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Debt Avalanche

Debt Avalanche: Save on Interest & Pay Off Debt

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The Debt Avalanche Method Explained

In the realm of personal finance, efficiently managing and paying off debt is a top priority for many. While the Debt Snowball method offers psychological wins through quick payoffs, the Debt Avalanche method is its strategic counterpart, focusing on minimizing interest over time. This approach is particularly appealing to those who are mathematically inclined and motivated by long-term savings. Let’s dive into the Debt Avalanche method, breaking it down into an easy-to-understand guide that highlights its importance and practical applications.

What is the Debt Avalanche Method?

The Debt Avalanche method is a debt repayment strategy designed to minimize the amount of interest you pay over time. This method involves listing your debts in order of their interest rates, from highest to lowest, and paying them off in that sequence. By tackling the debt with the highest interest rate first, you reduce the total interest accumulated, leading to significant savings.

Why it Works: The Psychology Behind the Method?

Interest Savings: The primary advantage of the Debt Avalanche method is the potential for substantial interest savings. By focusing on high-interest debts first, you reduce the fastest-growing balances, which can result in lower overall payments.

Efficiency: This method is mathematically the most efficient way to pay off debt. Over time, you’ll pay less compared to other strategies that don’t prioritize interest rates.

Implementing the Debt Avalanche Method

  1. List Your Debts by Interest Rate: Begin by organizing your debts from the highest interest rate to the lowest. This list will guide your repayment strategy.
  2. Minimum Payments on All, Focus on the Highest Rate: Continue making the minimum payments on all your debts to avoid penalties. Then, allocate any extra funds to the debt with the highest interest rate.
  3. Roll Over Payments: Once the debt with the highest interest rate is paid off, take the money you were putting towards it and add it to the payment for the next highest interest rate debt. This “rollover” effect accelerates the repayment process.
  4. Repeat Until Debt-Free: Continue this process, moving down the list from highest to lowest interest rates until all your debts are paid off.

Practical Example

Imagine you have the following debts:

  • Credit Card A: $10,000 at 20% interest
  • Loan B: $5,000 at 15% interest
  • Credit Card C: $2,000 at 10% interest

With the Debt Avalanche method, you would first focus all extra repayment efforts on Credit Card A, the 20% interest rate being the highest. Once that’s paid off, move to Loan B, and finally, Credit Card C.

Benefits of the Debt Avalanche Method

  • Interest Savings: Potentially save thousands in interest payments compared to other repayment strategies.
  • Time Efficient: Reduce the time spent in debt by tackling the most costly debts first.
  • Long-Term Financial Health: Improved financial health over time, with less money spent on interest.

The Debt Avalanche method is an effective strategy for those focused on minimizing interest costs and efficiently managing their debt repayment. It requires discipline and a long-term perspective, but the financial benefits are significant. By understanding and applying this method, you can navigate your way out of debt with a clear, cost-effective plan. Embrace the Avalanche and watch your debts melt away, paving the path to financial freedom.

Alternatives to the Debt Avalanche Method

Here are three alternatives to the Debt Avalanche Method, how they work, and if they may be a good choice for you.

Debt Snowball

  • Focus: Smallest Balances First
  • How It Works: Organize your debts from smallest to largest balance. Pay the minimum on all, but direct extra payments to the smallest debt until it’s fully repaid, then roll the amount to the next smallest.
  • Benefits: Quick wins boost motivation by providing a sense of progress and accomplishment.
  • Ideal For: Individuals who need immediate results to stay motivated and prefer a straightforward approach to debt repayment.
  • Learn more about the Debt Snowball Method.

Debt Cascade

  • Focus: Blending High Interest and Small Balances
  • How It Works: A hybrid approach that involves paying off high-interest debts while also targeting smaller balances that can be quickly eliminated.
  • Benefits: Balances the psychological benefits of the Debt Snowball with the interest savings of the Debt Avalanche.
  • Ideal For: Those who seek a balanced approach, appreciating both the emotional wins and the logical efficiency in their debt repayment strategy.
  • Learn more about the Debt Cascade Method.

