Make this move to get rid of your debt faster
- Author: Sadie Krajcik
- Posted: 2024-08-24
What exactly is a debt snowflake? Is it:
1. Debt that grows and grows everyday like snowflakes falling and accumulating
2. Debt that freezes you into the next century
3. A method that prioritizes paying off higher interest rates first
4. A method that has you pay off the smallest amount of debt first
Ok, so none of those answers are right. Sorry, that was cruel, but read on to crush your debt!
The debt snowflake method has you use tiny payments to help pay off your debt. It sounds a lot like other strategies that aim to speed up the your debt-free party, but it's different:
A debt snowflake uses the small payments to pay off your debt faster.
These savings are then used toward outstanding bills.
If you haven't warmed up to the snowball or avalanche debt payoff methods, think smaller.
Much smaller. Consider the debt snowflake strategy for tackling debt. Unlike its better-known siblings, the snowflake method doesn't involve a structured budgeting system for paying down your debt - think of it more like an easy way to throw a little extra money toward your debt.
Just like snowflakes, tiny payments might not seem like much when tackling a mountain of debt. But when they pile up, your snowflake payments can add up to a lot of help. Here's how.
How Does the Debt Snowflake Method Work?
First, debt snowflake is basically an offshoot of debt avalanche and debt snowball, two popular methods for getting you debt-free. Here's a quick reminder of those methods:
- The avalanche method prioritizes paying off debts with the highest interest rates first. After the biggest balance is paid off, you move on to the next-highest interest debt, and so on. It's the best way to save the most money on interest as you're paying down your debt.
- For the snowball method, you pay off the smallest amount of debt first, then work your way up through paying off progressively larger debts. It's great for people who are motivated by small wins as they watch individual debts disappear faster.
Both options involve creating schedules for making payments and putting any money toward the targeted goal - that's not the case with the debt snowflake method.
Accumulation is the key to making snowflake work. It requires you to realize all the ways you can save and/or make extra money each day - above and beyond your usual strategies.
Consider this scenario:
- If you buy a large, expensive coffee everyday with extra whip cream and pumps of deliciousness (yummy), consider buying a smaller size and save a buck or two.
- At lunch, you and your favorite worker buddy can split a larger meal and you'll add more savings to your snowflake pile.
- You can also have a yard sale or use payment for jobs that are outside your normal budget (lawn mowing, shoveling, pet care, housesitting, etc.).
You get the idea. We are not talking about big amounts of money here.
Nor are we talking about money accounted for in your budget; this is found money only.
The idea is to benefit from these small cash surprises instead of letting them slip through your fingers, without even the tiniest contribution toward your financial goals, which #1 should be reducing and eliminating your debt!
All these savings can be used to reduce your debt and pleasantly drive you to financial freedom! And financial freedom is a wonderful feeling.
Pro Tip: Contact your lender to request payments apply toward your principal balance, which will reduce interest expense and increase the time you celebrate paying off your debt.
However, some banks limit how many payments you make in a month, so please check that out.
