Quote:
Originally Posted by Asyouwereatrio
Using some more realistic and very conservative numbers (conservative=assuming lots of taxation and high loan repayment amounts):
Principal loan amount: $300,000 (let's say 400k including undergraduate debt)
Loan after interest: $600,000 (the number that gets thrown around is usually 1.5x principal)
Average gross salary of some random doctor: $225,000 ---> $150,000
Taxes withheld: $60,000 ---> 50% taxation rate ---> $75,000 annual takehome pay
Med mal insurance: $0 (let's assume you start out in a hospital... I know, sloppy assumption for a few reasons)
Monthly take-home= Roughly $6250.
Loan Repayment: $3000
Rent and Utilities: $1500
"Disposable Income"=$1750
While $1750 may not be THAT much on a "doctor's lifestyle"....it does mean you have some room to breathe. I used big estimates (since most loan repayments on a 25 year plan are less than 3K and monthly take home pay will likely be higher than that for most doctors).
It's still doable.  |
These numbers are closer to reasonable, but in a high cost of living area, rent and utilities is going to be about $1000 higher than you indicated, transportation and parking costs may not be free, and there are plenty of other incidentals you have each month (food) that probably bring that disposable income figure to zero. Speaking as someone who previously paid down prior professional school debt, albeit at a much more favorable rate than you can get now, i assure you that you will be living a very Spartan existence for a lot of years if you have to borrow a lot for med school. It's not really an accident that every hospital conference where food is provided is very well attended.