Can Anyone Beat Top My Debt?

[BennieBlanco]

Ah the mythical tax free salary.

lol. True true. It is funny when I started making money and even on a big month I would be like, "where did half my cash go?"

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[NTF]

I'm sure you know that the stafford limit for health professionals is $224 (it varies a little from school to school, but not by the figures you're talking about). Applying for loans after that is based on credit score.

Actually the stafford limits for med school are currently ~164k for 4 years of medical school, but it's not hard to get loans for the remaining amount. With grad plus loans you are eligible to borrow the remaining amount up to the COA (Cost of attendance) of your school. While they do check your credit for grad plus the requirements aren't strict at all. As long as you haven't declared bankruptcy or defaulted on prior loans (especially federal student loans) you're pretty much assured approval. And even then if you get a co-signer you can get approved.

And the COA's are usually pretty generous for non-trads who know how to live on a budget. I could probably have another couple of kids and still live comfortably off my loan budget.

 

[235750]

Actually the stafford limits for med school are currently ~164k for 4 years of medical school

This is exactly why this author of this thread needs to go to a professional accountant. There is a lot of misinformation propagated in anonymous forms where people are not held accountable.

From the Stafford Loan website:
"...the aggregate loan limit for graduate and professional students enrolled in certain approved health profession programs is $224,000."

As long as you haven't declared bankruptcy or defaulted on prior loans (especially federal student loans) you're pretty much assured approval.

Again, this is also wrong. There are credits checks for reason, and pre-existing debt will negatively effect your credit score.

We're not talking about taking out a few thousand to cover living expenses as you have done. We're talking about all four years of medical school and all expenses related to this being completely financed by Grad Plus. These are completely different experiences!

I was fairly financially successful before medical school, and even I had some troubles getting grad plus loans. And with an estimated debt of over 500k, the author of this thread will most certainly have some trouble.

I highly recommend that the author talk to a professional about this. It doesn't matter if you're in medical school, aggregate loans over $500k are not "assured approval". The TOTAL debt for a medical school graduate in 2008 was on average around 150k; this person will be over 3 times the national level. This will create problems: to what the degree, the author will have to find out from a professional.

Again, best of luck and congratulations to the author!

 

[NTF]

This is exactly why this author of this thread needs to go to a professional accountant. There is a lot of misinformation propagated in anonymous forms where people are not held accountable.

To correct myself. Yes aggregate stafford limits are 224k for medical students. But my figure is correct for 4 years of medical. 40.5k x 4 = 162k.

And I agree that the OP should call some lenders to talk about eligibility for grad plus.

I for one didn't have any problems borrowing what I needed via grad plus even with the credit check. And several friends including one with debts from law school and one with debts from vet school (ie debts in excess of 150k prior to matriculation) also did not have any issues with approval for grad plus. So I still stand by my original assertion. As long as you haven't been derelict in your prior financial obligations the credit standards are not the same for grad plus as for lets say a private educational loan. Also the rules I stated for grad plus are also correct. Whatever stafford doesn't cover, if approved for grad plus you can borrow up to your school's calculated COA (ie the portion not covered by stafford).

But the poster is correct, you should consult a student loan lender as soon as possible to make sure there are no snags.

As far as how the poster wishes I be "held accountable"...

 

[BennieBlanco]

This is exactly why this author of this thread needs to go to a professional accountant. There is a lot of misinformation propagated in anonymous forms where people are not held accountable.

From the Stafford Loan website:
"...the aggregate loan limit for graduate and professional students enrolled in certain approved health profession programs is $224,000."



Again, this is also wrong. There are credits checks for reason, and pre-existing debt will negatively effect your credit score.

We're not talking about taking out a few thousand to cover living expenses as you have done. We're talking about all four years of medical school and all expenses related to this being completely financed by Grad Plus. These are completely different experiences!

I was fairly financially successful before medical school, and even I had some troubles getting grad plus loans. And with an estimated debt of over 500k, the author of this thread will most certainly have some trouble.

I highly recommend that the author talk to a professional about this. It doesn't matter if you're in medical school, aggregate loans over $500k are not "assured approval". The TOTAL debt for a medical school graduate in 2008 was on average around 150k; this person will be over 3 times the national level. This will create problems: to what the degree, the author will have to find out from a professional.

