When refinancing actually saves money
A lower monthly payment and a lower total cost are different things, and a refinance often delivers only one. Work out your break-even month including closing costs — and see the case where dropping your rate by more than a point still costs you $44,000.
What your credit score actually costs, in dollars
The score is a price tag, not a goal. Translate the tiers into money on your own loan size and term, and find out whether waiting three months to improve it is worth it — because sometimes it clearly is not.
Shopping for a car loan rate
Where to get pre-approved before you walk into a dealership, how dealer financing markups work, and how to keep the conversation about the price of the car rather than the size of the payment.
Paying off student loans faster
Which extra payments do the most work, why the timing of them matters more than the size, and the one situation where paying extra is the wrong move entirely.
Start with a calculator instead
If you already know what you are borrowing and just want the numbers, the calculators are faster than reading. Each one handles the arithmetic specific to its category rather than treating every loan the same.
Loan calculator
Any fixed-rate loan: payment, interest, amortization.
Auto loan
Plus the month you stop owing more than the car is worth.
Personal loan
True APR once the origination fee is folded in.
Student loan
What interest adds before repayment even starts.