The average monthly student loan payment is $337, according to Motley Fool research. But not everyone pays something in that ballpark.
A little more than 20% of borrowers pay between $100 and $199 a month in student loans. And roughly the same percentage of borrowers have a monthly student loan payment of $200 to $299.
On the other hand, almost 15% of borrowers have a monthly student loan payment of $500 to $999. And for 5% of borrowers, their monthly student loan payments amount to $1,000 or more. Ouch.
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If you're on the hook for a very large student loan payment each month, it could pay to explore your options for refinancing that debt. You may also want to look at getting a second job to help ensure that you're able to keep up with your payments.
Is refinancing your student loans an option?
If you took out federal student loans, then refinancing may not make a lot of sense. Not only might you end up with an interest rate that's less favorable than what you're currently paying, but you'll lose certain protections that come with federal loans, like the option to put your loans into forbearance.
But chances are, if you're looking at a monthly student loan payment of $1,000 or more, it means you took out private loans in the first place. In that case, it may be possible to refinance those loans and lower your interest rate in the process, thereby shrinking your monthly payments.
To do so, you should first check your credit score to see what shape it's in. The higher your score, the more likely you are to snag a more competitive interest rate on your student debt in the course of refinancing.
It's also important to shop around for the best rate on a student loan refinance. This is something you should do any time you're looking to refinance debt, whether it's a personal loan, auto loan, or mortgage.
The gig economy could come to your rescue
Swinging a $1,000 monthly student loan payment or more is difficult on an average salary. Heck, it's even tough if you're an above-average earner. That's why you may want to take advantage of the booming gig economy.
If you're able to pick up a second job on top of your main one and you're willing to put in a nice number of hours, you might manage to give your income a sizable boost. Now your side hustle won't necessarily suffice in covering your student loan payments in full if you're on the hook for $1,000 a month or more. But that second income might cover, say, half of your monthly payments. That's apt to help.
Unfortunately, it's easy enough to end up with monthly student loan payments of $1,000 or more when you borrow privately for college and attend an expensive school. If that's the monthly payment you're looking at, see if refinancing can lower your payments, and turn to the gig economy to make that debt easier to keep up with.
