In a normal year, many Australians who attended university likely give little thought to their HECS debt. After all, we\u2019re told time and time again it\u2019s a \u201cgood debt\u201d \u2013 one with no interest, no particularly onerous repayments and a friendly creditor (the government).<\/p>\n
But 2022 isn\u2019t any normal year, at least from an economic perspective. Inflation is running rampant, up 7.3 per cent on the latest official count, and forecast to hit about 8 per cent as the price of everything from petrol to health insurance rises.<\/p>\n
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Money editor Dominic Powell and senior economics writer Jessica Irvine are hosting the new podcast It All Adds Up.<\/span>Credit:<\/span>Dominic Lorrimer<\/cite><\/p>\n While this is bad news for us all, it\u2019s particularly bad news for anyone with student debt, which is indexed with inflation each year on June 1. This could mean an increase of nearly $2000 for someone with an average HECS debt of $23,685. Ouch.<\/p>\n With this scary deadline looming, on this week\u2019s episode of It All Adds Up<\/em>, we ask if it\u2019s worth repaying some of your HECS debt early, or if it\u2019s best to just let it ride and slowly pay it off over time.<\/p>\n A friendly listener also asks for our best tips on budgeting apps, and Jess reveals how a bit of discount shopping could save you money each month on your internet bill.<\/p>\n Have a listen on all major podcast players, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and don\u2019t forget to send in questions of your own to italladdsup@nine.com.au.<\/p>\n For more money saving tips and advice, sign up to receive the free weekly \u2018Money with Jess\u2019 email here.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n What you need to know about owning your own home<\/b><\/p>\n\n