College Loans (1 Viewer)

My kids were exactly the same way. Gotta love the loan game. But they have their degrees, both in fields with potential for huge advancement and each starting over 60,000. So I guess it was worth it. Maybe someday I’ll even get to replace my 2002 Silverado.
 
If it weren't for the pandemic putting me on part time, and my wife leaving her job soon to finish her degree, yeah, I probably could have just paid for it. I'm talking like $3000/semester. But, this is his responsibility to cover, and I'm just lending my credit to help get him a better rate.

I'm getting a lot of other advice, which is good to keep aware of other options, but it seems like no one has really answered my original question.

I just went ahead an applied for one private loan through a company that seemed to get good review. I may end up adding another to the mix. I'm just going to see what the rates are. Has anyone actually done this?
$3,000 a semester is $500/month.

He could easily make that working through school part time.

Avoiding the debt is way better than graduating with it.
 
The only thing that keeps me going is that my parents really took care of my education and I'm going to do the same for my kids hell or high water.
That's the only way to be. But, probably in a few months, you're gonna be doing the same for other peoples' kids too.
 
$3,000 a semester is $500/month.

He could easily make that working through school part time.

Avoiding the debt is way better than graduating with it.
They want their money the first week of classes. He only just got back to work for the summer, due to the pandemic. So, he lost out on a solid month of earning potential. Also, semesters are like 4 months long, not 6. He can start saving up for his sophomore year, which is our plan. That, and maybe he would make a good RA and get free room. ;)

But, I'm with you on him doing part time work, especially if he can do it for his program (theater) and build some relationships or work the cafeteria and hope they give free food for it too. ha. But, you do the loan, and make early payments. Less stress to do it that way then to try to pay up front and then be left handing if you can't make enough up front.
 
I'm right in the sweet spot: doing too well to get any aid, not doing so well that it's not ******* painful. :hihi:

The only thing that keeps me going is that my parents really took care of my education and I'm going to do the same for my kids hell or high water. So far, god bless, they never act spoiled and have more than held up their end.

The level of commitment is absolutely fact-specific and for everyone to make in their own good conscience.

Now, I need a drink. :hihi:

I liked to joke to my dad that I saved them tens of thousands of dollars. I got a full ride academic scholarship, covered tuition, room and board, fees, and a book/extras allowance.

He decided my old 5th Avenue wouldn't make it in the deep snow of the Upper Penninsula of Michigan, so he got a sweet deal leasing a Ford Ranger. He paid for that, and would send me like $20/week (it was cute, how he'd send me little hand written notes).. I told him, paying for that for 4 years, and giving me even $20/week was still less than one year of college.
 
That's the only way to be. But, probably in a few months, you're gonna be doing the same for other peoples' kids too.

Which, in all honesty is going to be what is needed to get the economy going again. Boomers are at the end of their spending power, gen x is the only one with any real spending power. Gen z and millennials are too buried under college debt to really drive the economy. So the government is going to have to either have their highest earners sitting on the sideline giving banks a fat bottom line, or work with people to free up that income to put towards purchasing power.

Also, when people say that the government can’t afford it, people who do not have a college degree or at least partial trade education pay very little in taxes, and generally are reliant on public money to support them in some way at times.
 
My oldest just graduated. He has no prospect of a job, but at least he has no student loans and a 2013 Mustang :hihi:

My youngest wants to stay in México. He can get citizenship through me, so free college.
 
$3,000 a semester is $500/month.

He could easily make that working through school part time.

Avoiding the debt is way better than graduating with it.

Problem with that though is work study is based on need. Depending on their received allotment and the number of students with lower EFCs, work study can run out quickly.
 
Problem with that though is work study is based on need. Depending on their received allotment and the number of students with lower EFCs, work study can run out quickly.
Work study is not the only job available...
 
Work study is not the only job available...

For most schools these days it is. After budget cuts, their departmental budgets are sacred unless there's some endowment available or unless the school writes off the balance owed, which depending on the school, affects the bottom line. I know we refused to do so. Hell, we had to fight with the business office every year when they wanted to cap our discount rate at 25% to compete with schools offering a 40% rate or more.
 
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That's the only way to be. But, probably in a few months, you're gonna be doing the same for other peoples' kids too.

Anybody who pays property taxes is already paying for kids' public schools.

Better education benefits every one of us.

And there's so much money we spend for nothing on military boondoggles and leave so much on the table with our friendly billionaires (free market incentive!), we could easily afford to educate the entire US population decently for free, like much of the civilized world, but we don't want to do that.
 
we could easily afford to educate the entire US population decently for free, like much of the civilized world, but we don't want to do that.
You're darn right we don't want to do that. There is a different economic dynamic regarding colleges that does not apply to the military. When we encourage people to go to college by funding their tuition, that gives universities the green light to jack up their tuition. It's an externality: the people deciding whether the student will attend (the student and the university) need to worry about the price. So, honest practical people who have saved to actually pay for their own kids' college have to pay higher tuition - twice. This has been happening already for decades, but it would be worse by making "free college" official.

BTW, "free college" works in Europe because they have standards. Bad students can't go. We don't have that here.
 
You're darn right we don't want to do that. There is a different economic dynamic regarding colleges that does not apply to the military. When we encourage people to go to college by funding their tuition, that gives universities the green light to jack up their tuition. It's an externality: the people deciding whether the student will attend (the student and the university) need to worry about the price. So, honest practical people who have saved to actually pay for their own kids' college have to pay higher tuition - twice. This has been happening already for decades, but it would be worse by making "free college" official.

:smilielol:Have you studied the military spending process recently? There is a tiny oligopoly of manufacturers that bid for giant, multi-multi-multi billion dollar projects, over which they retain incredible influence starting with the original design. Not sure how effective those price controls have been since, say, the Civil War.

BTW, "free college" works in Europe because they have standards. Bad students can't go. We don't have that here.

Yes, we do. They're called "grades." And properly run state college and university systems can certainly manage the whole process.
 
For most schools these days it is. After budget cuts, their departmental budgets are sacred unless there's some endowment available or unless the school writes off the balance owed, which depending on the school, affects the bottom line. I know we refused to do so. Hell, we had to fight with the business office every year when they wanted to cap our discount rate at 25% to compete with schools offering a 40% rate or more.
Have you ever heard of Pizza Hut?
 
:smilielol:Have you studied the military spending process recently? There is a tiny oligopoly of manufacturers that bid for giant, multi-multi-multi billion dollar projects, over which they retain incredible influence starting with the original design. Not sure how effective those price controls have been since, say, the Civil War.

Yes, we do. They're called "grades." And properly run state college and university systems can certainly manage the whole process.

Of course military spending is screwed up, but in a very different way. The "free college" concepts allows any private citizen to run up a bill for a mostly worthless degree without regard for the cost.

And, that concept of "grades" is hopelessly naive. Any screw-up can get into a "college" (not talking Ivy-League here) for a mostly worthless degree. If somebody is paying, the college will accept them.
 

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