Not to be a downer..but student loan debt?

[gfa240]

I quite honestly wouldn't go into the field if I had to take on as much debt as the average student, as bad as that sounds. I'm lucky and have the GI bill covering 3/4 of my years of school, but even the debt from undergrad and that first year freaks me out a little bit - I absolutely DO NOT like the idea of being so much in the hole. Thank goodness for an SO who is willing to foot the bills for the first year or two out while I aggressively pay it down. It's a ridiculous situation in the US, to have to take so much debt out to get a degree that pays so little.

I am with you. I HATE being in debt. Education or otherwise. Its a freaking chain around your ankles and you have to carry it with you for the rest of your life. Pardon my question, but what is a GI bill and how can I get me one of those?
Its down right ridiculous that I have to pay 7+% in interest back to the government , while my bank account accrues a nice 0.5%. WTF??!!

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[gfa240]

T

 

[gfa240]

Where do you all live?? $36,000 - $48,000/year is beggar's money for a typical person living in a metropolitan area, which iso buy a home. And from what I've seen in terms of monthly mortgage v. rent in my areas, it is almost always cheaper to buy a home and pay mortgage. So why do so many people rent? Because nobody has enough money to pay the down payment, haha. SIGH. Money...

Your calculations are right on. I think rent or mortgage is higher than 1000/month in cities though. 30K is poverty level in So Cal, no joke. 1BDR easily goes for $1700-2200 a month in a decent area ( meaning not luxury, just less shooting, theft, break-ins, etc. ) .Forget about buying a house. It starts at 600K for a small 2BDR...that's roughly 4K/month for mortgage. Now add in higher gas prices, higher car insurance, food costs, congestion, crime....so I don't know if the higher pay really translates to more money.

 

[that redhead]

Your calculations are right on. I think rent or mortgage is higher than 1000/month in cities though. 30K is poverty level in So Cal, no joke. 1BDR easily goes for $1700-2200 a month in a decent area ( meaning not luxury, just less shooting, theft, break-ins, etc. ) .Forget about buying a house. It starts at 600K for a small 2BDR...that's roughly 4K/month for mortgage. Now add in higher gas prices, higher car insurance, food costs, congestion, crime....so I don't know if the higher pay really translates to more money.

California is pretty notorious for exorbitantly high cost of living, though, even moreso than most metro areas (I'm in DC). I would consider moving, personally.

 

[gfa240]

California is pretty notorious for exorbitantly high cost of living, though, even moreso than most metro areas (I'm in DC). I would consider moving, personally.

I did but you still have to find a job in a new city!