Calculate pay off debt with minimum payment only?

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SUMMARY

This discussion focuses on calculating the time required to pay off a debt of $5,000 with a minimum monthly payment of 2% and an interest rate of 6.4%. The calculations indicate that it will take approximately 58.3 months to fully pay off the debt if a constant payment of $100 is made each month. The total interest paid over this period can be derived from the formula for an arithmetic series, considering the decreasing balance. The discussion emphasizes the importance of understanding the relationship between payment rates and interest calculations.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of basic financial concepts such as interest rates and debt repayment.
  • Familiarity with arithmetic series for calculating total interest paid.
  • Knowledge of logarithmic functions for determining the number of payments.
  • Ability to perform calculations involving monthly payment rates and remaining balances.
NEXT STEPS
  • Learn how to apply the formula for calculating the number of payments in debt repayment scenarios.
  • Explore the implications of varying payment rates on total interest paid over time.
  • Investigate the effects of different interest compounding periods on debt repayment.
  • Study financial calculators or software tools that automate debt repayment calculations.
USEFUL FOR

Individuals managing personal debt, financial advisors, and anyone interested in understanding the impact of minimum payments on debt repayment timelines and interest costs.

Juliayaho
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How can i calculate how many months it would take me to pay off a debt if I only make the minimum payment?

let say I ow 5000 my interest rate is 6.4% my payment rate is 2% so If i calculate my minimum payment I know it be 100 more or less but I i just pay that minimum how many month it would take me to pay off that debt and how much interest would I end up paying at the end?

what would be a formula to calculate that?
Thanks!
 
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Juliayaho said:
How can i calculate how many months it would take me to pay off a debt if I only make the minimum payment?

let say I ow 5000 my interest rate is 6.4% my payment rate is 2% so If i calculate my minimum payment I know it be 100 more or less but I i just pay that minimum how many month it would take me to pay off that debt and how much interest would I end up paying at the end?

what would be a formula to calculate that?
Thanks!

Hi Juliayaho! :)

I found this thread lying around.
Do you still want help on it?

If you pay 2% per period (is that per month?), it will take 50 periods.

The interest you pay is 6.4% over the original 5000, then 6.4% over the remaining 4900, and so on.
Btw, what is the period you pay 6.4% on? Is it a month? Or a year?
Assuming you pay 6.4% over the same period that make your payments of 2% for, the total interest you pay will be $6.4\% \times (5000 + 4900 + 4800 + ... + 100)$.

This is a so called arithmetic series.
Do you know how to calculate it?
 
Juliayaho said:
let say I ow 5000 my interest rate is 6.4% my payment rate is 2% so If i calculate my minimum payment I know it be 100 more or less but I i just pay that minimum how many month it would take me to pay off that debt and how much interest would I end up paying at the end?

You seem to be saying "if I pay 100 per month constantly":
quote: "I just pay that minimum"

If so, it will take approximately 58.3 months.

u = p / (p−ai)
v = 1 + i
n = LOG(u) / LOG(v)

n = number of payments(?)
p = monthly payment(100)
a = amount originally owing(5000)
i = interest monthly(.064/12)

u = 100/[100−5000(.064/12)]
v = 1+.064/12
n = LOG(u) / LOG(v) = 58.30898...

Note that if instead you pay 2% of the opening month's balance,
then the initial $100 payment will slowly reduce...
but theoretically you will never pay off!
 
Last edited:

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