I've got about $5000 saved up in my savings account.
At the same time, I've got about $8500 left to pay off on my student loan, with all the interest that includes (6%/year, compounded monthly).
I want to pay my student loan off as fast as possible, and I have been considering just dumping my savings into the loan, either once the two equal each other, or immediately.
I'm not currently putting any money into my savings because I'm trying to pay off that loan first.
Alternately, I could dump some of my savings into the loan so that I'm not left without a safety net in case of emergencies - but I'm not sure how much I should reasonably keep in Savings for such emergencies.
FTR: Breakdown of my income/expenses. I have no other debt besides my student loan, and while I use a credit card, I use it only to make purchases I can pay for, and always pay off the full balance.
Income: $2900/mo
$1400/fortnight my income(ususally $2800/mo, steady job).
~$100 Wife's income/mo (Not consistent - based on commissions)
Expenses: $2160/mo
$975 Rent/mo
$110 Elec/mo (higher in the summer due to air conditioning needs)
$75 Internet/mo
$160 Phone /mo
$500-600 Food/mo (2 people)
~$100 set aside for luxuries/mo
$250 Student Loan Payment /mo
So, in short, should I dump some or all of my savings into my student loan, should I do it now or when I've paid off a bigger portion of that loan, or is this an entirely unreasonable plan?
Side Note: Since it's getting mentioned a lot, there are a few 'hidden' expenses that aren't being shown here because they get taken out of my paycheck pre-tax. There's $100/mo for 2 month-long bus passes, $185 for health insurance including dental (going independent right now would be insanely expensive, so we're planning to switch once my company's open enrollment starts) and 3% of my pre-tax paycheck going into a deferred compensation plan.