Many people struggle to determine whether they should prioritize paying off debt or build up their savings for one simple reason: the answer depends on your individual circumstances and goals.
The good news is you don’t need to choose one or the other. Find the balance right for you by answering a few quick questions about your financial situation.
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Your goal may be to pay off your debt as soon as possible, but it’s important to prioritize saving for an emergency. Should something unexpected happen, having even a small emergency fund could help you from accruing more debt.
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With an emergency savings fund in place, you can prioritize paying off high-interest debt while making smaller contributions to savings.
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Planning and saving for major expenses can help avoid unnecessary debt.
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Nice work! Continue to strike a balance between saving for the future and paying off any future debt.
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Prioritize your future self. The earlier you start saving, the more you benefit from compound interest. It’s possible to save and pay off debt at the same time — the key is finding the balance that works best for you.
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Find out more about how a personal loan can help set you up for the future with no obligation or impact to your credit score.
USA PATRIOT ACT NOTICE: IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT PROCEDURES FOR OPENING A NEW ACCOUNT
To help the government fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering activities, Federal law requires all financial institutions to obtain, verify, and record information that identifies each person who opens an account. What this means for you: When you open an account, we will ask for your name, address, date of birth, and other information that will allow us to identify you. We may also ask to see your driver's license or other identifying documents.
* Applications submitted on this website may be funded by one of several lenders, including: FinWise Bank, a Utah-chartered bank, Member FDIC; Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC; Midland States Bank, Member FDIC; and Classic Funding, a licensed lender in certain states. Loan approval is not guaranteed. Actual loan offers and loan amounts, terms and annual percentage rates ("APR") may vary based upon Classic Funding's proprietary scoring and underwriting system's review of your credit, financial condition, other factors, and supporting documents or information you provide. Origination or other fees from 0% to 8% may apply depending upon your state of residence. Upon final underwriting approval to fund a loan, said funds are often sent via ACH the next non-holiday business day. Loans are offered from $2,000 to $36,500, at rates ranging from 7.99% to 35.99% APR, with terms from 24 to 72 months. Minimum loan amounts apply in Georgia, $3,500; Colorado, $3,001; and Hawaii, $2,000. For a well-qualified customer, a $10,000 loan for a period of 48 months with an APR of 24.90% and origination fee of 8% will have a payment of $331.01 per month. (Actual terms and rate depend on credit history, income, and other factors.) Customers may have the option to deduct the origination fee from the disbursed loan amount if desired. If the origination fee is added to the financed amount, interest is charged on the full principal amount. The total amount due is the total amount of the loan you will have paid after you have made all payments as scheduled.
* Applications submitted may be funded by one of several lenders including First Electronics Bank, a Utah-chartered bank, Member FDIC; Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC; and Classic Funding, a licensed lender in certain states. Loan approval is not guaranteed. Minimum loan amounts apply in Georgia, $3,500; Colorado, $3,001; and Hawaii, $1,500. Upon final underwriting approval to fund a loan, said funds are often available the next non-holiday business day. Actual loan offers and loan amounts, terms and annual percentage rates (“APR”) may vary. Loans are offered from $500 to $10,000 (loan amount maximum based on MCC codes), at rates ranging from 7.99% to 35.99% APR, with terms from 24 to 48 months. For example, for a well-qualified customer, a $5,000 purchase will have a 90-day promotional period with no interest, a 3% fee, and $100 monthly payments. After the promotional period, a remaining balance will be a 24-month term loan, and $263.72 monthly payments with an overall APR of 26.54%.
**Minimum initial transaction of $1,000 in Alabama, Idaho and Iowa.
1. Alimony, child support, or separate maintenance income need not to be revealed if you do not wish to have it considered as a basis for repaying this obligation.
2. The Federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act prohibits creditors from discriminating against credit applicants on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age (provided the applicant has the capacity to enter into a binding contract); because all or part of the applicant’s income derives from any public assistance program; or because the applicant has in good faith exercised any right under the Consumer Credit Protection Act. The federal agency that administers compliance with this law concerning FinWise Bank is the FDIC Consumer Response Center, 1100 Walnut Street, Box #11, Kansas City, MO 64106. The federal agency that administers compliance with this law concerning Coastal Community Bank and Midland States Bank is the Federal Reserve Consumer Help Center, P.O. Box 1200, Minneapolis, MN 55480. The federal agency that administers compliance with this law for Classic Funding is the Federal Trade Commission, Equal Credit Opportunity, Washington, DC 20580.
Click here to see our current list of state licenses
California residents click here ››
Wisconsin residents click here ››
Ohio residents click here ››
Classic Funding's NMLS #1424139 Visit NMLS Consumer Access