Taking Out Max Loans to Live in One Bedroom Forum

[AVBucks4239]

Let me preface all of this by saying that I am incredibly naive to the financial aid portion of law school. I've tried reading stuff on school's websites and here on TLS but it's all German to me. I'm just looking for a general guide as to a) if I'm being an idiot or not and b) what the most effective way to do accomplish this would be.

I am probably going to end up attending Cleveland State next year. There are some really nice one bedroom apartments that will cost me in the range of $700-900/month. I really want to live in a nice one bedroom place because I lived in really shitty party houses with partying roommates during my time at Ohio State.

Tuition is $18,200 and I am receiving a $12,000/year scholarship. The student who gave me a tour yesterday basically said that you are allowed to borrow up to double tuition from the school. My simple and ignorant mind is assuming that I can borrow $36,400/year and only have to be responsible for paying $24,400 back/year due to the scholarship. I would still owe $6,200 for tuition, $1500 for books, and I'm going to say $1000 for other fees, leaving me $15,700 for cost of living. In addition, I should get some help (I would guess $300-400/month) from my parents. So, by my amateur calculations (factoring in my parents' aid), that leaves me with around $1600/month for an apartment.

Would it be ridiculous to take out the max and live in a nice one bedroom apartment? What would be the best package of loans to use if I wanted to do this? Also, would this force me to take out loans that start accumulating interest at the origination of the loan? Would I be better off going to a private bank and getting personal loans instead of borrowing from the government?

I'm stuck in a great paradox of trying to be debt averse and trying to live well and I really don't know which direction to go. Thanks for your help in advance.

[bartleby]

you just said $700-$900 gets you a "really nice one bedroom"...why would you spend $1,600 a month then?

i skimmed, maybe i misread something.

[AVBucks4239]

you just said $700-$900 gets you a "really nice one bedroom"...why would you spend $1,600 a month then?

i skimmed, maybe i misread something.

Not saying I would spend $1600/month, just stating that by my calculations I would have somewhere around $1600/month for an apartment and other cost of living expenses.

[txadv11]

If a school is 18K and you get a 12K scholy, then the most you can borrow is 6,000 PLUS whatever the school estimates for living expenses.

[AVBucks4239]

If a school is 18K and you get a 12K scholy, then the most you can borrow is 6,000 PLUS whatever the school estimates for living expenses.

The school's website lists expenses other than tuition as follows:

Room and Board: $11000
Personal and Misc: $2496
Transportation: $1400
Books: $1400
TOTAL: $16296

So I'd basically be allowed to borrow the $6200 plus this figure? Or just the room and board?

[krad]

Total cost of attendance (as listed by the school; tuition plus COL) - your scholarship = what you can borrow

[AVBucks4239]

Total cost of attendance (as listed by the school; tuition plus COL) - your scholarship = what you can borrow

Ok, thanks a ton for the information about how much I can borrow. Now, to the second part of this, am I an idiot for wanting to borrow the max just to live in a nice place?

[bergg007]

Total cost of attendance (as listed by the school; tuition plus COL) - your scholarship = what you can borrow

Ok, thanks a ton for the information about how much I can borrow. Now, to the second part of this, am I an idiot for wanting to borrow the max just to live in a nice place?

yes

[akili]

Total cost of attendance (as listed by the school; tuition plus COL) - your scholarship = what you can borrow

Ok, thanks a ton for the information about how much I can borrow. Now, to the second part of this, am I an idiot for wanting to borrow the max just to live in a nice place?

If you can get a nice apartment for cheaper, I don't know why you would want to pay more. I mean, I'm not going to live in a craphole next year, but I'm also not going to pay a ridiculous amount for a super-luxury place either.

[bartleby]

Total cost of attendance (as listed by the school; tuition plus COL) - your scholarship = what you can borrow

Ok, thanks a ton for the information about how much I can borrow. Now, to the second part of this, am I an idiot for wanting to borrow the max just to live in a nice place?

yes

[northwood]

you want to keep your costs down as much as possible.
why pay twice the amount you need for an apt?

[Aberzombie1892]

Yes. A nice apartment is a luxury. I'm currently paying twice as much (or more) as the average Tulane law student in rent ($1,055). But I'm not paying the rent through loans, and so I'm not an idiot.

[krad]

You really want to minimize your debt, or at least you should want to minimize your debt. Maxing out your loans to live in a really nice place/continue a certain lifestyle is not advisable, but that's a personal decision that only you can make based on how much debt you're comfortable having when you graduate. Maxing our your loands/debt in school just means that you'll have to live at a lower standard down the road while working to pay off those loans.

FWIW, I've been out of school and working for 3 years (making good $) and I am planning to majorly downsize my lifestyle this fall.

[northwood]

you will be paying interest on those loans. So you will be paying for that apartment for as long as you pay off those loans.
not a smart financial move

[akili]

I wouldn't do anything that would maximize debt from Cleveland State....

[bergg007]

Yes. A nice apartment is a luxury. I'm currently paying twice as much (or more) as the average Tulane law student in rent ($1,055). But I'm not paying the rent through loans, and so I'm not an idiot.

if you are paying for anything through loans then you are de facto paying for your apartment through loans because that's $500 that could have been used to pay for whatever your loans are going to.

[krad]

I wouldn't do anything that would maximize debt from Cleveland State....

