Money is often a major source of strife between couples. The burden of student loan debt in a relationship certainly doesn’t help long-term partners build wealth together. Perhaps you’ve even considered helping your partner pay off student loan debt so you can enjoy a debt-free future together.
There is some disagreement about whether it’s smart for significant others to help each other pay back their student loans. It’s not uncommon for couples to want to combine finances with their partners, which might mean helping them pay off their debt once and for all. Others believe in keeping finances separate — if their partner got into debt, it’s his or her own responsibility to get out.
Why You Should Help Your Significant Other Pay Back Student Loans
As someone with $33,000 in student loan debt, I know how burdensome the numbers can feel. My husband does too, since he has more than $300,000 in student loan debt, much of it from medical school.
Even though he owes nearly 10 times more than I do, I still feel it is our debt to tackle together. We plan on helping each other pay it off in full. After all, we decided together that he would go to medical school. I know that if we also work together to pay it off, we’ll be debt-free that much quicker.
In fact, helping your significant other pay off his or her student loans has both financial and emotional benefits:
1. You Achieve Your Goals Faster
When one or both partners in a couple have debt, it holds them back from accomplishing what they really want to do together in life. Whether it’s going on a family vacation or saving for retirement, working together to overcome debt can help you achieve your goals as a couple faster, especially if one person earns significantly more income.
It can be a complete win-win: both partners are able to do what they enjoy, reach mutual financial goals quickly, and move on to new stages in the relationship, such as buying a house or having children.
2. You Can Strengthen Your Relationship
When two people enter a long-term relationship, the expectation is that they will work together toward reaching common goals. Yet money troubles are a chief cause of tension for many couples and often go unaddressed. Sitting down to have the difficult conversation about how you will pay off debt together can bring money-related issues to the surface and urge you to work together.
It’s also empowering to reach difficult goals together. By paying attention to spending, putting extra income toward loan payoff, and concentrating on maintaining a budget, a couple can generate the spirit of cooperation and learn what two people can accomplish together.
When Helping Your Partner Pay Off Student Loans Is a Bad Idea
Of course, every relationship is different and not all couples will find that helping each other pay off student loan debt is the best choice. There are a couple of instances when you’re better off letting your significant other tackle student loan debt solo:
1. You Maintain Separate Finances
According to a survey by TD Bank , 42% of couples who have joint bank accounts also maintain separate, individual accounts. The biggest reason for doing so? Couples wanted independence and the ability to make autonomous personal spending decisions.
There’s nothing wrong with keeping separate finances in a relationship. Some people feel restricted when they have to maintain a shared budget with a significant other, or as thought they can’t spend their own money as they please. It’s relatively common for couples to have separate accounts in addition to a joint account for shared expenses, such as mortgage payments and groceries.
If you’re part of a couple that likes to keep things separate, student loan debt should be no different. If you don’t expect your significant other to help pay your credit card bills or everyday expenses, you shouldn’t ask for help paying down student loan debt, either (and neither should they).
2. Your Partner Manages Money Poorly
A history of money problems is good reason to let your significant other handle student loan debt without your help. Poor financial decisions or a lack of money management skills won’t improve if you’re there to bail your partner out.
Instead, act as his or her biggest supporter and only give advice when asked. When it comes to reaching goals — especially money-related ones — it’s sometimes best to let a poor money manager learn the hard way and hone some personal finance skills in the process.
There are plenty of good reasons to help your significant other with pay off student loan debt, as well as to stay out of it. Your decision should be based on how well your partner manages money, what you’ve agreed to as a couple, and how significantly that student loan debt is impacting your lives.
Remember, the goal of any long-term relationship is to live a happy, prosperous, and pleasant life together. So decide what will best contribute to reaching that goal, whether it’s by helping with debt repayment or by allowing your partner to handle it independently.
Interested in refinancing student loans?
