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Financial Terms Everyone Should Know – Debt

Debt comes in many forms, credit cards, car loans, student loans, mortgages, and consumer loans. You can buy anything on credit today, and that can be dangerous if you don’t have a plan for the debt, and its elimination. Debt can allow us to buy things we need and want without having to wait and save for them. We need to be careful with debt, as payments, and the resulting interest, takes away other options and uses for our money.

Interest is the “rent” we pay on the money we’ve borrowed. Depending on the debt amount, the interest rate, and the time we are in debt, the amount of interest we will pay is on top of the purchase amount. The higher the interest rate, the more you’ll pay for borrowing the money.

If you borrow $1,000 at 10% for 6 months, you’ll pay a total of $29.36 in interest. If you spread it over 12 months, the total interest comes to $54.99. On large loans, such as a home, the interest paid over the life of the loan can be as much or more than the principal amount borrowed. A $400,000 home with a 30-year, 5% interest rate, will result in a total of $373,021 paid in interest.

Borrow carefully!

Find Out More with MyMilitarySavings.com and Finances!

Charlie Marlow

With over 22 years of active-duty Air Force experience in military pay and travel entitlements, Charlie Marlow brings his extensive knowledge of military finance with his passion to help others reach their financial goals through common sense financial practices. Charlie holds a BS in Business Finance from Liberty University, is an Accredited Financial Counselor®, a Dave Ramsey trained Financial Coach, and co-founder, administrator, and frequent contributor to the Facebook group Military Money Matters. He still supports the Air Force and DoD as a contractor budget analyst at the Pentagon. When not writing or helping others create a personal financial plan, you can find him cycling around the National Capitol Region or enjoying classic TV shows.

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