Debt Landslide

  • Focus: Newest Debts First
  • How It Works: Focus on paying off the most recently acquired debts first, while maintaining minimum payments on older debts. This strategy is based on the theory that newer debts might have a more significant psychological burden.
  • Benefits: Can improve credit score quickly by addressing potentially higher-rate, newer debts and reducing the overall credit utilization ratio.
  • Ideal For: Individuals who have recently taken on new debt at unfavorable terms and are looking to quickly improve their financial situation and potentially their credit score.
  • Learn more about the Debt Landslide Method.

Each of these strategies offers a unique approach to debt management, allowing individuals to choose a path that best suits their financial habits, psychological needs, and ultimate goals. Whether you’re looking for the quickest psychological boost, the most efficient interest savings, a balanced method, or a way to improve your credit score rapidly, there’s a strategy designed to guide you toward financial freedom.

About the Author

Picture of Todd Christensen

Todd Christensen

As the education manager for Money Fit, author, speaker, and financial educator, Todd Christensen develops financial education programs and provides credit and debt counseling for individuals and groups around the country. In 2014, Todd published his first 5-star-rated book, Everyday Money for Everyday People based on stories and ideas he had heard in nearly 1,000 workshops he facilitated on budgeting, credit, debt reduction, saving, and identity protection.
Visit Todd Christensen's Page
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You hereby authorize and instruct Debt Reduction Services, Inc. (DRS, dba Money Fit by DRS) and/or its assigned agents to:
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Client Privacy, Data Security, and Client Rights Policy

NOTE: This sheet is to inform new or returning clients about our services, records, fees, and limitations that may affect you as a consumer of our services. This form also discloses how we might release your information to other agencies and/or regulators. If you do not understand a statement, please ask a Debt Reduction Services (DRS) counselor for assistance.

Debt Reduction Services, Inc. (DRS) has put into place policies and procedures to protect the security and confidentiality of your nonpublic personal information. This notice explains our online information practices and how we use and maintain your information to conduct our financial education and credit counseling sessions and to fulfill information and question requests. This privacy policy complies with federal laws and regulations.

To provide our financial education and credit counseling services, we collect nonpublic personal information about you as follows: 1) Information we receive from you, 2) Information about your transactions with us or others, and 3) Information we receive from your creditors or a consumer reporting agency. We do not share this information with outside parties.

We use non-identifying and aggregate information to better design our website and services, but we do not disclose anything that could be used to identify you as an individual.

You hereby authorize DRS, when necessary, to share your nonpublic personal, financial, credit, and any information that you provided (including any computations and assessments produced) with the following entities in order to help DRS provide you with appropriate counseling or guide you to appropriate services: third parties such as government agencies, your lender(s), your creditor(s), and nonprofit housing-related and other financial agencies as permitted by law, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

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Debt Reduction Services, Inc. complies with the privacy requirements set forth in the HUD housing counseling agency handbook 7610.1 (05/2010), including the sections 2-2 Mc, 3-1 H(2), 3-3, 5-3 F, and Attachment A.5. At all times, we will comply with all additional laws and regulations to which we are subject regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of individually identifiable information.

  1. Services: DRS provides the following housing-related services: counseling that includes Homeless Assistance, Rental Topics, Pre-purchase/Homebuying, and Home Maintenance and Financial Management for Homeowners (Non-Delinquency Post-Purchase); Education courses that include Financial literacy (including home affordability, budgeting, and understanding use of credit), Predatory lending, loan scam or other fraud prevention, Fair housing, Rental topics, Pre-purchase homebuyer education, Non-delinquency post-purchase workshop (including home maintenance and/or financial management for homeowners), and other workshops not listed above.

