Plans & strategy

The five plans

A plan bundles an investment rule with a debt-ordering rule (Avalanche or Snowball). The Lab filters; it never ranks.

A plan bundles an investment rule with a debt-ordering rule. Debt order is either Avalanche (highest APR first — mathematically optimal) or Snowball (smallest balance first — momentum). The Lab shows all five with neutral filter tags; it filters, it never ranks.

PlanLeverageWhat it does
Cash First + AvalancheNoneHighest-APR debt is cleared first; the rest is invested.
Cash First + SnowballNoneSmallest debts are cleared first; the rest is invested.
Smith Manoeuvre + AvalancheHELOCMortgage interest becomes tax-deductible; avalanche order on the rest.
Smith Manoeuvre + SnowballHELOCMortgage interest becomes tax-deductible; snowball order on the rest.
Margin FloatMarginBills float on a margin loan, the freed cash is invested, high-APR debt is paid down.
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