Student Loan Debt Tops $1 Trillion

Getting a Student Loan to go to college is an investment.

Like all investments...some people make a good choice with their investments and some make poor choices.

I took out student loans to go to college, but only because I knew the field I was choosing to go into would provide a much higher salary than the field I would go into if I didn't go to college.

I'm 9 years out of college, my loans are paid off, I have a good job, my house is paid off...and I know 100% that I am better off because of my choice to go to college.

Now if I would have majored in Philosophy or Art History...I'm sure I would have huge debt, a poor paying job, and would be in financial trouble.


The amount of Student Loan Debt isn't an indicator that college isn't worth it or that it is too expensive...it is an indicator that many people are taking this debt without having a solid plan on how they are going to pay it back.

Originally posted by samkent

Originally posted by LittleBlackEagle

Originally posted by Rockpuck
reply to post by Partygirl

 

End student loans and tuition will plummet.
End mortgages and the natural wealth of Americans would drastically increase as homes will be priced realistically.
End health insurance and health care costs would fall dramatically.

I guess what I'm saying is usury is considered evil for a damn good reason.

edit on 3/26/2012 by Rockpuck because: (no reason given)

what you're saying is end the debt based economy i believe and i agree it's the scourge on our backs at this point in time. when so many gamble, win, loose so much without actually offering anything to anyone, it's bound to fail and fail hard.

Without a consumer debt economy you end up loking like N Korea.
No car loans means no companies to build new cars.
No home loans means you build shacks like Haiti.

Think about the bigger picture before you end debt.

you don't understand what debt based society means.what i'm talking about doesn't mean no loans, it means loans with no interest, the interest being the money being made by doing nothing. it's doing nothing at this point because they ( the Fed) print money based on nothing, no assets to cover them and they loan this made up money to banks for very little interest or none. then the banking industries loan it to the people at interest rates, thus making money off of people for doing nothing.

reply to post by LittleBlackEagle


Why would anyone loan out any money if there is no interest?

reply to post by LittleBlackEagle

then the banking industries loan it to the people at interest rates, thus making money off of people for doing nothing.

Most student debt is privately held. It's between the bank and student.
You try loaning 50K to some random 20 year old with no repayment for 4-8 years.
I don't begrudge the banks getting interest.

Originally posted by BIGPoJo
I will pay my student debt when the government quits wasting my money. Until then keep calling me, I might answer one day...

Brilliant. You are part of the problem here. You entered into a contract to get the money and you should pay it back regardless of how inefficient government is. This is similar to folks who've opted for strategic defaults on their mortgage. Since when did not honouring obligations become the norm.

brill

Originally posted by Grifter81
reply to post by Partygirl

 

It's similar here in the UK. I finished my degree in 2001 and only paid my student loan off last month. 11 long years.

Heh.. almost ditto. I paid my final payment on my student loans in my late 30's..
Wait.. what the hell am I laughing at....
I figure others can hold up their end of the bargain.. and pay it. I did.. eat some ramen noodles, dont buy an iphone.. and work your arse off. Pay your debts. I figure folks know what they are signing and agreeing to just as I did.

Originally posted by brill

Originally posted by BIGPoJo
I will pay my student debt when the government quits wasting my money. Until then keep calling me, I might answer one day...

Brilliant. You are part of the problem here. You entered into a contract to get the money and you should pay it back regardless of how inefficient government is. This is similar to folks who've opted for strategic defaults on their mortgage. Since when did not honouring obligations become the norm.

brill

Quote for truth.
This kinda common darned sense needs no second line.

Problem is, so many people take degrees and end up in jobs that do not require a degree. I'd rather stay debt free and take my chances without one.

this is just more fuel to the interest slave culture- unless I was going to study to be somthing specific like a doctor (with huge salary after it), there is no way I would go to university

Originally posted by BIGPoJo
I will pay my student debt when the government quits wasting my money. Until then keep calling me, I might answer one day...

