STUDENT LOANS !!!!!!!!!!

[oricha1984]

[size=medium]Hello all,[/size]

Wife and I are interested in the lifestyle. The one major drawback that we have is student loans.

Past:
She is a podiatrist and I am a RN. We are both first generation immigrants and student loans was the only way we could pay for school.
We have 200K student loans.
Present:
We live a simple lifestyle. She only works 3 days per week (8-5). I work 1 day per week (12 shift) + some home care visit here and there.
We decided to stop working full time when we got pregnant with our son ( he is 15 months now). We decided for me to be more of a stay home dad because she makes more and gets free health care (medical, dental, vision - all paid by employer) through her job for all.
Future:
We are interested in living a nomadic lifestyle; however, the students loans are holding us back.

The big question: anyone know any way to get rid of student loans?

Thanks,
Raul

 

[Queen]

Welcome!

Have you looked into the NHS (National Health Service), they offer loan repayment if you work in underserved areas, like the reservations out west.

 

[oricha1984]

Hello Queen,

It seems that our certifications do not correspond with their needs. We are DPM and RN.
We appreciate the input.

Big thanks,
Raul

Here is what they need:
Only clinicians who are fully trained and licensed in one of the following disciplines and specialties are eligible to apply to the NHSC Loan Repayment Program:

Medical Primary Care: Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetrics/Gynecology, Geriatrics, Mental Health

Allopathic and Osteopathic Physicians (MD, DO)
Nurse Practitioners (NP)
ertified Nurse Midwives (CNM)
Physician Assistants (PA)
Dental Primary Care: Family/General, Pediatric, Geriatric

Doctors of Dental Surgery (DDS)
Doctors of Medicine in Dentistry (DMD)
Registered Dental Hygienists (RDH)
Mental and Behavioral Health Primary Care

Allopathic and Osteopathic Physicians - Psychiatry (MD or DO)
Health Service Psychologists (HSP)
Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW)
Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC)
Marriage and Family Therapists (MFT)
Psychiatric Nurse Specialists (PNS)
Nurse Practitioners - Mental Health (NP)
Physician Assistants - Mental Health (PA)

 

[cyndi]

Welcome to the CRVL forums, Raul! I don't know anything about getting rid of student loans. And I am a huge proponent of paying back what you borrow. I do know that the van dwelling/mobile lifestyle can be cheap enough to allow you to pay back the loans, save some money and enjoy life and even travel! Traveling nurses are in high demand and get paid well. We have a few members who did/are doing this now. And there are more people who have shared their story on the internet.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[ArtW]

welcome to CRVL, sorry, I dunno any way to make a loan go away but to pay it
I am sure that does not help, but wanted top welcome you anyway

 

[anewbiewannabe]

Welcome!

There's really only one way to get rid of student loans and that is to work and pay them off. There might be ways to pay them off quicker but they require full time work with an employer that offers student loan forgiveness. Perhaps there is some information at this link that might lead you to programs like that since NHS is not an option. https://www.credible.com/blog/student-loan-forgiveness-programs-nurses/ It is easier to find programs for nursing loan forgiveness than for the podiatry specialty.

 

[rvpopeye]

Welcome aboard the good ship CRVL Raoul!

I used to have a GF that was a travel nurse and she made great pay and the places she worked really were grateful for the extra help. She lived in the hospital parking lots in her class B van so could save for travel to the next place and take a long time getting there !!!

Living in a van or whatever vehicle and working can be a very good way to save enough to make extra payments on the loans.

If you can find a place that will help you pay it off as part of your working there ,,,,,, good for you !

Don't give up , there will be a way to get this done !

 

[oricha1984]

Hello all,

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my post. Specially those sharing the links.
Peace and love; i hope to continue learning from the forum.

thanks
raul

 

[Auto360]

Wow, right my alley! When I graduate I'll have about $60 grand in loans. Thankfully I'm out of debt otherwise. I'd love to work for an employer who would help pay back. I'd be willing to take advantage of what ever is offered as long as it's legitimate and ethical.

 

[oricha1984]

Hello auto360,

As someone mentioned earlier, I believe in paying back what you borrowed. We were younger then, and figured going to collage was the only way to have a better lifestyle.

Trying not to go into political views. But the big expense was her Doc degree. It is sad that education has become (like everything else) a business.
Regardless of all, we are happier here is USA, and life is great!

Much love to all.

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[Kenosis]

As someone mentioned working in underserved areas can really make a difference, if you can get it going. I know a few people who are on "Five Year Programs" where as long as they keep the job (i.e. not get fired, laid-off, quit) and continue paying the loans while working for 5 years, well, the loan debt will just magically disappear! Some of these typically rural/underserved areas, in my opinion, can be really appealing to vandwellers. I did some related underserved work in Williams, AZ. The place was amazing, beautiful, and really gave me the itch to seek out an "off the beaten path" way of life. Ultimately, what I'm saying is maybe you could work in a beautiful underserved area while also vandwelling at the same time?

BTW, I'm new here! Happy to meet so many wonderful people!

 

[Auto360]

Oricha1984,

I wish you some good planning and luck to get the debt paid. I didn't see your post as a way to magically get your debt paid. But, unfortunately education is getting ridiculously expensive but I won't go into that topic.
Travel nursing is definitely an area that I will be gravitating towards and I'll either stay in my van or maybe a very small class C. I'm staying in the van now and very comfortable. But I'm single....in your case being married with a child I'd probably go with a small RV.

