The current fashion of calling people "judgmental" amuses me. Of course we all make judgements, and about others. I think it is empty criticism, it's just knee-jerk.
In general, broadening our thinking is a good thing, I'll leave it at that although I am often amused at how the righteous are broad minded enough only to allow their own point of view.
The problem that I see is that Redfox gave us her information and asked for advice. Instead of offering advice Yarrow started judging her for ever buying a house, etc. I do not see that as help & she was asking for help.
Agreed, past actions are water over the damn.Originally Posted by Teacher Terry
But guess what--I see the same behaviors repeated in people when the consequences of the first behaviors were clearly a problem. It happens, we are all human, we sure as h*ll are far from perfect. But in order to step out of our path leading to consequences we don't like, we need to recognize the path in order to stop going down same.
I have had problems in my life with debt, so I tend to give advice that tries to steer people away from debt. It has caused me much pain to live in the future that way, on future expectations.
I think I have a hard time not sounding preachy when I talk about this. If I have offended, Redfox, I apologize.
But I am intrigued by the question you asked in your op, because I am so close to your age and facing the same questions about retirement and housing, etc. I think we need a new paradigm, since the old paradigm is not really attainable by many at this stage of the game.
What that paradigm looks like, I am not sure. That's why I like hearing about creative ideas like Catherine's about the Tumbleweed house, or your husband's idea about the studio and renting out the house. Those are creative! I keep looking for solutions to my own problems, lol.
The Student Loan Scam:
Congress passed legislation in the mid-1990’s that skewed student lending to benefit lenders/educational institutions at the expense of students.
•student debt can’t be discharged in bankruptcy
•loan companies/guarantors own collection agencies and can write their own ticket for fees/penalty rates on defaulters—giving them an incentive to allow borrowers to default—lenders will not work with struggling borrowers
•lenders can garnish wages, tax returns, social security, disability
•defaulted loans do NOT qualify for the rare student loan forgiveness programs
•upon consolidation, student loan interest rates may not be renegotiated by borrowers—EVER!
•average national interest rate on outstanding student loans—currently 12%
•student loans are exempt from statutes of limitations for collection, usury laws, Truth in Lending, and Fair Debt and Collections
•lenders are also allowed to take up to 25% as collection fees on defaulted loans
•universities often have "preferred-lender" arrangements with the universities and receive kickbacks
•borrowers wanting to consolidate their loans must use the original lender
None of which happened before student loans were privatized. Yet again, another failed experiment with privatization, this time on a HUGE scale.
What that paradigm looks like, I am not sure. That's why I like hearing about creative ideas like Catherine's about the Tumbleweed house, or your husband's idea about the studio and renting out the house. Those are creative! I keep looking for solutions to my own problems, (Rodeosweetheart)
I think housing is one of the biggest challenges facing many of us as we age/retire. So have you thought about downsizing, maybe a condo, etc. Not sure what your exact situation is. my hubby & I downsized to a much smaller house when we semi-retired. All expenses went down which was great.
I don't understand where the "scam" comes into play. A person borrows money, for whatever purpose, and there is an expectation that what is borrowed will be repaid, with interest. I could see where it might be considered a scam if the borrower were led to believe that the borrowed money did not require repayment, but that's not the case, is it?
"Things should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler." ~ Albert Einstein
The scam comes from the insertion of the private sector into the student loan business in the first place, and also the predatory nature of these loans - hence, the numerous lawsuits against for-profit schools with recruiters paid based on how many people they can sign up to attend.
And if bankruptcy laws can discharge debt from clothes, shoes and vacations put on credit cards, then student loans should not be singled out as non-dischargable.
If the government didn't meddle with the guarantees no one would loan 18 year old's thousands of dollars with no collateral or credit. I do agree that it is to easy to get loans for college.
Who in their right mind would loan some kid over $100k that could just come out and default just out of school?
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