Q&A: Strategies for paying down personal debt

Q: I've made some recent investments in my practice that have caused me to take on some debt. My understanding is that the interest paid is not deductible. Any suggestions on how to better structure my debt?

A: You may want to consider paying off the debt with a home-equity loan. The first $100,000 of home-equity indebtedness is deductible, regardless of what you do with the loan proceeds. Furthermore, interest rates are usually substantially lower on home-equity loans.