the "snowball" method by getting rid of the smallest loans first — a technique that can give you feelings of momentum and satisfaction. Or you could take the "avalanche" approach by first going after the loans with the highest interest rates. Either route could save you more money in the long run. 

DiLego Jewelry to Close After Nearly 100 Years in Business

By Daniel MatziBerkshires correspondent
05:28AM / Tuesday, May 07, 2024

Sisters Pamela Costine, left, and Cynthia Lamore have been operating the store since their aunts retired in 1987. Both started working in the business as teens.  Lamore's decided it's time to retire. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — DiLego Jewelery Store, the family-owned business that has been a staple of North Adams for nearly a century, will be closing this summer. 

 

The closure was announced on the store's Facebook page late Sunday night, where it immediately drew comments of remembrance and well-wishing.

 

Cindy Lamore, whose great uncle Frank DiLego opened the store on Main Street in the late 1930s, said the shop will cease operations following her retirement, slated for June 30. A 20 percent off Mother's Day sale will begin immediately, with increasing discounts leading up to the closing date.

 

It took Lamore "a couple of years" to reach the decision to close. Witnessing the passing of lifelong friends or their struggles with debilitating illness prompted her to reconsider her priorities, especially considering the extensive time devoted to running a small business. 

 

"You really question what you're waiting for," she reflected.

 

While recognizing that changing consumer habits have led to a decrease in jewelry and watch sales in recent years, Lamore stressed that her decision to close was a personal one. She and her business partner and sister, Pamela Costine, wanted "to do it on our terms," she said.

 

Comments on Facebook praised the store's customer service, and friends, family, and customers alike reminisced about buying jewelry for special occasions, stopping in for watch repairs, and the perennial rite of childhood for many: getting ears pierced.