Ohhhh ditto. I didn't even read which school we were talking about here . You DEFINITELY want to minimize your debt as much as possible.

[swc65]

I wouldn't do anything that would maximize debt from Cleveland State....

Ohhhh ditto. I didn't even read which school we were talking about here . You DEFINITELY want to minimize your debt as much as possible.

I would suggest buying a van for 800, parking it somewhere (perhaps by the river), and living in that. You should not be looking to take out extra money given the probability you will have of being able to make the loan payments and live comfortably after you graduate. If you land a nice in the Fall of 2012, then think about upgrading.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/4183/saturday ... -the-river

Follow this guy's lead

http://www.salon.com/life/pinched/2009/ ... g_in_a_van

[homestyle28]

Total cost of attendance (as listed by the school; tuition plus COL) - your scholarship = what you can borrow

Ok, thanks a ton for the information about how much I can borrow. Now, to the second part of this, am I an idiot for wanting to borrow the max just to live in a nice place?

yes

[The Gentleman]

If a school is 18K and you get a 12K scholy, then the most you can borrow is 6,000 PLUS whatever the school estimates for living expenses.

True, but many schools are willing to increase the COL budget on a case by case basis.

Would it be ridiculous to take out the max and live in a nice one bedroom apartment?

You should find a balance between living somewhere you will be comfortable and minimizing debt. $1,600 per month is ridiculously expensive for Cleveland.

What would be the best package of loans to use if I wanted to do this?

Use Federal Stafford loans first. If you need to borrow beyond those, then you have a choice between GradPLUS loans and private student loans. GradPLUS loans are federal, which means that they come with a number of built-in protections and perks, like IBR, public service forgiveness, and potential for deferment. The downside to GradPLUS loans is the higher interest rate, which I believe is 7.9%.

Private student loans aren't eligible for IBR or public service forgiveness, and they're not necessarily deferable if you go back to school. However, a savvy applicant with a strong credit history might find lower interest rates.

Personally, I would prefer to pay a little more in interest and have the safety net of IBR/forgiveness, but maybe you're a gamblin man.

Also, would this force me to take out loans that start accumulating interest at the origination of the loan?

Most likely yes, it will. Depending on your financial situation, you might be eligible for the subsidized Stafford loan. This will not accrue any interest while you are enrolled as a full time student. Everything else, including the unsubsidized Stafford, GradPLUS, and private loans, will begin accruing interest immediately.

HTH

[AVBucks4239]

I think we have a misunderstanding here and it's mostly my fault for not really laying out the housing market up in Cleveland. I'm not talking about living in 1500 square foot penthouse or anything, just a nice, modern one bedroom apartment.

I have a friend who goes to undergrad there and he said a good price for a one bedroom downtown is around $750. I looked online for days and he was pretty much right. The cheapest I've seen is $620 and those didn't seem too nice.

However, there are apartments literally right across the street from the law school that are $875 (here's the website in case you're interested into seeing how "nice" I'm talking about here: http://www.thecoralcompany.com/resident ... uclid.html). So I'm not paying more for a super luxurious place, I'm just paying an extra $125 for an awesome location. There isn't a chance in hell I'm paying $1600 just for rent. I just want to have a nice place and live comfortably.

As for going to Cleveland State, say what you want, but it's where you go if you want to practice in Cleveland, period.

[The Gentleman]

As for going to Cleveland State, say what you want, but it's where you go if you want to practice in Cleveland, period.

Not to derail your housing/loan thread, but have you checked with CM about the GPA curve? A 3.2 at CM might be a lot tougher to maintain than you think. Just curious.

[bartleby]

I think we have a misunderstanding here and it's mostly my fault for not really laying out the housing market up in Cleveland. I'm not talking about living in 1500 square foot penthouse or anything, just a nice, modern one bedroom apartment.

I have a friend who goes to undergrad there and he said a good price for a one bedroom downtown is around $750. I looked online for days and he was pretty much right. The cheapest I've seen is $620 and those didn't seem too nice.

However, there are apartments literally right across the street from the law school that are $875 here's the website in case you're interested into seeing how "nice" I'm talking about here: http://www.thecoralcompany.com/resident ... uclid.html). So I'm not paying more for a super luxurious place, I'm just paying an extra $125 for an awesome location. There isn't a chance in hell I'm paying $1600 just for rent.

As for going to Cleveland State, say what you want, but it's where you go if you want to practice in Cleveland, period.

yeah, it is really up to you then. $125 extra a month right across the street from the law school will probably be cheaper if you factor in gas costs if you don't have to drive.

[AVBucks4239]

As for going to Cleveland State, say what you want, but it's where you go if you want to practice in Cleveland, period.

Not to derail your housing/loan thread, but have you checked with CM about the GPA curve? A 3.2 at CM might be a lot tougher to maintain than you think. Just curious.

From what I've read, you basically need to finish top 30-35% to keep your scholarship.

[mcubberly]

Yes. A nice apartment is a luxury. I'm currently paying twice as much (or more) as the average Tulane law student in rent ($1,055). But I'm not paying the rent through loans, and so I'm not an idiot.

Around here? I am ridiculously jealous of your apartment. You must have a ton of space. 2br?

I'm living with a roommate in a decent place to cut costs. It really helps. -to OP.