Getting into college is hard enough without worrying about how you’re going to pay for it. Receiving student loans helps to alleviate …
Getting into college is hard enough without worrying about how you’re going to pay for it. Receiving student loans helps to alleviate those concerns, but it doesn’t eliminate them entirely. Eventually, you have to pay those loans back, but it doesn’t have to be an anxiety-producing problem.
Paying Back Federal Student Loans
There are eight student loan repayment plans offered by the Federal Student Aid office of the U.S. Department of Education. Each plan is only eligible for certain loans and comes with its own terms and eligibility qualifications. Key to paying back your student loans quickly and easily is finding the repayment plan that fits your circumstances and abilities.
To pay less money overall than with other plans, consider the Standard Repayment Plan. It’s available to all federal student loan borrowers and offers fixed payments for up to 10 years on most qualifying loans.
To pay less at first and increase the size of your payments over time, consider the Graduated Payment Plan. Again, all federal student loan borrowers are eligible and get up to 10 years to pay off the loan. The downside of this repayment plan is that you’ll ultimately pay more after 10 years than you would on the Standard Repayment Plan.
To spread out repayments on your loan over a longer period of time, consider the Extended Repayment Plan, which gives you up to 25 years to pay back the loan. There are certain eligibility requirements, depending on the loan. Payment amounts will be smaller than under the Standard or Graduated plan, and borrowers pay more overall over the extended time frame than under the Standard Plan.
The remaining five repayment plans determine your payment terms based on how much you currently earn in the workplace.
* Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (PAYE)
* Revised Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (REPAYE)
* Income-Based Repayment Plan (IBR)
* Income-Contingent Repayment Plan (ICR)
* Income-Sensitive Repayment Plan
Each of these earnings-based repayment plans have their own terms and eligibility criteria.
Tips for Paying Back Federal & Private Student Loans Faster & More Affordably
Whether your student loan debt is federal or private, there are several steps you can take to make paying back your student loans a painless process. Starting to repay your student loans as soon as possible is perhaps the next most useful action you can take to pay it down easily and fast. At the very least, start making payments as soon as you graduate. However, if you’re really feeling motivated, you can even start making pre-payments on your student loans while you’re still in school.
What’s more, you can make each of these pre-payments pack the maximum wallop in reducing your student loan debt by making sure that each of them are applied to the principal of your loan rather than the interest. By paying down principal first whenever possible, you reduce the overall amount of your loan, which means interest is charged on a lower amount.
Just be sure that your lender permits such pre-payments without a penalty. Some private loans penalize borrowers for making pre-payments while still in school. Most federal student loans, however, allow these pre-payments without penalty. Additionally, federal student loans can be subsidized or unsubsidized. Subsidized loans don’t accrue any interest while you’re still enrolled in school, while unsubsidized loans begin accruing interest from the moment the money is borrowed. Therefore, if you have multiple types of federal student loans to pay down while still in school, choose to make prepayments to your eligible unsubsidized loans so as to reduce the amount of interest accruing.
Once you get out of school, reducing your expenses can help tremendously in paying back your student loan debt. Living at home with your parents or guardians, for example, or co-housing with a group of likeminded young adults who share housing costs are ways to reduce your overall overhead and empower you with more money available to apply toward paying down your debt.
Finally, student loans can always be privately refinanced. Plenty of banks and other online lenders are more than willing to refinance all your student loan debt, federal and private. Just be sure, when considering this option, to do your due diligence. The federal government has very strict standards protecting you, the borrower, as much as the lender from fraudulent or dishonest behavior. Other lenders aren’t always so beholden, so be sure to research the exact terms of any loan you’re considering before you sign on the dotted line.
Maintaining a dry crawl space prevents an abundance of problems for homeowners, but the task is oftentimes easier said than done. The crawl space …
Maintaining a dry crawl space prevents an abundance of problems for homeowners, but the task is oftentimes easier said than done. The crawl space of your home can become wet, damp, or otherwise moisturized due to weather, improper insulation, dirty gutters, and so many other reasons. Prevention of crawl space issues is the easiest way to avoid the headaches and expenses of repairing damage. If you’re ready to take action against crawl space damage, the tips below can help you keep your crawl space dry and minimize or eliminate any problems.
