Last week I was talking with a friend of mine who is still paying off his student loans from graduate school. Like he does with his car loan and his mortgage, he pays more than the minimum amount. The extra money goes toward the principal (the balance owed on the loan), which means he pays the loan off faster and with less interest . If this is something you can afford, I highly recommend it, especially since student loans don't have a prepayment penalty .

However, my friend's student loan servicer was recently purchased by another company, and now he's dealing with a different billing system.

Before, he used a loan coupon book  and mailed in his more-than-the-minimum payment every month. When he called the new company to ask about payment options, the representative looked at his account and said, "You're paid ahead through April, so you don't have to make any payments until then."

Then he asked for a bill, and the representative explained that he wouldn't be receiving one until his next payment was due — in April.

To be fair, I suppose most student loan companies aren't used to their customers inquiring about paying more and paying in advance!

What I recommended to my friend is that he set up a recurring automatic payment for his student loan through his checking account.

When he balked, I told him to think of automatic payments as an "electronic coupon book."  That way, he won't have to rely on receiving a bill — he can just take matters into his own hands. Plus, he'll be saving paper and stamps!

What works best for you to stay ahead — or at least on top of — your student loan payments?