The average college student is now more than $20,000 in debt at graduation. The average salary for a newly minted graduate, meanwhile, is $30,000. No wonder so many grads say the heck with it and simply take on more debt -- buying new cars, carrying credit-card balances and paying back as little of their student loans as they can get away with. If you’re smart, though, you’ll make a concerted effort to get out of debt now -- while you’re still young enough to make it count. Why should you care about debt? Well, for one, every dollar you spend on interest for credit cards and loans is a dollar you don’t have for other, better uses: saving, investing, spending on something fun.
* The more debt you have when you’re ready to buy a home, the smaller the mortgage you’re likely to get. That may mean settling for a smaller house in a less desirable neighborhood than you’d like. * You may not be able to save enough for retirement. * If you get behind on your payments, you could wind up with a trashed credit rating, which will make your debt even more expensive.