[header] How to pay extra toward the principal of a loan [title] Switch to bi-weekly payments. [step] Talk to your lender about possibly switching to bi-weekly payments rather than making full payments every month. Bi-weekly payments take advantage of the fact there are 12 months in the year but 52 weeks. 
If you pay half the amount every two weeks, by the end of the year you'll have made 13 full payments rather than 12. [substeps] Talk to your bank or lender about setting up a bi-weekly payment plan.