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  1. Limits: Our services are limited to our normal weekday business hours. We do not provide individual counseling or education services after hours or on weekends, although our education courses are available 24/7.
  2. Fees: We do not charge fees for our financial management counseling and education. However, if you use them, you may have to pay for our Debt Management Program, Student Loan Counseling, Bankruptcy Certificate Services or certain financial education courses (homebuyer education, rental topics, fair housing, predatory lending, and post-purchase-non-delinquency including home maintenance and/or financial management for homeowners).
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NOTE: If you have an impairment, disability, language barrier, or otherwise require an alternative means of completing this form or accessing information about our counseling services, please communicate with your DRS representative about arranging alternative accommodations.

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Disclosure to Client for HUD Housing Counseling Services

Debt Reduction Services, Inc. and its financial education arm, Money Fit by DRS, offer the following housing counseling and educational services related to housing, personal finance, and bankruptcy certificates to consumers:
  • Housing Education Courses: DRS offers many online self-guided education programs classified as Financial, Budgeting, and Credit Workshops (FBC), Fair Housing Pre-Purchase Education Workshops (FHW), Homelessness Prevention Workshops (HMW), Non-Delinquency Post Purchase Workshops (NDW), Predatory Lending Education Workshops (PLW), Pre-purchase Homebuyer Education Workshops (PPW), and Rental Housing Workshops (RHW). These courses help participants increase their knowledge of and skills in personal finance, including home affordability, budgeting, and understanding the use of credit, as well as predatory lending, loan scams, and other fraud prevention topics, fair housing, rental topics, pre-purchase homebuyer education, non-delinquency post-purchase topics including home maintenance and/or financial management for homeowners, homeless prevention workshop, and other workshops not listed above relating to personal finance and housing. Course details are found below under “Housing Workshops.”
  • Home Equity Conversation Mortgage (HECM) Counseling (RMC): Via telephone and virtual platforms, we offer the required HECM counseling nationwide in addition to in-person counseling in Boise, Idaho. We also offer in-home counseling options in thirty counties across southern Idaho for an additional fee to cover our travel and additional staff time costs.
  • Home Maintenance and Financial Management for Homeowners (Non-Delinquency Post-Purchase) (FBC): Clients receive counseling and materials on the proper maintenance of their home and mortgage refinancing. Clients can find help and resources by phone, in our Boise office, or virtually on all topics related to stabilizing their long-term homeownership.
  • Services for Homeless Counseling (HMC): Clients receive phone, virtual, or in-person (Boise) counseling to evaluate their current housing needs, identify barriers to and goals for housing stability, establish a path to self-sufficiency, and connect with emergency shelters, income-appropriate housing, and/or other community resources (e.g. mental healthcare, job training, transportation, etc.).
  • Pre-Purchase Counseling (PPC): Clients receive counseling through the entire homebuying process. Assistance may involve creating a sustainable household budget, understanding mortgage options, building their credit rating, and putting together a realistic action plan to set and achieve homeownership goals.  Additionally, clients will receive materials and resources about home inspections and other homeownership topics relevant to successfully maintaining a home.
  • Rental Housing Counseling (RHC): Via phone, in-person appointments (Boise, ID), or virtual platforms, clients receive housing counseling relevant to renting, including rent subsidies from HUD or other government and assistance programs. Topics can also address issues and concerns having to do with fair housing, landlord and tenant laws, lease terms, rent delinquency, household budgeting, and finding alternate housing.
DRS also offers the following services:
  • A Debt Management Program (DMP) for consumers struggling to pay their credit cards, collections, medical debts, personal loans, old utility bills, and past-due cell phone accounts;
  • The Budget Briefing and Debtor Education Certificates that are required during the Bankruptcy filing process;
  • A Student Loan Repayment Plan Counseling and application service.

Relationships with Industry Partners

Through such services, DRS has established financial relationships with hundreds of banks, credit unions, and creditors such as American Express, Bank of America, Barclays, Capital One, Chase, Citibank, Credit One, Discover, Synchrony, US Bank, USAA, Wells Fargo, and others.

