Student loan payments: get advice and actual numbers here Forum

[Pretzel_Logic]

I want to switch from IBR to REPAYE. Can I only do that when my recertification period comes up?

I wasn't eligible for PAYE and thought I was stuck with IBR, but looking at the repayment estimator REPAYE sounds like a much nicer option. I asked in the other thread about consolidating (and consensus was nah). Is REPAYE generally better than IBR for

$128K total (2013 grad)
65% of debt load at 6.8%
35% at 7.9%

ETA I have $11k leftover from undergrad which is not REPAYE eligible. However, my parents have promised to pay that one off, so assume that's out of the picture and it's roughly $117K.

The repayment estimator has both a lower monthly payment and a lower forgiveness number ($70k less is set to be forgiven under REPAYE v. IBR), which will help since I'm going to get tax bombed to death since I don't make a whole lot.

[Anonymous User]

I'm crazy not to take my parents up on an offer for an interest free refinancing, right? My dad recently came into some money and offered to pay off my $200k in debt and I'd repay him over 10 years with no interest...

I don't like the idea of owing my parents money, but it's a no brainer, right?

[JenDarby]

I'm crazy not to take my parents up on an offer for an interest free refinancing, right? My dad recently came into some money and offered to pay off my $200k in debt and I'd repay him over 10 years with no interest...

I don't like the idea of owing my parents money, but it's a no brainer, right?

It's your dad, I say do it UNLESS there is any chance he can't afford it and will need the money. If there is even the slightest possibility he could become strapped for cash, then consider taking him up on half and refinancing the other half. But if there is minimal to no financial risk for your dad, the yea that is your best option. It will make buying a house etc for you easier as well.

[Johann]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

[Nebby]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

65k on 5 loans with rates between 7% to 11%. My salary will be 60k first year

[Johann]

I'm crazy not to take my parents up on an offer for an interest free refinancing, right? My dad recently came into some money and offered to pay off my $200k in debt and I'd repay him over 10 years with no interest...

I don't like the idea of owing my parents money, but it's a no brainer, right?

It's your dad, I say do it UNLESS there is any chance he can't afford it and will need the money. If there is even the slightest possibility he could become strapped for cash, then consider taking him up on half and refinancing the other half. But if there is minimal to no financial risk for your dad, the yea that is your best option. It will make buying a house etc for you easier as well.

What is your job going to be and salary?

[Johann]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

65k on 5 loans with rates between 7% to 11%. My salary will be 60k first year

I'd honestly consider REPAYE. You can get a lower monthly payment for the first couple years. The govt will subsidize half of your interest that you don't pay. What you do pay will be tax deductible.

I'm assuming you aren't going to be able to get a rate much lower than 4.5%. So depends what your split of 7% and 11% is. I've actually been considering privately refinancing someone on this board, so let me know what rate you get from a bank and I might be able to beat it.

[Nebby]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

65k on 5 loans with rates between 7% to 11%. My salary will be 60k first year

I'd honestly consider REPAYE. You can get a lower monthly payment for the first couple years. The govt will subsidize half of your interest that you don't pay. What you do pay will be tax deductible.

I'm assuming you aren't going to be able to get a rate much lower than 4.5%. So depends what your split of 7% and 11% is. I've actually been considering privately refinancing someone on this board, so let me know what rate you get from a bank and I might be able to beat it.

This isn't federal debt, it's private student loans from Wells Fargo and Navient. I have UG federal debt that I'm going to REPAYE. Law School debt is all federal and will be LRAP'd

[Johann]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

65k on 5 loans with rates between 7% to 11%. My salary will be 60k first year

I'd honestly consider REPAYE. You can get a lower monthly payment for the first couple years. The govt will subsidize half of your interest that you don't pay. What you do pay will be tax deductible.

I'm assuming you aren't going to be able to get a rate much lower than 4.5%. So depends what your split of 7% and 11% is. I've actually been considering privately refinancing someone on this board, so let me know what rate you get from a bank and I might be able to beat it.

This isn't federal debt, it's private student loans from Wells Fargo and Navient. I have UG federal debt that I'm going to REPAYE. Law School debt is all federal and will be LRAP'd

Have you tried refi-ing with Wells Fargo and Navient?

[Desert Fox]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

65k on 5 loans with rates between 7% to 11%. My salary will be 60k first year

I used earnest

referral link bro: www.meetearnest.com/invite/john1293

they gave me a 300 dollar brunch free for signing my contract. Which im using at le diplotmat on saturday.