I tried that route for ten years.
They finally ripped out of my bank.
You can't win with student loans or the IRS.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
reply to post by LittleBlackEagle

 

Why would anyone loan out any money if there is no interest?

Because there are good people on this earth.

And helping others may make them feel good. Plus if you help your neighbor now, hemay help you in the future...

I was told I would be making 60k by the time I was 20.... It's been 10 years, I've made 30k max a year... In my profession.... Which most companies ship overseas.. (network admin)
If I made what I was told then my student loan would be gone in 1 year as long as I don't change my standard of living... Which is fine by me, my life is great except for this debt...

I am adding $40,000 to that but I will graduate in 2014 with a bachelor degree and keep mumbling to myself how it will all be worth it

Originally posted by brill

Originally posted by BIGPoJo
I will pay my student debt when the government quits wasting my money. Until then keep calling me, I might answer one day...

Brilliant. You are part of the problem here. You entered into a contract to get the money and you should pay it back regardless of how inefficient government is. This is similar to folks who've opted for strategic defaults on their mortgage. Since when did not honouring obligations become the norm.

brill

You sir are the reason America is in the shape it is in. Quick to jump to conclusions, quick to persecute based on little facts. The fact is that I purchased my student loans from Wells Fargo who then parted out the loans to Fed Loan Services, ACS, and ECMC. I did not sign a contract with any entity other than Wells Fargo. I did not authorize my loans to be moved nor did I purchase said loans before Obama made such actions legal. I refuse to pay money to any of the entities other than Wells Fargo because I find it unconstitutional that my debt was moved without my permission. Wells Fargo sold the loans BEFORE they were even set to be paid back.

When you remove the ability for the market to decide who owns what debt, you leave open many doors for corruption and abuse. The other entities that hold my debt can do whatever they want to my loans without my permission or even my signature. To this date I have filed ZERO paperwork with ZERO signatures to any entity for these loans. Thats the facts.

In reply to Timesup, I live in Texas so they will have a hard time taking money directly from my account. Also, I qualify for deferment or forbearance. Considering I am recently unemployed I am sure I qualify for some form of welfare even though I find it disgusting. To take advantage of such things these entities want me to sign paperwork which I refuse to do because it legitimizes their claim on my debt.

I will pay back my loans eventually but I refuse to give a dime to those three scumbag institutions that I mentioned.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
reply to post by LittleBlackEagle

 

Why would anyone loan out any money if there is no interest?

Good, don't lend out any money, won't bother me. You and the banks can sit on the money and choke, for all I care. The fact is banks aren't even lending out THEIR money for interest, they lend out OTHER PEOPLES money.

That is the greatest scam of all, they take other peoples money and hold it; promising to keep it safe, then they turn around and lend out most of the money they are suppose to be holding safely and collect interest off of it.

I say the banking system should be reworked, they charge a flat fee to hold peoples money and then instead of loaning out the money they actually have to sit on it and hold it safely and if bankers don't like that system fine, they can quit banking and get real jobs.

Originally posted by samkent

Most student debt is privately held. It's between the bank and student. You try loaning 50K to some random 20 year old with no repayment for 4-8 years. I don't begrudge the banks getting interest.

Actually your wrong it's not really "privately" held it's "corporately" held and their is a difference.

The fact is in almost all of the states in the US a private loan from a citizen is capped at ten percent interest and if you knowingly charge more then that you forfeit the interest and in some states you may end up forfeiting the capital; ie the loan as well. Banks and credit card companies, through corporate loop holes are allowed to charge as much interest as they want.

I would say even if we don't get rid of usury all together which we should in my opinion, then at the very least, banks and credit card companies should be held to the same standard as private citizens and their interest should be capped at a max of ten percent interest. And frankly if the bankers and credit card companies complain about it, I say fine, once again, let them get out of the usury business and get real jobs, like the rest of us.

Originally posted by Afraidnomore

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
reply to post by LittleBlackEagle

 

Why would anyone loan out any money if there is no interest?

Because there are good people on this earth.

And helping others may make them feel good. Plus if you help your neighbor now, hemay help you in the future...