Here are the top 6 lenders of 2019!Lender | Variable APR | Eligible Degrees | |
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Check out the testimonials and our in-depth reviews! 1 Important Disclosures for Earnest. Earnest DisclosuresTo qualify, you must be a U.S. citizen or possess a 10-year (non-conditional) Permanent Resident Card, reside in a state Earnest lends in, and satisfy our minimum eligibility criteria. You may find more information on loan eligibility here: https://www.earnest.com/eligibility. Not all applicants will be approved for a loan, and not all applicants will qualify for the lowest rate. Approval and interest rate depend on the review of a complete application. Earnest fixed rate loan rates range from 3.89% APR (with Auto Pay) to 7.89% APR (with Auto Pay). Variable rate loan rates range from 2.47% APR (with Auto Pay) to 6.97% APR (with Auto Pay). For variable rate loans, although the interest rate will vary after you are approved, the interest rate will never exceed 8.95% for loan terms 10 years or less. For loan terms of 10 years to 15 years, the interest rate will never exceed 9.95%. For loan terms over 15 years, the interest rate will never exceed 11.95% (the maximum rates for these loans). Earnest variable interest rate loans are based on a publicly available index, the one month London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR). Your rate will be calculated each month by adding a margin between 1.82% and 5.50% to the one month LIBOR. The rate will not increase more than once per month. Earnest rate ranges are current as of Month/Day/Year, and are subject to change based on market conditions and borrower eligibility. Auto Pay discount: If you make monthly principal and interest payments by an automatic, monthly deduction from a savings or checking account, your rate will be reduced by one quarter of one percent (0.25%) for so long as you continue to make automatic, electronic monthly payments. This benefit is suspended during periods of deferment and forbearance. The information provided on this page is updated as of 08/21/18. Earnest reserves the right to change, pause, or terminate product offerings at any time without notice. Earnest loans are originated by Earnest Operations LLC. California Finance Lender License 6054788. NMLS # 1204917. Earnest Operations LLC is located at 302 2nd Street, Suite 401N, San Francisco, CA 94107. Terms and Conditions apply. Visit https://www.earnest.com/terms-of-service, email us at hello@earnest.com, or call 888-601-2801 for more information on ourstudent loan refinance product. © 2018 Earnest LLC. All rights reserved. Earnest LLC and its subsidiaries, including Earnest Operations LLC, are not sponsored by or agencies of the United States of America. 2 Important Disclosures for Laurel Road. Laurel Road DisclosuresFIXED APR However, if the borrower chooses to make monthly payments automatically by electronic funds transfer (EFT) from a bank account, the fixed rate will decrease by 0.25%, and will increase back up to the regular fixed interest rate described in the preceding paragraph if the borrower stops making (or we stop accepting) monthly payments automatically by EFT from the designated borrower’s bank account. VARIABLE APR However, if the borrower chooses to make monthly payments automatically by electronic funds transfer (EFT) from a bank account, the variable rate will decrease by 0.25%, and will increase back up to the regular variable interest rate described in the preceding paragraph if the borrower stops making (or we stop accepting) monthly payments automatically by EFT from the designated borrower’s bank account. 3 Important Disclosures for SoFi. SoFi Disclosures
4 Important Disclosures for LendKey. LendKey DisclosuresRefinancing via LendKey.com is only available for applicants with qualified private education loans from an eligible institution. Loans that were used for exam preparation classes, including, but not limited to, loans for LSAT, MCAT, GMAT, and GRE preparation, are not eligible for refinancing with a lender via LendKey.com. If you currently have any of these exam preparation loans, you should not include them in an application to refinance your student loans on this website. Applicants must be either U.S. citizens or Permanent Residents in an eligible state to qualify for a loan. Certain membership requirements (including the opening of a share account and any applicable association fees in connection with membership) may apply in the event that an applicant wishes to accept a loan offer from a credit union lender. Lenders participating on LendKey.com reserve the right to modify or discontinue the products, terms, and benefits offered on this website at any time without notice. LendKey Technologies, Inc. is not affiliated with, nor does it endorse, any educational institution. 5 Important Disclosures for CommonBond. CommonBond DisclosuresOffered terms are subject to change. Loans are offered by CommonBond Lending, LLC (NMLS # 1175900). If you are approved for a loan, the interest rate offered will depend on your credit profile, your application, the loan term selected and will be within the ranges of rates shown. All Annual Percentage Rates (APRs) displayed assume borrowers enroll in auto pay and account for the 0.25% reduction in interest rate. All variable rates are based on a 1-month LIBOR assumption of 2.28% effective October 10, 2018. 6 Important Disclosures for Citizens Bank. Citizens Bank Disclosures
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![]() | 2.47% – 6.97%1 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 2.47% – 6.99%3 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 2.68% – 8.96%4 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 3.23% – 6.65%2 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 2.61% – 7.35%5 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 3.00% – 9.74%6 | Undergrad & Graduate |