[zot1]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

65k on 5 loans with rates between 7% to 11%. My salary will be 60k first year

I used earnest

referral link bro: http://www.meetearnest.com/invite/john1293

they gave me a 300 dollar brunch free for signing my contract. Which im using at le diplotmat on saturday.

Can I get in on this?

[jrthor10]

Would like to get a list of places to consider for refinancing for someone going to work in the DC market. Is the consensus that commonbond and sofi are likely to offer the best rates? Feel free to send me referral links.

[bklynattorney]

Debt: about $180,000 (this includes law school and a small amount of undergraduate debt)

Salary: taxable income is about $36,000 per year. Income not taxed (I'm active duty military stationed in Hawaii, so don't pay taxes on housing pay and sustenance pay) is between $40,000-45,000

Monthly payment to the Feds: $214

Payment plan: IBR

When I hope to have my debt "paid" off: 2025 under PSLF program

The feeling that I'll have when debt all paid off: priceless

[Danger Zone]

Would like to get a list of places to consider for refinancing for someone going to work in the DC market. Is the consensus that commonbond and sofi are likely to offer the best rates? Feel free to send me referral links.

Also check out Earnest, DRB, First Republic. It's all soft credit checks so apply to all and take the best rate.

[Johann]

I want to switch from IBR to REPAYE. Can I only do that when my recertification period comes up?

I wasn't eligible for PAYE and thought I was stuck with IBR, but looking at the repayment estimator REPAYE sounds like a much nicer option. I asked in the other thread about consolidating (and consensus was nah). Is REPAYE generally better than IBR for

$128K total (2013 grad)
65% of debt load at 6.8%
35% at 7.9%

ETA I have $11k leftover from undergrad which is not REPAYE eligible. However, my parents have promised to pay that one off, so assume that's out of the picture and it's roughly $117K.

The repayment estimator has both a lower monthly payment and a lower forgiveness number ($70k less is set to be forgiven under REPAYE v. IBR), which will help since I'm going to get tax bombed to death since I don't make a whole lot.

Yeah REPAYE should be better than IBR. I'm not aware of any point IBR has an advantage over REPAYE.

[Desert Fox]

I have some private debt from UG with absurd post-recession rates that I want to refinance once I start working, and I tried to find my rate with SoFi but apparently my salary is too low for them. Anyone refi your loans with another company?

I don't know what on-topic this belongs in so I put it here

How much you got at what rates? Post in the loan thread in legal employment. What's your salary going to be?

65k on 5 loans with rates between 7% to 11%. My salary will be 60k first year

I used earnest

referral link bro: http://www.meetearnest.com/invite/john1293

they gave me a 300 dollar brunch free for signing my contract. Which im using at le diplotmat on saturday.

Can I get in on this?

They didn't give me teh offer until I was approved and didn't sign the paperwork for like 3 weeks cause I billed 250 hours in that three weeks. Can't be sure its an ongoing offer.

[JenDarby]

I think he just wants to eat brunch with you, but doesn't realize you'll eat $300 worth of food on your own.

[zot1]

Haha you caught me

[Anonymous User]

What kind of credit score is generally needed for refinancing?

I have about 200k in debt with biglaw lined up. But pretty shitty credit score due to high credit card utilization. My FICO score is ~690 but I've never missed a payment on any of my accounts.

[Danger Zone]

What kind of credit score is generally needed for refinancing?

I have about 200k in debt with biglaw lined up. But pretty shitty credit score due to high credit card utilization. My FICO score is ~690 but I've never missed a payment on any of my accounts.

Def work on your credit score before applying. Keep paying down those cards, or open more cards.

[Anonymous User]

Can anyone help me assess a repayment strategy budget? Plz be nice

I'm at H so I have LIPP as a possibility (but don't think this will come into play?) so I'm not sure if I should refi or keep the lipp/federal protection. I'm headed to a tertiary market in SoCal(OC/SD). Here's my breakdown:

Currently a 2L, and expecting total debt at grad of around 190k at rates between 6.21 and 7.21% for most of the loans.

Gross Income:
170,000 starting (including bonus)
-Expected taxes(got this from CA income tax calculator):
Federal $35,888
FICA $9,812
State $12,910
Local 0
Total Income Taxes $58,610
Net Income:
111390
-----------
Fixed Expenses/month (estimates):
Loan Payments: 4,000 (too ambitious?)
Rent: 1,500
Utilities: 150
Car+gas: 500
Health Insurance: 250
Total/year: 76,800
----------
Total variable expense budget year/month: 34,590/2882.50 (better standard of living than I'm used to)

I know I should save up a rainy day fund, but am not sure how much that should be or how best to do so. I am very interested in paying off my loans within 5 years if possible, and I grew up lower middle class so I have no qualms about living relatively modestly. I also figure that as I get paid more each year I can adjust my payments and living expenses appropriately so that the financial burden becomes easier to bear over time.