I was told I would be making 60k by the time I was 20.... It's been 10 years, I've made 30k max a year... In my profession.... Which most companies ship overseas.. (network admin)
If I made what I was told then my student loan would be gone in 1 year as long as I don't change my standard of living... Which is fine by me, my life is great except for this debt...

Here is the problem with your logic...if there are these good people on this earth that are willing to loan at zero interest....WHERE ARE THEY???

Nothing is stopping them from doing this...what makes you think they would do it if interests was illegal?

I know many network admins...I've never heard them say that they have a problem with their jobs going overseas. The problem with network admins is their pay range is very very broad depending on industry, location, and skill level.

If you are only making 30k with 10 years of experience...I would say you are doing something wrong...just my opinion though.

reply to post by prisoneronashipoffools


There is a real simple solution for you...don't use the banks.

Problem solved...you can stop complaining and get on with your life.

How did education ever get so expensive? Especially when so much good information is available for free.

There are many industries where information is NOT free. Engineering and healthcare are two that come to mind. Just to give a very rudimentary example. My company recently had a project that involved "unreinforced masonry walls". The possible solutions were studied by a particular professor and the article was published in a "peer reviewed" journal. We had to buy the article from the publisher to the tune pf $300 USD. The only reason we knew to get the article was because a PhD holder on staff used the paper in some of his past research. So not only was the information not free, the PhD holder had to have done something similar in school to come up with a "private sector" solution to finish the project.

I am all for lowering tuition and ending the "degree required" to work in a call center, file clerk etc. But the reality is that Higher education is a requirement for the future technical workforce of the world.

Its not the tution or the loans we should be complaining about here, its the fact that caps are not put on enrollment and majors. For example, there is a need for PhD holding engineers, but universities will produce 10,000 for 100 job openings. The leaders of industry are currently having a major problem being honest with "regular folk". They need to be saying, "stop reproducing, we have no work or jobs prospects for yourself or your offspring". Our rulers don't believe in creating "make work" for its peasants anymore, but they keep telling us that they are trying. Its a lie. going to school and taking out loans these days is the best gamble many can hope for, but no one is really explaning the odds and to those saying, "you don't need a degree I worked my way up!", just wait until the late 30 something PhD becomes the department head and cans you. My guess is after a layoff or two, a non-degree holding job seeker will be unemployable in the coming decade regardless of experience. Older boomers have kep the "on the job work experience counts" concept alive, when they are gone from the workforce those sentiments will leave with them. We are all going to be at the mercy of X'ers and Y'ers with big student debts. They want to see people like themselves in the office.
.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
reply to post by prisoneronashipoffools

 

There is a real simple solution for you...don't use the banks.

Problem solved...you can stop complaining and get on with your life.

Yeah is a simple solution one which I do follow. lmao. As far as complaining that is my right and the purpose of this board in the first place, discussing, debating and complaining. lol

Still doesn't change the fact that usury is still a problem and people have known it has been a problem for hundreds of years. Yet, we still let the system continue and wonder why the worlds economies keep sliding into the toilet. I guess we can all follow your advice though and just shut up, not complain or discuss alternatives , of course then nothing will ever change and things won't ever get any better.

Education is specifically designed to be extremely expensive so they can control people once they enter their profession.

If you enter, say, the medical industry and discover it's corrupt, you must stay and do what you're told. You cannot pay off that loan working at McDonalds, and those in charge know it. And if Daddy paid for it, he's going to be very, very angry with you if you quit.

If it cost nothing to get a degree, a lot of corruption would disappear overnight.

I have mountains of student loan debt! Though I have a masters degree in teaching, it's been hard to find a permanent job for the subject I teach in my area. I'm currently in forbearance but who knows if a full-time position will come my way before that runs out. I know several people who have used the IBR (Income Based Repayment) program with great success in dropping down the amount they pay back each month. This is definitely a program to consider for those drowning in student loan debt. If I haven't found a decent job that will allow me to pay back the full amount I owe once my forbearance periods have ended I will definitely be going the IBR route.