Wet crawl spaces are a nuisance on many levels. The potential for mold growth is always a concern for most homeowners, as is the worry of foundation and structural issues due to rotting wood and other issues. Wet crawlspaces take considerable usable space from your home and add issues you would avoid otherwise. But, there’s many ways to prevent the issues. Utilize the tips below if you want to maintain a clean, dry crawl space and avoid the headaches associated with dampness and moisture in this area of the home.
Insulate the Crawl Space
Proper insulation prevents air from seeping in or out through tiny cracks and holes in the concrete of the crawl space. If the area isn’t insulated already, a spray foam insulation is an affordable, easy way to prevent troubles and add the protection needed to maintain your crawl space. You can add the spray foam insulation yourself for a few bucks. Professionals can also insulate your crawl space should you prefer their expertise.
Install Gutters & Keep Them Clean
Gutters provide an effective rainwater drainage solution that minimizes risk to the foundation of your home, in turn reducing risk of crawl space troubles. If your home doesn’t include gutters already, it’s time to call a professional for installation as quickly as possible. Gutters . Once installed, ensure that you keep the gutters clean. Should they become filled with dirt, leaves, and other debris, it prevents proper drainage and overflow water issues could soak into the ground, causing issues with mosquitos and other insects, stagnant water, and other problems.
Install a Vapor Barrier
A vapor barrier is easy to install over your crawl space dirt floor. It’s also one of the easiest ways to protect the area from dampness. This is a DIY job or one that the professionals can easily handle. If you opt to DIY, ensure the barrier you create overlaps the seams at least one-foot.
Control Moisture With a Dehumidifier
Controlling the moisture in the air is a huge concern in crawl spaces, and your primary objective when you want to keep the area dry. A dehumidifier is a great weapon to fight back against the moisture in the air. Sold at home improvement stores and via professionals, the dehumidifier keeps the air in the home from becoming too humid. Professional-grade products can be programmed to turn on at specific intervals. The cost of a dehumidifier varies, but many are available to choose from in all price ranges. Compare the options and add a dehumidifier to your crawl space at once!
Final Thoughts
Don’t endure the headaches of a wet crawl space when maintaining the area is so simple. The tips above are a few of the best that you can use to ensure your crawl space is dry and usable at all times. Why risk damage, miss out on areas of your home, or endure expensive repairs when you can take simple measures to keep eliminate any worries with the crawl space?
We are all amazing in our own right, and we are all unique with characteristics and traits that make us special. Yet, …
We are all amazing in our own right, and we are all unique with characteristics and traits that make us special. Yet, in spite of our differences, there are so many things that we all have in common.
We all share the same emotions.
Whether or not we try to hide these emotions, bury them, ignore them, or deal with them in other ways, we all experience the same feelings. We all have a desire to love and be loved. We are all afraid at times. We all get angry and even hurt. And it is these primal emotions that link us all together as human beings. These emotions connect us and allow us to relate to one another.
We all make an effort to communicate.
Sure, there are different languages among us… but that’s just the thing. We’re communicating. In an article entitled “Four Principles of Interpersonal Communication” written by Donnell King it reads: “We can’t not communicate. The very attempt not to communicate communicates something. Through not only words, but through tone of voice and through gesture, posture, facial expression, etc., we constantly communicate to those around us. Through these channels, we constantly receive communication from others.” We communicate through speech, text, movements, and even expression. Some of us have found ways to communicate through art and other elaborate ways. We may want to be heard, or we may just want to listen. But we’re all communicating in some way.
We are all capable of learning.
Some struggle more than others, but overall, everyone has the capacity to learn. No one is born already knowing how to function and operate in this world, so we all have to learn as we go. There are those of us who prefer to learn through seeing, hearing, or even through touching. And while we all may learn in different ways, we all learn.
We all have the X chromosome.
It doesn’t matter whether we’re a male (XY) or female (XX), we all share the X chromosome. Even among the occasional abnormalities, which are listed in the “Sex Chromosome Abnormalities” article by Dennis O’Neil, the X chromosome is consistent. It doesn’t matter who you are, you have the X chromosome. This common relativity is in your DNA.
All humans, either inherently or bluntly, judge each other.