Again, best of luck and congratulations to the author!

I find it funny that everyone recommends talking to professionals.

Most of the professional financial people are awful. They typically aren't very financial successful themselves. Better advice is to ask people who are financial successful what books they have read and or read and other educational resources and to learn about finance yourself.

This is a topic that will likely be part of your life until death. So it isn't a bad idea to invest in it. I probably have spent $300 on financial books (give or take), I am still a novice BUT I know all the basics which is what we are dealing with right now.

Most financial professionals have lousy balance sheets and give poor advice based upon who knows what.

Anyone can look up a loan limit, so whether or not that is spot on advice is trivial. Knowing random figures doesn't make you a financial whiz or nimrod.

Best ADVICE: educate yourself.

 

[DrYoda]

I find it funny that everyone recommends talking to professionals.

Most of the professional financial people are awful. They typically aren't very financial successful themselves. Better advice is to ask people who are financial successful what books they have read and or read and other educational resources and to learn about finance yourself.

This is a topic that will likely be part of your life until death. So it isn't a bad idea to invest in it. I probably have spent $300 on financial books (give or take), I am still a novice BUT I know all the basics which is what we are dealing with right now.

Most financial professionals have lousy balance sheets and give poor advice based upon who knows what.

Anyone can look up a loan limit, so whether or not that is spot on advice is trivial. Knowing random figures doesn't make you a financial whiz or nimrod.

Best ADVICE: educate yourself.

qft


and this thread makes me sad.

 

[medicinesux]

These spiraling debt loads leave me breathless- 300,400, 500K!!! I really feel for the new crop of physicians entering this profession. An education needs to be paid for but it should NOT supercede your annual projected income. In other words, if you are planning on making 180K out of residency, your total debt should be 180 max. Many of the naive comments on this thread just make me want to shake my head. I will sign off here and leave it to yadayadadude who keenly stated in one of the above referenced threads:

"premeds in SDN and elsewhere say, "How often do you see a doc who can't make ends meet? Other people have borrowed to finance medical school and we can too". This argument is hogwash, of course, because student loan levels are increasing at such a rapid clip and physician incomes are basically stagnant. Every couple of years, we graduate a new cohort of doctors who are literally in uncharted territory with regard to student loan debt. I'm afraid your cohort of grads will be no different. You really can't take any comfort in the fact that all the docs you know were able to repay their loans. I wish I could be more encouraging."

 

[235750]

To correct myself. Yes aggregate stafford limits are 224k for medical students. But my figure is correct for 4 years of medical. 40.5k x 4 = 162k.

The 224k limit is what's meaningful to the author of the OP as it indicates that he/she is not eligible for said loans.

And several friends including one with debts from law school and one with debts from vet school (ie debts in excess of 150k prior to matriculation) also did not have any issues with approval for grad plus. So I still stand by my original assertion.

Again, we're talking about debt in excess of 500k. How much debt did your friends graduate with? Were they married?

Anyone can look up a loan limit, so whether or not that is spot on advice is trivial.

The point is, there is no loan limit with grad plus to look up...you can theoretically borrow a limitless amount. But in reality there will come an amount where the banks won't loan you any more as they see you as too big a risk.

 

[NTF]

The 224k limit is what's meaningful to the author of the OP as it indicates that he/she is not eligible for said loans.



Again, we're talking about debt in excess of 500k. How much debt did your friends graduate with? Were they married?



The point is, there is no loan limit with grad plus to look up...you can theoretically borrow a limitless amount. But in reality there will come an amount where the banks won't loan you any more as they see you as too big a risk.

Actually the truly meaningful limit is whether the poster can be approved to borrow enough to make it through medical school. So stafford limits aren't really the issue. Grad plus approval is.

As far as my friends, one is married and has 2 kids in elementary school and an 8 month old, wife is also a full time student (ie more student debt), and they have a mortgage. Still got approved for grad plus. Also got approved for a budget increase for child care.

The other is married, has 2 pre-school aged kids. Husband works and they also have a mortgage. Also approved for grad plus and budget increases for daycare.

I was also approved for grad plus with budget increases for child care. I don't have a mortgage but I do have undergraduate student loan debt from a overpriced private school.