No Client Obligation

The client is not obligated to receive, purchase or utilize any other services offered by DRS or its exclusive partners to receive financial education or housing counseling services. Alternatives: As a condition of our counseling services, in alignment with meeting our client services goals, and in compliance with HUD’s Housing Counseling Program requirements, we may provide information on alternative services, programs, and products available to you, if applicable and known by our staff. Alternative DMP services include negotiating better repayment terms directly with your individual creditors, paying your debts as agreed, or, in extreme cases, filing for personal bankruptcy. Alternative credit and education services can be found through MyMoney.gov or the Jump$tart Clearinghouse of online financial education resources. Housing counseling alternatives can be found through HUD at www.hud.gov/findacounselor.
Finally, you understand that you may revoke consent to these disclosures by notifying DRS in writing.
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Housing Counseling and Education Fee Schedule

 

Online Education Program Fees*

Homebuyer Education Course: $59 per participant

  • Self-paced course available here, our online housing counseling and education center. Certificates will be automatically generated upon completion of the course (approximately 6-8 hours)

Rental, Fair Housing, Predatory Lending / HOEPA, Post-Purchase (Non-delinquency post-purchase workshop, including home maintenance and/or financial management for homeowners) Online Workshops: $49 per participant

  • Approximately 1 hour each

Other Self-Guided Financial Literacy Webinars (e.g. credit, budgeting, homeless prevention, debt prevention): $0

One-on-one Counseling Fees*

Pre-purchase Homebuying Counseling, Rental Counseling, Post-purchase Ownership Maintenance and Financial Management: $75

  • Session by the hour

Reverse Mortgage/HECM Counseling with Required Certificate:

  • $200†

Credit Report Fee: Paid Directly by Client

*Fees for all but our online education courses and workshops can be paid online by debit card, credit card, or PayPal or in person by cash, check or money order to: “Debt Reduction Services, Inc.” Registration fees are non-refundable 24 hours or less before the start of an in-person course or workshop. Certificates are non-transferable

*Fees may be waived for households with income of 150% or less of that identified on the US Department of Health and Human Services Poverty Guidelines Page

†Home visit counseling is available in 30 southern Idaho counties for potential HECM borrowers at additional costs to cover our travel (IRS reimbursement rates apply) and staff time ($50 per hour or fraction there).

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Housing Counseling and Education Fee Schedule

 

Online Education Program Fees*

Homebuyer Education Course: $59 per participant

  • Self-paced course available here, our online housing counseling and education center. Certificates will be automatically generated upon completion of the course (approximately 6-8 hours)

Rental, Fair Housing, Predatory Lending / HOEPA, Post-Purchase (Non-delinquency post-purchase workshop, including home maintenance and/or financial management for homeowners) Online Workshops: $49 per participant

  • Approximately 1 hour each

Other Self-Guided Financial Literacy Webinars (e.g. credit, budgeting, homeless prevention, debt prevention): $0

One-on-one Counseling Fees*

Pre-purchase Homebuying Counseling, Rental Counseling, Post-purchase Ownership Maintenance and Financial Management: $75

  • Session by the hour

Reverse Mortgage/HECM Counseling with Required Certificate:

  • $200†

Credit Report Fee: Paid Directly by Client

*Fees for all but our online education courses and workshops can be paid online by debit card, credit card, or PayPal or in person by cash, check or money order to: “Debt Reduction Services, Inc.” Registration fees are non-refundable 24 hours or less before the start of an in-person course or workshop. Certificates are non-transferable

*Fees may be waived for households with income of 150% or less of that identified on the US Department of Health and Human Services Poverty Guidelines Page

†Home visit counseling is available in 30 southern Idaho counties for potential HECM borrowers at additional costs to cover our travel (IRS reimbursement rates apply) and staff time ($50 per hour or fraction there).