Increase Savings and Reduce Debt with the Shred Method
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Steven Huskey recently had an opportunity to interview Adam Carroll about the Shred Method. The Shred Method leverages Home Equity Lines of Credit to reduce debt and build wealth. The following is a summary of that interview.
Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs) have long been sold as another spending tool for the toys or expenses in your life. For consumers with self-discipline and financial goals, the HELOC is one of the most powerful tools available for debt elimination and mortgage acceleration.
In our conversation with Adam Carroll, financial educator, TED talk alumnus, and advocate of the Shred Method, we uncover how you can save 20% of your gross income AND pay down your debt much more quickly using the power of leverage.
What is the Shred Method?
As Adam presented during a recent podcast episode of Portfolio Pulse, the Shred Method leverages the HELOC, a very simple financial product that virtually any bank or credit union offers, to create a financial arbitrage or interest rate arbitrage against long-term compound interest debt. Think mortgage, business or medical practice debt, student loans, or any other significant debt that may be holding you back from building wealth.
What most people don't realize is that the interest we pay on debt is generally our second largest expense in life, only exceeded by the taxes we pay. There are tax experts available to help you minimize your tax burden, but few experts help you minimize your debt interest. Adam points to The Shred Method for just this purpose, to help reduce the amount of interest paid on debt.
How is the HELOC Superior to a Mortgage Refi?
During the years that Adam owned a mortgage company, he watched a number of clients refinance their mortgages every few years. For the ability to save $100 or $150 a month, they would have to layout $5000 for the new loan. Then, the clock would reset to 30 years, and the client would restart payment on all the interest that they had already paid. Realizing the negative long-term impact of refinancing, Adam started to push his clientele toward HELOCs for the flexibility they create.
Instead of looking at the HELOC as a consumer loan, like you would an installment loan for home improvement, a nicer car, or toys, Adam follows the Shred Method software to use the funds unlocked by the HELOC to pay down high-interest debt or create efficient income.
How Does the Shred Method Work?
The Shred Method software teaches us how to create “income efficiency”, cycling your income through your HELOC on a month-by-month basis. The software that powers the Shred Method processes a complex algorithm and based on your income and your expenses, it recommends where to apply funds from the HELOC to loans with compound interest, such as your mortgage, credit cards, practice/business debt or installment loans.
Through the Shred Method process, you will be lopping off huge chunks of your principal balances and accelerating the amortization table. As a result, your 30-year mortgage is cut dramatically. In fact, Adam points out that for most people, the Shred Method can get them out of debt within three to seven years, depending on their discretionary income and their expenses.
An additional feature of the Shred Method software is your investment considerations. Whether you are funding a 401k, a Roth IRA, a SEP account, a 529, or just a savings account, the Shred Method software has a sophisticated projection tool that takes all your investments into consideration as you remove debt.
Where Can You Go to Learn More About the Shred Method?
The Shred Method may be a viable way for the many Americans who find themselves in debt to accelerate their debt repayment and minimize their obligation to interest, the second largest expense in most people's lives.
To find more information about Adam Carroll’s Shred Method, please visit theshredmethod.com.
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