So again, the point is if you haven't been derelict in your prior financial obligations, grad plus isn't hard to get. And even with blemishes you can get approved with a co-signer (my buddy declared bankruptcy 4 years ago after a motorcycle accident and got approved with grad plus when he found a cosigner). Banks don't hold the same credit standards for grad plus (as opposed to private educational loans) because 1)they're guaranteed by the federal government 2)under current rules (IBR) a student only needs to make 15% of gross above 150% of poverty 3)the federal government clears the principal after 25 years of payments or if the student dies or becomes disabled.

But yeah, call a student lender to find out approval standards.

Sheesh.

Don't know what lenders you went through but sounds like they gave you a bad experience.

 

[ella2013]

D

 

[BennieBlanco]

The point is, there is no loan limit with grad plus to look up...you can theoretically borrow a limitless amount. But in reality there will come an amount where the banks won't loan you any more as they see you as too big a risk.

You mean banks will stop loaning money to an individual or institution when they determine the borrower likely won't pay back?! What? I need to learn about these "Bank" things

 

[squibby]

I am looking at 50k a year tuition if I get into my first-choice school, second choice, 40k,... last, 25k. Who on earth lets you borrow that much!? Are any of your loans govt. subsidized, or all they all private?

I could stress over the whole debt thing, once I add up the years I will be in school, but I figure in the end life isn't about who dies with the most money. If I can live a decent life, be able to get a house, travel, and afford kids if I ever feel like having one *gasp*, I will be happy.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I'm too lazy to look it up, but most lenders list the GradPlus requirements on their websites. There is a credit check, but prior debt and credit scores don't affect approval. Bankruptcy and I think defaults of more than 90 days within the last 5 or so years are what would stop you from getting them. So if you've generally paid your bills on time, haven't had issues with collections or declared bankruptcy, most likely you will get approved for a GradPlus loan. Don't take me word for it, though -- look at the more official websites.

As for Staffords, you can get more than $40,500 if you're enrolled for a full year versus 9 months. I've been getting around $47k yearly for the MS3 and 4. Again, you guys should go check out the financial aid page here where the posters are generally pretty knowledgeable about this stuff.

 

[chocomorsel]

I am looking at 50k a year tuition if I get into my first-choice school, second choice, 40k,... last, 25k. Who on earth lets you borrow that much!? Are any of your loans govt. subsidized, or all they all private?

I could stress over the whole debt thing, once I add up the years I will be in school, but I figure in the end life isn't about who dies with the most money. If I can live a decent life, be able to get a house, travel, and afford kids if I ever feel like having one *gasp*, I will be happy.

Please, please, be smart and go to your third choice. Big names don't matter in the end. All that matters is that you kick ass in school. And not to rain on your parade, but the financial stability of veterinarians is very variable. Some make what 40-60k a year? It doesn't even matter in the end. Especially for you guys who don't even have to fight each other for residencies.

 

[UCLAprospect]

I sympathize with you, but at the same time I am grateful that I am not in your financial situation. I am happy that you are happy, (about becoming a doctor) but I would not trade my $19,300 debt (which includes, undergrad loans, car, and credit card debt) for the world. Hopefully, I get in medical school, but thank God I am a Texas resident, medical school tuition is approx 12k a year.

 

[squibby]

Please, please, be smart and go to your third choice. Big names don't matter in the end. All that matters is that you kick ass in school. And not to rain on your parade, but the financial stability of veterinarians is very variable. Some make what 40-60k a year? It doesn't even matter in the end. Especially for you guys who don't even have to fight each other for residencies.

Thanks for your reply. There are a few important reasons I don't want to go to my state school. The two biggest: I haven't heard great things about recent Davis vet graduates, and the proximity (one hour) to my very toxic mother. Getting out of state and away from my mother would be very good for my marriage and my mental health, to make a very long story short. You are right, big names aren't important. Davis, a big name, is my in-state school, but I would rather go somewhere else. I value a better education. Also, the cost of living in Ohio or Illinois verses Davis is way, way less.

I would rather not live my life in fear of the uncertainty of the future. If I listened to my fear I would never have even applied to vet school because I was afraid of failing. Some people can probably live in ways like you suggest, but I can't.

Also, not sure where you got 40-60k, but that is well below the average, especially in CA. My response sounds a bit pissed off, which it wasn't supposed to. I was just filling out some details.