I hate school debt. I hate that the financial decisions someone makes as a teen and young adult impact others for years to come. I hate that some people never get told the most basic concepts of how to be wise about money until they've dug themselves into a huge hole. I hate that someone with a Master's degree who is working in their field has to choose between having insulation or not having mold when choosing a rental because they're forking out hundreds of dollars each month toward school debt. I hate that school debt payments can keep a frugal family from buying a home that isn't falling apart at the seams or sitting on a railroad track. I hate that the cost of renting an apartment in decent condition is the same as the cost of buying a house, but that school debt payments keep you from buying because you'll have no cushion to pay for things that need repaired or replaced. I hate working your tail off to get rid of school debt before your 60 years old, which is how long the assigned payment plan would take, and, despite passing the halfway point, still having a huge amount of debt left to pay off.
Ugh.
I really hate school debt. A lot.
This is not about being broke. We're not. This is not about struggling to pay bills or buy groceries. We're not. This is not about being upset with anyone. I'm not. It's about being sick and tired of our lives being hugely influenced by school debt. I'm over it. So over it. Yet, there it remains with a big, fat dollar sign in the front of it.
Teens & young adults, please think long-term before accepting loans that are offered to you or signing up for credit cards, consider how it will impact your life and that of your future spouse and/or children. Consider the worst-case scenario, not just the one where you find a great job, make a six-figure income, live a low-ish five-figure lifestyle, and get everything paid off in two years. Not sure what the impact of debt will be? Then ask someone who is paying off debt that was acquired 5, 10, or 30 years ago.
Parents, please teach your kids to live within their means, to realistically weigh the pros and cons of acquiring debt, to delay gratification, to distinguish between wants and needs, to make and stick with a budget, and show them what debt looks like 5, 10, or 30 years down the road. Start teaching those things as soon as they can talk. Not sure how to do that? Then get ideas from people who are teaching their kids how to handle money wisely.
Vent over.
Little addition - For those who are sharing this with their kids, I'd like to add a link to a post I did about three years ago about school debt, both questions about school debt in general and our specific numbers. It also includes an update on our current situation and remaining debt. Maybe some of the info there would be helpful to your kids.
11 comments:
Thanks Bethany, I just forwarded this to Travis. I hope he heeds this advice.
We hope to emulate that to our kids now before that comes into fruition. We have 1 credit card. It's mine and it's $200. It's so that I can have some credit otherwise I gather only a SAHM bad debt credit via family stuff (for us, medical bills which are NEVER ending).
We have to live within our means which means- yeah, we dont get to go on vacations like other people or buy a lot of new clothes or even do a lot of church activities because- we just dont have the money for it. We have 1 vehicle and we conform it to our family needs.
We also teach our kids that when they go to college, they are going to have to get a job to help pay for it and school loans are NOT beneficial. Grants and scholarships are. Judy had some GREAT points to touch on regarding this during her Loving your Husband's series she does. So many young girl's go to get their degree and when they settle down to have a family bring in huge amounts of debt on school loans to start their marriage on- then the conflict starts with whether or not to stay at home with the kids or use that expensive school degree to contribute towards their 'lifestyle'.
Amen! Trev and I have this conversation ALL the time. I go back and forth by being stressed and frustrated to not worrying about it because it may stick around for awhile and I can't do anything about it. I will say however that we will be having lots of conversations about this with our kiddos. Hang in there.
Jyn - Glad you're teaching your kids to live within their means. I have no problem living simply in order to stay out of debt, but it sure irks me when our current life is impacted by debt acquired 6-15 years ago.
Meghann - I just went to look up an old post about school debt and saw that you'd commented there, too. It's from three years ago. Perseverance, man, that's what we need! :)
Bethany - This is a great post along with that other one you linked.
Prayers for you guys as you continue to wade through and persevere.
I don't know how you feel but I will after I get my master's degree in a couple of years. The ONLY way I could do this was to take out student loans. It stresses me out even now. I wish I had thought about it a little more but it's too late now.
We are teaching our kids though that if at all possible do not take out student loans. I don't know if that's possible today. I want them to have an education if that's their calling but there is no way we can help so student loans maybe the only way to go.
I am constantly thankful that I did not have to get loans for college. I was blessed with parents who paid my way. I have no idea what the future holds for my children, but debt free is how I would like it to be.
Did you notice I had commented then too? Wow.....I must have read your blog back then!! You have some long time followers!!
Lisa - I realize that loans are the only way some people can get through college in a reasonable amount of time and don't think they're inherently bad. I do, however, think it's very, very, very important for a person to realize what it is they're getting into. The borrower truly *is* slave to the lender and that means the borrower's spouse and children will be also.
Kids coming straight out of high school with loans beings offered to them from every direction and with parents who never took the time to teach them how to make wise financial decisions are just set up for failure. KWIM?
Kristal - Definitely a blessing!
Abby - I did notice that. Stalker. :)
I feel your pain on school debt. After four years of college and three years of law school, the student loan companies will pretty much be repossessing my casket when I die.
Seriously though, I have a couple of friends here in Houston who paid off over six figures of school debt in about three years.They are my financial heroes and I plan to emulate them as soon as I have a full-time job again, which should be this summer since I will finish my M.A. (that one was paid for by dad, thank God).
I went to a instate 4 year University on student loans and paid it off in less than 5 years. I paid as much as I possibly could in those 5 years, had a cheap apartment, same car I had in high school, and no credit card debt.
I feel for those of you with student loan debt but just had to say that it can be done (well at least then it could, I graduated from college in 1998).
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