Please let me know if I'm forgetting anything in my calculations and please offer any advice you see fit. No, I cannot travel back in time and not go to law school. I am actually very happy with my outcome so far. The 190k number is a high estimate and I hope to come out around 5k below that but for the sake of this budget I'd rather estimate up. Thanks!!!

[zot1]

Can anyone help me assess a repayment strategy budget? Plz be nice

I'm at H so I have LIPP as a possibility (but don't think this will come into play?) so I'm not sure if I should refi or keep the lipp/federal protection. I'm headed to a tertiary market in SoCal(OC/SD). Here's my breakdown:

Currently a 2L, and expecting total debt at grad of around 190k at rates between 6.21 and 7.21% for most of the loans.

Gross Income:
170,000 starting (including bonus)
-Expected taxes(got this from CA income tax calculator):
Federal $35,888
FICA $9,812
State $12,910
Local 0
Total Income Taxes $58,610
Net Income:
111390
-----------
Fixed Expenses/month (estimates):
Loan Payments: 4,000 (too ambitious?)
Rent: 1,500
Utilities: 150
Car+gas: 500
Health Insurance: 250
Total/year: 76,800
----------
Total variable expense budget year/month: 34,590/2882.50 (better standard of living than I'm used to)

I know I should save up a rainy day fund, but am not sure how much that should be or how best to do so. I am very interested in paying off my loans within 5 years if possible, and I grew up lower middle class so I have no qualms about living relatively modestly. I also figure that as I get paid more each year I can adjust my payments and living expenses appropriately so that the financial burden becomes easier to bear over time.

Please let me know if I'm forgetting anything in my calculations and please offer any advice you see fit. No, I cannot travel back in time and not go to law school. I am actually very happy with my outcome so far. The 190k number is a high estimate and I hope to come out around 5k below that but for the sake of this budget I'd rather estimate up. Thanks!!!

Are you planning this as if you were going to biglaw? If so, I think your underestimating your health insurance cost.

Also, you might be underestimating on rent and utilities as well.

You absolutely need to save right away. Firms can push you out within your first year for business reasons. First years are the first to go during layoffs. If something were to happen, you would not be happy not having anything on savings.

[Anonymous User]

Are you planning this as if you were going to biglaw? If so, I think your underestimating your health insurance cost.

Also, you might be underestimating on rent and utilities as well.

You absolutely need to save right away. Firms can push you out within your first year for business reasons. First years are the first to go during layoffs. If something were to happen, you would not be happy not having anything on savings.

Yes I will be going to biglaw. Can you give me a more accurate number I can expect for health insurance?

I've already surveyed the rental market and I definitely think I can hit 1500 rent at a nice apartment with a roommate. The weather is pretty great year-round so I don't expect high heating/cooling costs. I will definitely defer to your/others judgment here though if you still think I should up those estimates.

I know I should start saving right away, but how much exactly? I figure LIPP will semi-save me should something catastrophic happen so I don't need to be too conservative here. Again I will defer to the judgment of those smarter and wiser than me on all of this. Thanks for your response!!

[Danger Zone]

Save as much as you can as fast as you can so you can gtfo of big law

[zot1]

Are you planning this as if you were going to biglaw? If so, I think your underestimating your health insurance cost.

Also, you might be underestimating on rent and utilities as well.

You absolutely need to save right away. Firms can push you out within your first year for business reasons. First years are the first to go during layoffs. If something were to happen, you would not be happy not having anything on savings.

Yes I will be going to biglaw. Can you give me a more accurate number I can expect for health insurance?

I've already surveyed the rental market and I definitely think I can hit 1500 rent at a nice apartment with a roommate. The weather is pretty great year-round so I don't expect high heating/cooling costs. I will definitely defer to your/others judgment here though if you still think I should up those estimates.

I know I should start saving right away, but how much exactly? I figure LIPP will semi-save me should something catastrophic happen so I don't need to be too conservative here. Again I will defer to the judgment of those smarter and wiser than me on all of this. Thanks for your response!!

My bad, I didn't realize you were planning to have a roommate. In that case, your numbers may be more accurate.

I don't know specifically about health insurance for biglaw, but when I've read the biglaw threads, it's pretty clear that the amount is higher than what you have here.

Also, if you really want to keep a tight budget, you should actually budget food. I've struggled to make this work myself because eating out is way too much fun.