Managing Debt Golden CO

Are you a college student or a recent graduate? Chances are, you're saddled with a hefty amount of student loans as well as consumer debt, like car payments and credit card balances.

Two-thirds of undergraduates emerge from college with student loans, with the average amount from federal loans alone (Stafford and Perkins loans) just above $19,000. Throw graduate school into the mix, and those numbers get even scarier.

Some students and graduates have already learned how to make smart borrowing decisions and manage their debt. Others are in for a rude surprise -- it can take years to get out from bad financial decisions you made before you even started your first real job.

That's a pity, because one of the main reasons for going to college is to invest in yourself, to increase your earning power down the road, and to open doors for yourself. If you make stupid financial decisions while you're in college and as you transition into the working world, you're squandering your big investment and limiting your choices. Think money gives you freedom? Not if it's borrowed and badly managed. Why close doors on yourself?

Whether you're still in school or have already graduated, keep these rules in mind as you make borrowing and spending decisions.

Smart debt vs. stupid debt

Not all debt is bad. Student loans, for example, are a smart investment if you invest that debt in the right program and do well there. When is educational debt bad? When you're wrecking your transcript because you're out partying all the time, for example, or you borrow for a school or a degree that won't enable you to pay that debt back....