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How do you escape the trap? I'm not that far in. I'm 28 years old. Just got married. $42k in student loan debt. No kids. But it still feels impossible to escap

by gaustin 16y ago

How do you escape the trap? I'm not that far in. I'm 28 years old. Just got married. $42k in student loan debt. No kids. But it still feels impossible to escape the momentum of keeping up. My job pays well but not well enough to quickly escape the loan debt. That feels like the biggest barrier between me and the things I'd rather be doing (startups, travel/vagabonding, ...).

jat850 16y ago
On the plus side, you're only 28. Nothing to stop you from engaging in those experiences in a few years, rather than just yet. I was in nearly the same boat as you - debts (not student loans, misspent youth instead) and have nearly eliminated my debts and am about to move on to that phase of my life, with more expanded financial freedom. I just turned 31 and I feel like I have many opportunities still to enjoy things just as much as I would have in my twenties.
raintrees 16y ago
For me, it was first to identify all of my/our expenses. Amazing what amount of money can flow through one's hands. Compare income to that expense, and you know if you are positive or negative. To go from negative to positive, or to set aside "fun" money, I decide if any of those items could be dropped or paid off sooner, rather than later. This is also a basis for allocating an amount to stash for savings - I like to have between 6 months and 1 year's living expenses set aside - You never know what's going to happen, and I feel so much more secure. Once the safety net goal is reached, that same amount, when not directed to fun experiences, can also be directed at retirement/investment income. If you've ever played the game of Cashflow (Robert Kiyosaki) you come away with the notion of having passive assets generating enough cashflow to cover your expenses - Very powerful idea.
billpaetzke 16y ago
What is the monthly payment and interest on that?
- gaustin 16y ago
  $620 per month at about 7% average (3-4 loans between 6.x% and 8.5%). I've got $5k left one one loan that is $150 of the monthly payment. I'm going to dip into savings and pay that off in the next month or two. That'll leave me at $470 per month and $37k total.

by gaustin 16y ago

jat850 16y ago

On the plus side, you're only 28. Nothing to stop you from engaging in those experiences in a few years, rather than just yet. I was in nearly the same boat as you - debts (not student loans, misspent youth instead) and have nearly eliminated my debts and am about to move on to that phase of my life, with more expanded financial freedom. I just turned 31 and I feel like I have many opportunities still to enjoy things just as much as I would have in my twenties.

raintrees 16y ago

For me, it was first to identify all of my/our expenses. Amazing what amount of money can flow through one's hands. Compare income to that expense, and you know if you are positive or negative. To go from negative to positive, or to set aside "fun" money, I decide if any of those items could be dropped or paid off sooner, rather than later. This is also a basis for allocating an amount to stash for savings - I like to have between 6 months and 1 year's living expenses set aside - You never know what's going to happen, and I feel so much more secure. Once the safety net goal is reached, that same amount, when not directed to fun experiences, can also be directed at retirement/investment income. If you've ever played the game of Cashflow (Robert Kiyosaki) you come away with the notion of having passive assets generating enough cashflow to cover your expenses - Very powerful idea.

billpaetzke 16y ago

What is the monthly payment and interest on that?

gaustin 16y ago
$620 per month at about 7% average (3-4 loans between 6.x% and 8.5%). I've got $5k left one one loan that is $150 of the monthly payment. I'm going to dip into savings and pay that off in the next month or two. That'll leave me at $470 per month and $37k total.