Debt Payoff Skill
The avalanche-vs-snowball debate has a correct answer (avalanche, arithmetically) and a true objection (plans people abandon save nobody anything) — and the only honest way to weigh them is to price the difference on the actual debts. Sometimes morale costs $40; sometimes it costs $4,000. This skill runs both strategies month by month with the script, shows what choosing early wins actually costs, and builds the plan around the constraint that matters most: it has to survive contact with a real budget.
What This Skill Produces
- The head-to-head — debt-free date and total interest for avalanche and snowball, simulated on the real debts
- The payoff order — which debt dies when, under the chosen strategy
- The morale price tag — what snowball's early wins cost in interest, in dollars, so the choice is informed
- The survival rules — minimum-viable version for bad months, and the windfall protocol
Required Inputs
Ask for these if not provided:
- Every debt — name, balance, APR, minimum payment; the plan is only as real as this list (and finding a forgotten debt later breaks more than math)
- The extra amount — monthly money beyond the minimums, the honest number; zero is an answer that changes the conversation to budget or income first
- Any special terms — promotional 0% windows ending (a deferred-interest cliff outranks every APR), variable rates, loans with payoff penalties (rare, but ask)
- The track record — have they started and abandoned plans before? It weighs the morale argument with evidence instead of vibes
Programmatic Helper
python3 scripts/debt_payoff.py --debt "visa:9000:24.9:180" --debt "loan:3000:6:60" --extra 200
python3 scripts/debt_payoff.py --debt "a:2000:19:50" --debt "b:9000:6:180" --extra 150 --json
Deterministic month-by-month simulation: interest accrues, minimums are paid, the surplus cascades onto the strategy's target debt, and freed-up minimums roll forward. Fixed APRs, on-time payments, no new charges — the assumptions are printed with the result.
Framework: The Choosing Rules
- Price the difference before debating it — the interest gap between strategies on these debts is a number, not a philosophy; under ~$200 it's noise and snowball's momentum wins free
- A minimum that doesn't cover interest is an emergency — a balance growing at its minimum (the script makes this visible) jumps every queue; that debt is on fire in a way the others aren't
- Deferred-interest cliffs outrank APR order — a promotional balance that back-charges all accrued interest at month 24 gets paid off before its cliff regardless of strategy
- The plan needs a bad-month setting — define now what happens when the extra can't be paid: minimums-only is a paused plan, not a failed one; the difference is whether it restarts
- Windfalls have a protocol — tax refunds and bonuses go to the current target debt by prior decision, because in-the-moment decisions about windfalls have a known winner and it isn't the debt
Output Format
Debt Payoff Plan: [N] debts, [total]
The Head-to-Head
[Script output: both strategies, dates, interest totals, the avalanche savings]
The Call
[Which strategy and why, in two sentences — citing the priced difference and the track record, not doctrine]
The Payoff Order
[Debt by debt with projected month — the countdown that makes progress visible]
Survival Rules
Bad month: [minimums-only protocol, restart trigger] · Windfalls: [target-debt rule] · Cliff watch: [any promotional deadlines, calendared]
Assumes fixed rates and no new charges — the plan's silent partner is the spending that stops. Educational model, not financial advice — verify with a licensed professional before acting on it.
Quality Checks
Anti-Patterns
1---2name: debt-payoff3description: Build a debt payoff plan — avalanche vs snowball simulated month by month on your actual debts, the real payoff dates, and the psychology-vs-arithmetic tradeoff priced in dollars. Use when asked how do I pay off my debts, avalanche or snowball, make me a debt payoff plan, tackle my credit cards or loans, or when will I be debt-free. Produces the month-by-month comparison from the script, the payoff order with dates, the interest cost of choosing morale over math, and the plan-survival rules. Educational, not regulated financial advice.4---5
6# Debt Payoff Skill
7
8The avalanche-vs-snowball debate has a correct answer (avalanche, arithmetically) and a true objection (plans people abandon save nobody anything) — and the only honest way to weigh them is to price the difference on the *actual* debts. Sometimes morale costs $40; sometimes it costs $4,000. This skill runs both strategies month by month with the script, shows what choosing early wins actually costs, and builds the plan around the constraint that matters most: it has to survive contact with a real budget.
