Our Toys for Tots fundraiser has come to a close and we are blown away by the results. But before we dive in to that, let’s get a little education on student loans. I frequently talk about them in snippets on my show, so why not compile all of my tidbits into one newsletter for you, Gumbonation.

Student loan debt has reached an all time high of $1.5 trillion. This is a huge change from the time I was paying off my student loans. Nowadays, the average student loan borrower owes about $34,000. That is $8,000 more than the typical down payment of $26,000 on a median home price of $260,000.

Put it this way, $1.5 trillion is enough to buy every single home on the market in the United States, twice. TWICE! There are studies being done that suggest lenders are systematically forcing borrowers into forbearance. Now if you don’t know what forbearance is, simply put it means that your student loan payments are postponed or reduced but interest continues to accrue.

So Gumbonation, heed my advice when I tell you to be weary of that. Pay attention to your monthly student loan payments and make sure to pay them on time. If you are struggling to make payments, see if an Income Based Repayment Plan is an option for you. It is based on your discretionary income so the payments are less and it slows the interest down from accruing. A double win!

But enough of the doom and gloom, let’s move on to more cheerful, holiday happenings, like the outcome of our Toys for Tots fundraiser! Gumbonation, we are so grateful to you for the support you have shown for our Toys for Tots fundraiser! We had a goal of 300 toys and YAHTZEE!!! We collected over 500 toys!!! That’s right, over 500!!! Thank you to everyone who donated a toy. You have helped to not only put a smile on our faces, but also the faces of many children this holiday season.

We want to give a special thank you to our sponsors:

Bayou Rum

Tullamore Dew

Tito’s Handmade Vodka

Title Corp of Louisana

CrossCountry Mortgage

iHeartRadio

The Marine Toys for Tots

360 Home Inspection Services

Southland Appraisals

Team Title

Black Rain Entertainment

TWFG Insurance

Greg Ruiz Insurance Agency

Essent Mortgage Insurance