 

[kayell]

Live as simply and frugally as you possibly can and pay as much as you possibly can every single month. (after you build an emergency fund) Don't let that debt build up and bury you. Take a look at http://earlyretirementextreme.com/ , http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/ and https://ymoyl.wordpress.com/

 

[ArtW]

education has ALWAYS been a business, at least higher education has, and the reason it's so costly is simple: supply and demand
Everyone in the US thinks college and Uni are the best, if not only, way to go, so everyone gets in massive debt to go to them, when many folks would be better off in tech school

This creates huge demand, which drives the price up
then we have jobs that used to not require degrees, requiring degrees, because there's a glut of degrees out there now, because everyone gets a degree, and so even folks with degrees get paid less, because there's so many of them
Prior to, say, the 60s, mostly only really smart folks went to college, for intellectual pursuits, and the costs were lower
As we increasingly see a degree as a requirement for careers and life, the costs keep rising, and will untill the bubble pops

 

[NickTheoBennett]

I'm probably going to get an earful from the morality police around here, but one option with federal (not private) student loans is Income Based Repayment. It won't help with getting rid of your loans, but it can make them much more manageable with a lower income lifestyle. Basically they take your disposable income and calculate your loan payment amount out of that.

If you make little enough money, your loan payment is $0 or close to $0. If you continue to make these "payments" for 20 years, even if the amount of the payment is $0, they forgive your loans altogether. The downside of this is that when they forgive the loans you have to pay taxes on the amount forgiven as income.

It's also worth noting that student loans are quickly becoming a crisis in this country and there's a good chance that the laws regarding repayment and discharge will be changing in the future. I'm graduating with nearly $60k in loans and a Liberal Arts degree in a few months and I have no intention of ever actually paying it off. I'll use income based repayment until either the laws change and it can be discharged or I hit the 20 year mark and they are forgiven anyway.

The entire higher education system has become remarkably predatory and tuition has risen at incredible rates because colleges know that students will just get more loans to pay the increased costs. I was stupid. I envisioned my life going a different direction and I fell for the hype around college. In my opinion that shouldn't obligate me spend the next 10+ years of my life slaving away to repay those loans.

Please spare me the morality lectures about paying your debts. OP asked for options and I provided him with one.

 

[TrainChaser]

Raul, in what part of the country do live? City or country?

The chances are poor that you're going to pay off your debt with two people only working a total of four days a week. It appears that you're either going to have to find a cheap situation where you are, or look for one where you can find work. There are no easy answers for your debt load. I don't mean to sound snippy, but if you only work four days a week, you didn't need that expensive education.

 

[AngryVanMan]

IBR as Nick mentioned, or PAYE, or REPAYE, or PSLF are probably the best option(s) depending on your exact situation. These programs are only available on federal loans, so if you made the mistake of going with a private bank you will have a significantly greater financial problem on your hands.

The wiki page on student loans at the personal finance subreddit is a great synopsis for most of the programs with links to the relevant detailed information that might apply to your situation. As long as you have federal loans and do not consolidate you will be in a decent position.

PSLF or Pulbic Service Loan Forgiveness is a great option to have your debt cancelled without the tax repercussions of doing so after 10 years, which is a huge advantage. You must work full time >30 hours per week for this option. Generally government jobs or 501c(3) charitable organizations will qualify you for this program.

These options exist because the student loan program has caused higher education costs to spiral out of control which is a giant drag on the economy and society as a whole. Don't feel bad about using these programs, they are there for a reason, primarily saving any chance of a productive future economy and GDP growth numbers without riling up the law and order "I got mine" voting block too much, while simultaneously attempting to keep the student loan shell game going as long as it's possible (and profitable).

I applaud your effort to not follow in the footsteps of your fellow wage slaves, even the well-educated ones, who give up the best years of their lives to the rat race by working long hours to pay for stuff no one needs and to impress people they don't really like.

 

[poprouge]

https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/repay-loans/forgiveness-cancellation

Right from the horses mouth. This page describes the only ways of forgiveness, discharge, or cancellation. As you can see there are reasons you may or may not be able to qualify. Absolutely no judgement, just providing you the information you asked for. Good luck.

 

[oricha1984]

Thank you all for offering opinions and suggestions.
As I mentioned earlier, I will continue to gather information and continue to enjoy life.

PS - we became RN and DPM because we liked the job, money was not our primary motivation ;-)

Thank you all, much love to all.

Sent from my BLU LIFE ONE X using Tapatalk

 

[oricha1984]

Welcome aboard the good ship CRVL Raoul!

I used to have a GF that was a travel nurse and she made great pay and the places she worked really were grateful for the extra help. She lived in the hospital parking lots in her class B van so could save for travel to the next place and take a long time getting there !!!

Living in a van or whatever vehicle and working can be a very good way to save enough to make extra payments on the loans.

If you can find a place that will help you pay it off as part of your working there ,,,,,, good for you !

Don't give up , there will be a way to get this done !

Thank you all for offering opinions and suggestions.
As I mentioned earlier, I will continue to gather information and continue to enjoy life.

PS - we became RN and DPM because we liked the job, money was not our primary motivation ;-)
We decided not to view patients as dollar signs, we decided to not rush between patients, and to give that little old lady a few extra minutes to tell us about her day.
We decided to have more meaningful moments with each person that comes to us in pain.
Above all, we decided to enjoy the most amount of time that we can with each other and with our son.
We are trying to be the kind of medical professional/human that we want when we need medical help as well.

Thank you all, much love to all.
Hope my English makes sense. Hehe.

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