Sometimes we look for similarities between ourselves, as if we want to find something that can connect us and bring us closer in some way. Sometimes we look for differences, so that maybe we can set ourselves apart and feel unique or special. There are times when we just want to feel better about ourselves, so we look for the bad qualities in others to accentuate the good in ourselves, or maybe we look for the bad because we’ve gone through some difficult times and we’ve lost our hope that the good actually exists. Then there are times when we look for the good in others because we want to believe that it’s there, or we feel like everyone else is better because all we can see is our own flaws. There are many reasons why we might look at another person and think we know them, when truly there is no way that we can really know someone else. But we can look at a person and reflect on what we have in common as human beings.
The things that separate us, such as gender, ethnicity, nationality, or creed, don’t seem so definite when we think about what we have in common. Even beyond our personalities, experiences, and the things that make us who we are, we are all still human. And that truly is amazing when you think about it.
The most common known ways in which boats break down are the easiest to fix. However, the breakdown can be a devastating encounter especially …
The most common known ways in which boats break down are the easiest to fix. However, the breakdown can be a devastating encounter especially if you find yourself in the middle of the water. You may be forced to call your insurance provider to provide some towing services or give a call to an expert to give you the right repair services or bring you some spare parts in your spots. Discussed below are some of the various ways in which most boat breakdown along with the preventive measures which can be taken to avoid such failures.
1. Loss of power, dead battery or sputtering
If your boat starts to feel like it is running out of its normal strength, you may be experiencing some filter problems, fouled plugs, or your battery is dying. The boat battery failure can also lead to various frequent breakdowns that you may find in your boat.
Solution
You should be able to replace the inline fuel filter if you find yourself in such a scenario. Recharging the battery could be a great option too. See if you carried any spare and replaced your plugs too. In case, you did not, you should remove and try to clear the filter elements and drain any accumulated water in them.
Prevention
It is always important to take your battery for testing before you start any voyage along the sea. Some people also purchase defective fuels while others leave the fuel on the boats for an extended period leading to its condensation as well as water in the gas. It would be essential to consider a fuel stabilizer for your boat as well.
2. Broken belts
In most scenarios, it is not easy to hear the sound of your belts snapping especially when on a full throttle in the middle of the waters. However, you can note that something is wrong the moment you see the warning light on your boat coming on or your voltage meter dictating that the alternator is not charging.
Solution
You will find a lot of information online on jury-rigging any broken belt by the use of a fishing line or even pantyhose. However, it would be a significant idea just to carry a spare to change your belts whenever you encounter such a scenario.
Prevention
Always inspect, tighten and ensure that you dress your belts before you set off on your voyage. Evaluate the condition of the pulley contact surfaces too to ensure that no corrosion could cause roughness on the pulleys.
3. Engine overheating
Running the boat engine for an extended period on a sunny summer day can lead to overheating. A clear indication of such a scenario could be a rise on the temperature gauge on your boat. The overheating could show that you are experiencing some lack of water flow on your engine cooling loop.
Solution
Trace the cause of the overheating, In molts cases, the overheating is due to an obstruction of the raw water intake system which will require being cleaned.
Prevention
Ensure regular cleaning and servicing of your cooling systems. Check if there is any corrosion on your exhaust systems before you start any voyage too.
4. Abnormal vibration
If you try to go faster and the vibration gets worst, then you probably may have a problem. You may also note that the engine is racing whenever your boat loses its speed.
Solution
A gouged blade or a nick could cause some imbalances on your systems and thus cause vibration. You can use a tow-rope or a fishing line to snarl the shaft.
Prevention
It would be great to carry a spare prop when going for any voyage. Ensure you have all the tools to change the accessories too to avoid some surprises on your way.
5. The boat won’t start
The act of having an ignition that is not functioning is a frustrating scenario. The ignition failure could be caused by a technical issue such as a dead battery or a breakdown on the ignition circuit.
Solution
Inspect the kill switch, check if the shifter is neutral and evaluate the starter switch too. The solution of any issue on the dashboard is going behind the dash and tightening any loose component to enable the boat start.
Prevention
Always inspect, clean and replace your wiring periodically to avoid such system failure. You can also keep your battery in its best condition possible.
This list of the various ways in which a boat can breakdown could be the best place to start your annual maintenance of your boat. Understanding them ensures that you enjoy your voyage without much stress on getting some surprises while on the water.
