Travis helps you navigate the insane world of student loans, especially if you owe $20,000 to $1 million. If you've ever spent too much time on the phone with your loan servicer, this is the show for you. Every week we share tips on loan forgiveness, investing, crushing debt, and how to get to financial freedom when you owe more than most people's mortgage.
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You’re coming off years of low or no student loan payments, only to face 10-20x jumps seemingly overnight. We get into why payments are up so sharply, what to do (and not do) if your budget’s getting squeezed, and how to use tax and filing strategies to lower your monthly student loan bill. We also share how to navigate marriage, family size, and community property rules when recertifying, so you…
If you’re on an income-driven repayment plan, you might be paying a marginal tax rate that rivals (or exceeds) those in high-tax countries. We walk through exactly how that number gets built, showing how many borrowers effectively lose close to half of every additional dollar earned. We get practical about how this impacts your investment strategy, spending habits, and even decisions like working…
Summer’s winding down and, let’s be real, if you’ve got kids, you’re counting the minutes until school starts. But whether you’re squeezing in that last vacation or piecing together a back-to-school checklist, we make the case that you should also start collecting something else: so-called “old person hobbies.” We share why diving into activities like sourdough baking, tree planting, or astronomy…
Most people who care about money — especially those with big student loans — eventually end up worrying, "Am I on track to retire?" But that’s not the right question. Today, I break down why obsessing over retirement misses the point, and explain how shifting your focus to what you actually want in the next year can have a much bigger impact. Plus, I get real about what happened when I chased…
If you're coming out of professional school this fall, here's the quirk in your favor: you almost certainly didn't borrow after July 2026, which means you still have access to every repayment plan that existed before that cutoff. Some of these new-grad moves have been around for years, but the arrival of the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) changes the math, and we walk through the hacks that let…
Servicers started sending official 90-day notices on July 1, and roughly 6 million borrowers are still sitting on SAVE trying to figure out what comes next. Learn what that notice actually means for your timeline, why the new 1% autopay interest reduction is more of a distraction than a deal for most people, and why consolidating right now could cost new grads a decade of extra payments. Plus, the…
AI hype is everywhere — and it’s about more than AI taking over your job. It also affects the stock market, your investments, and even your student loan paydown strategy. Find out if we’re living through another tech bubble moment, why student loan borrowers should pay attention, and how you might want to rethink where your extra cash goes in uncertain times. Key moments: (03:46) Deciding between…
The new RAP plan has gotten plenty of criticism, but it might not be all bad news for every borrower. Learn where RAP could help, where it could hurt, and why the right strategy depends so much on your income, forgiveness goals, and long-term financial picture. Key moments: (03:10) Who the RAP plan might actually help (06:37) RAP affects forgiveness timelines and PSLF strategy (08:20) Forecasting…
We just got back from the NASFAA conference in Washington, D.C., and there's a lot to unpack. From the launch of the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) and what it means for forgiveness strategies, to new federal loan limits and whether private loans can fill the funding gap for future grad and professional students, we're breaking down what these shifts mean for current borrowers, schools, and…
Scroll through any financial feed, and you'll eventually hit the same pitch: AUM (assets under management) fees are a ripoff, and only foolish high earners pay them. We think that framing bends the math to sell you something, so we’re breaking down why AUM fees have become the villain in personal finance marketing and giving you a real test for judging whether any advisor is worth the cost. Key…
You've heard of HENRYs, high earners who are not rich yet. But what if you're a high earner with six figures in student loan debt on top of it? That's a SHENRY, and the path to wealth looks different when a 401(k), a 457, an HSA, and a $300,000 loan balance are all competing for the same paycheck. We walk through the five moves SHENRYs can make to accelerate wealth growth, from maximizing…