9
10## What This Skill Produces
11
12- **The head-to-head** — debt-free date and total interest for avalanche and snowball, simulated on the real debts
13- **The payoff order** — which debt dies when, under the chosen strategy
14- **The morale price tag** — what snowball's early wins cost in interest, in dollars, so the choice is informed
15- **The survival rules** — minimum-viable version for bad months, and the windfall protocol
16
17## Required Inputs
18
19Ask for these if not provided:
20- **Every debt** — name, balance, APR, minimum payment; the plan is only as real as this list (and finding a forgotten debt later breaks more than math)
21- **The extra amount** — monthly money beyond the minimums, the honest number; zero is an answer that changes the conversation to budget or income first
22- **Any special terms** — promotional 0% windows ending (a deferred-interest cliff outranks every APR), variable rates, loans with payoff penalties (rare, but ask)
23- **The track record** — have they started and abandoned plans before? It weighs the morale argument with evidence instead of vibes
24
25## Programmatic Helper
26
27```bash
28python3 scripts/debt_payoff.py --debt "visa:9000:24.9:180" --debt "loan:3000:6:60" --extra 200
29python3 scripts/debt_payoff.py --debt "a:2000:19:50" --debt "b:9000:6:180" --extra 150 --json
30```
31
32Deterministic month-by-month simulation: interest accrues, minimums are paid, the surplus cascades onto the strategy's target debt, and freed-up minimums roll forward. Fixed APRs, on-time payments, no new charges — the assumptions are printed with the result.
33
34## Framework: The Choosing Rules
35
36- **Price the difference before debating it** — the interest gap between strategies on these debts is a number, not a philosophy; under ~$200 it's noise and snowball's momentum wins free
37- **A minimum that doesn't cover interest is an emergency** — a balance growing at its minimum (the script makes this visible) jumps every queue; that debt is on fire in a way the others aren't
38- **Deferred-interest cliffs outrank APR order** — a promotional balance that back-charges all accrued interest at month 24 gets paid off before its cliff regardless of strategy
39- **The plan needs a bad-month setting** — define now what happens when the extra can't be paid: minimums-only is a paused plan, not a failed one; the difference is whether it restarts
40- **Windfalls have a protocol** — tax refunds and bonuses go to the current target debt *by prior decision*, because in-the-moment decisions about windfalls have a known winner and it isn't the debt
41
42## Output Format
43
44---
45
46# Debt Payoff Plan: [N] debts, [total]
47
48## The Head-to-Head
49[Script output: both strategies, dates, interest totals, the avalanche savings]
50
51## The Call
52[Which strategy and why, in two sentences — citing the priced difference and the track record, not doctrine]
53
54## The Payoff Order
55[Debt by debt with projected month — the countdown that makes progress visible]
56
57## Survival Rules
58Bad month: [minimums-only protocol, restart trigger] · Windfalls: [target-debt rule] · Cliff watch: [any promotional deadlines, calendared]
59
60*Assumes fixed rates and no new charges — the plan's silent partner is the spending that stops. Educational model, not financial advice — verify with a licensed professional before acting on it.*
61
62---
63
64## Quality Checks
65
66- [ ] Every debt appears with balance, APR, and minimum — no "roughly" balances
67- [ ] The strategy choice cites the priced difference on these debts, not general doctrine
68- [ ] Growing-at-minimum debts are flagged as emergencies regardless of strategy
69- [ ] Promotional/deferred-interest deadlines are calendared above APR order
70- [ ] The bad-month protocol exists before the first bad month
71
72## Anti-Patterns
73
74- [ ] Do not preach avalanche when the difference is trivial — momentum is worth $40
75- [ ] Do not endorse snowball without showing its price — informed morale, not managed ignorance
76- [ ] Do not build a plan that requires a perfect year — perfect-year plans have a 100% failure rate
77- [ ] Do not ignore the income side — past a point, the plan's bottleneck is earnings, and saying so is the honest output
78- [ ] Do not touch consolidation/refinancing recommendations beyond naming them as options to research — product choice is advice territory
gabrielmoreira