I listened to an audio lecture from Effective Communication atThe Great Courses in which a quote from a Finnish prof resonated with me. Paraphrased, "If you hear and fully understand all that I have just said to you, culturally, in context and life experience, it is probably a mistake". It is so easy to misunderstand and misinterpret even with the best of intentions. That quote has since governed my responses as much as possible but I am still learning.
As Cicero said, “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”
REdfox, thanks for the positive thoughts for my friends. I was also surprised at some of the comments. Even if you were in default over student loans there could be an extremely good reason for it. No One ever knows what life will throw at them and all the best financial planning in the world goes up in smoke. Besides there are worse things then losing your $-losing your life or a loved one. My best friend lost her 19 yo daughter to a rare liver disease(well one day & dead a year later) and I have friends now that their only child (8yo) is battling brain cancer. All that seems pretty insignificant when compared to $.
I think you've gotten some great advice and I admire how you have handled everything that has been thrown your way.
In order of debts, I would only pay minimum on the mortgage until the credit card and car loan debt are paid in full (with the extra you've thrown towards mortgage you could probably have those knocked out in a year). Continue the minimum on the medical debt (so amazed that that is all the medical debt you have after the cancer) and pay the minimum on the student loan. After the credit card and car loan are gone, re-fi the mortgage and then pay extra on that. I would probably put 2/3 extra towards mortgage and 1/3 extra towards retirement until the mortgage is gone.
I have a question on the school loan. I didn't know about them taking 15% off SS for school loan debts. What then happens upon death? Do they take what they can out of assets to clear the debt? If that is the case I would just pay minimum through out the life of the loan. I ask because at 47(tomorrow) I'm considering going back to school to work on a masters and if I do it will have to be through loans.
Float On: My "Happy Place" is on my little kayak in the coves of Table Rock Lake.
Float on, if you had good grades for your BA there is a good chance your MA would not cost you anything. You can usually be a TA and then tuition is free. I had 2 graduate degrees paid for. One I was a TA and one the feds were offering free tuition and a small stipend to live on to put more professionals in the work place in this certain field. Then I had to work for 3 years in non-profit and it was forgiven. If I had worked in a for profit would have had to pay it back. It is worth looking into.
Teacher Terry, that is some wonderful advice. Thank you. I really do need to start looking into what is available.
Float On: My "Happy Place" is on my little kayak in the coves of Table Rock Lake.
That is good advice. I imagine it's true for public schools, though not private ones. I wish I'd gone to law school instead of the MA I got.
I dont' know, there's lots of reports of lawyers being unable to get anything but mediocre paying these jobs these days (with hundreds of thousands in debt - that's the killer there). May as well play the lottery as try to figure out a sure bet in this economy.
Trees don't grow on money
Terry, when did you get your MA? Because with the higher education sector employment situation being what it is, I think TA and RA positions are harder to get than they used to be. Even when I was in grad school back in the 90s, there weren't enough to go around. Depends a lot on the discipline and the school's funding situation -- Ph.D. candidates at Harvard and other schools with large endowments typically get 5-6 years of funding, which includes some time that has to be spent as a TA or RA. At a state university like mine, if you don't have an external fellowship (I had an NSF to start) you might get a recruitment fellowship the first year, then be able to teach for a year or two, and then it is up to you to figure out how to get more grants or part time employment. In our department you were not allowed to have TA positions for more than a year before you were put on the bottom of the priority list.Originally Posted by Float On
"Seek out habits that help you overcome fear or inertia. Destroy those that do the opposite." Seth Godin
I know some unemployed attorneys although they are likely unemployed in that field by choice. And I know ones that hustle to make a living. I have no envy of a law degree. That was one discipline my parents considered over supplied even way back when I was first in college so they never encouraged me to do that, unlike many parents who seems to hold The Law Degree in awe.
There are a lot of Tax Attorney law types in my husband's family. They seem to be doing pretty well but they are all based in the DC area. His brother went a different direction in law - he does real estate (still requires a lawyer to close deals in his state) and bankruptcy. He figured if people were doing well they were buying and if not they needed someone to clean up the mess. He was doing great until just the last two years. He now pays his staff a lot more than he takes home.
Float On: My "Happy Place" is on my little kayak in the coves of Table Rock Lake.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote