Living at home post-grad to help pay for pharmacy school loans?

[DestinyHope]

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I feel like this is a really good place to ask this, as many people on this forum are likely in similar situations. I will be graduating with 100K+ in student loans and, as a pharmacist, I should be making enough to live on my own but will have this dark cloud of debt hovering above my head for at least a few years. I could put a few extra thousand dollars toward that debt by living at home for a year after graduation. I lived on my own all through college, so I know i can handle it. My parents *say* they would love for me to live at home. I just don't want to mooch off them or be the poster child for extended adolescence. I would definitely put a one year time limit on it and buy only those things that I really need (no new BMWs or Louis Vuitton handbags). What do you think-good or bad idea?

 

[BME103]

do you get along with your parents well?

 

[DestinyHope]

Yes, we get along just fine!

 

[owlegrad]

Only you know if this is right for you or not. Still two years away for me, but I am in the same boat. Not sure what I will do. It's a great way to live frugally, but yikes - can you even call yourself an adult, living with your parents? lol 😀

There really is no wrong decision here though - both options are perfectly valid. You could also use the time you are living back home to find a really good deal on a new place rather than rushing into something you might regret. I say go for it, paying for those debts is sure to feel goooooood. 😎

 

[BrightLight]

I moved back to my parents' house after graduation to save money to pay back my loans. It works great for me! Just help them with chores and pay for the utilities (it still beats paying for rents), and they should enjoy your presence around too.

 

[pharmschooler]

In other countries there's no stigma attached to living at home with your parents as an adult; it's only here in the US that people get so awkward about the idea. In a lot of places, it's expected that adult children will live with their parents if they're unmarried.

If your parents want you back and you get along with your parents and would enjoy it, do it!

 

[Allure]

I get along fine with my parents and lived with them for 2 decades, but I don't think I can do it again. Freedom comes with a price. I like my own place, my own space. I can do the dishes whenever I want to, throw clothes on the floor if I feel like it, walk around naked..lol...these are the things you can't do freely living with the parents. Most importantly, I don't have to answer to anyone.

Freedom to walk around naked = priceless LOL

 

[rph3664]

You have to do what's right for you. It's really nobody else's business who you live with or where as long as it isn't hurting them.

One man at my last job lived for a couple years with his grandfather, who was at the point where he didn't need full time caregiving but couldn't live alone any more.

 

[ChaiTea]

I feel like this is a really good place to ask this, as many people on this forum are likely in similar situations. I will be graduating with 100K+ in student loans and, as a pharmacist, I should be making enough to live on my own but will have this dark cloud of debt hovering above my head for at least a few years. I could put a few extra thousand dollars toward that debt by living at home for a year after graduation. I lived on my own all through college, so I know i can handle it. My parents *say* they would love for me to live at home. I just don't want to mooch off them or be the poster child for extended adolescence. I would definitely put a one year time limit on it and buy only those things that I really need (no new BMWs or Louis Vuitton handbags). What do you think-good or bad idea?

As an older student who will be looking at about 210K in loans after graduation, I will be living at home. It's a win-win situation for me (minimize living costs) and my mom (who is disabled, she needs the help around home).

As for repayment, well it depends how much of which type of loans you have (if the majority of your loans are federal, not bad, if majority are private = you will more than likely have to scrimp and save). The reason I say this is b/c federal loans generally have the lowest interest rates and if you are lucky enough to get into a federal loan repayment program (there are plenty), you can pay off about 100% of federal loans in 1/2 the time (probally 3-4 years, instead of 10+). What you should do? Live at home post-grad and exhaust Google as to what type of FEDERAL loan repayment programs there are available for pharmacists, etc. (I say etc. b/c you can really do anything besides pharmacy once you get the Pharm.D. degree 😉) Hope this helps. B/c of my debt load, I am currently going through all options on how to pay off student loans in the quickest time frame possible.😀

 

[All4MyDaughter]

I wouldn't live with my parents and I doubt they'd want me to. But I'm older, married and about to have a child. I've lived on my own almost as long as I lived at home as a child and I like my independence.

That said, I can see the allure of living at home to save money. But if you are a single guy, just be aware that it may be off-putting to the ladies. When I met my husband he was living at home with his momma and it gave me pause about getting involved with him. She was very involved with his life, had very strong opinions about his dating activities and it's not like we could go to his place after dates! Luckily, he decided to move out and get his own place a few months after we started getting serious.

Reminds me of that TLC song 'No Scrubs' - If you live at home wit' your momma, Oh yes son I'm talkin' to you!

 

[Praziquantel86]

I thought about this. Doing an away rotation that forced me to live at home for 6 weeks after not having been there for four years made me strongly reconsider.

 

[ttopping]

I was fortunate enough to get a residency in my home town (just happened to be my number 1 choice anyway). So I figured even though I'll be making considerably less than a regular pharmacist, I'll be able to make a huge dent in my loans (almost all of them actually) by living at home and saving on rent/food/utilities/etc. Obviously it'll be nice having some money of my own as to not be a total mooch but still, I think it'll be a great decision financially for the year before I head out to get my own place.

 

[Dr Wario]

I find it somewhat interesting that so many people here seem to equate living with parents after graduation with mooching. I suppose that one could be a mooch if they were not actively searching for employment or currently working, but how exactly is living at home to get a head start on loan repayment mooching? I would call this practice smart, payment for the favor can be that one helps his/her own children, which can help the family have a brighter future in generations to come.

I did stay with my parents for a year after I graduated, not to loaf around and party, but so that I could work 50-60+ hour weeks and put almost every dime into savings. For this effort I will be able to retire in less than a decade from finishing school and I will be able to give my children an even better life than I had. I am grateful to my parents every day for the opportunities they afforded me, but never would I consider myself a mooch (that is a title reserved for the multi gen. welfare families I serve).

 

[pharm B]

Anytime I think about what it would be like to live with my parents, this comes to mind:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRSaNI5cXvc[/youtube]

 

[pharm B]

I find it somewhat interesting that so many people here seem to equate living with parents after graduation with mooching. I suppose that one could be a mooch if they were not actively searching for employment or currently working, but how exactly is living at home to get a head start on loan repayment mooching? I would call this practice smart, payment for the favor can be that one helps his/her own children, which can help the family have a brighter future in generations to come.

I did stay with my parents for a year after I graduated, not to loaf around and party, but so that I could work 50-60+ hour weeks and put almost every dime into savings. For this effort I will be able to retire in less than a decade from finishing school and I will be able to give my children an even better life than I had. I am grateful to my parents every day for the opportunities they afforded me, but never would I consider myself a mooch (that is a title reserved for the multi gen. welfare families I serve).

I think it's just the expectation in a lot of American families that once you've flown the roost, you won't fly back. Some might see it as a failure, even.

I myself think the practice is acceptable, and if I were single, I might have considered it. Others don't appreciate the loss of autonomy that might occur, or might even just be perceived, and will avoid it at all costs.

 

[pharmschooler]

I think it's just the expectation in a lot of American families that once you've flown the roost, you won't fly back. Some might see it as a failure, even.

And then there are the families that want their kids to stick around like flies on flypaper...it's amazing how different the attitudes are from family to family.

 

[Old Timer]

If you get along with your parents and if you and your parents respect each other, it's a no brainer. It's not that's it's not without peril.

 

[charmacist]

I graduated last year, and I've been working as a pharmacist since then. I graduated with no debt whatsoever, so I have no loans to pay back.

I've been living with my Dad in his trailer in the woods in the middle of nowhere for the past two years. Unless we have a falling out, I don't plan to leave for another 1.5 - 2 years.

It wasn't really my plan all along, but I couldn't find a pharmacist job in a more desirable city, so I came back to my hometown. And since I had to come back here, I figured I might as well save some money...

It hasn't been too bad. The only major drawback is that it makes dating essentially impossible. You can't tell a girl, "Hey, you wanna come back to my Dad's trailer in the woods? I have a whole room to myself! We can make out on my small, uncomfortable single bed. You down? 😀"

I posted on this same topic a few months back: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=10278282&postcount=30

 

[rph74]

It sounds like a good plan to me. I like the track that you are on-wanting to pay off your student loans ASAP. Most of your fellow grads will decide to buy brand new cars among all sorts of expensive stuff immediately after graduation. But the best thing to do is sacrifice for a few more years to pay off your loans while you are accustomed to living like a college student. It is FAR easier now than it will be later if you get used to spending all of your income (ie normal American).

I graduated in 1997 with no student loans. But as I got married and had kids I had a few car payments, house payment, furniture payment. In 2006 I found Dave Ramsey's radio show and books and it inspired my wife and I to pay it all off. In 2009 we paid our last debt off (our house) and we haven't looked back since. The peace of mind of living COMPLETELY debt free is priceless!

Sacrifice to win!

 

[PharmaTope]

It sounds like a good plan to me. I like the track that you are on-wanting to pay off your student loans ASAP. Most of your fellow grads will decide to buy brand new cars among all sorts of expensive stuff immediately after graduation. But the best thing to do is sacrifice for a few more years to pay off your loans while you are accustomed to living like a college student. It is FAR easier now than it will be later if you get used to spending all of your income (ie normal American).

I graduated in 1997 with no student loans. But as I got married and had kids I had a few car payments, house payment, furniture payment. In 2006 I found Dave Ramsey's radio show and books and it inspired my wife and I to pay it all off. In 2009 we paid our last debt off (our house) and we haven't looked back since. The peace of mind of living COMPLETELY debt free is priceless!

Sacrifice to win!

great post!

 

[crazybob]

It sounds like a good plan to me. I like the track that you are on-wanting to pay off your student loans ASAP. Most of your fellow grads will decide to buy brand new cars among all sorts of expensive stuff immediately after graduation. But the best thing to do is sacrifice for a few more years to pay off your loans while you are accustomed to living like a college student. It is FAR easier now than it will be later if you get used to spending all of your income (ie normal American).

I graduated in 1997 with no student loans. But as I got married and had kids I had a few car payments, house payment, furniture payment. In 2006 I found Dave Ramsey's radio show and books and it inspired my wife and I to pay it all off. In 2009 we paid our last debt off (our house) and we haven't looked back since. The peace of mind of living COMPLETELY debt free is priceless!

Sacrifice to win!

Sometimes they may have expenses because of their personal or family-related situation, and you never know what they're going through. So even though you seem to be criticizing them for buying all that new stuff, you never know if it's because they need it for their family. If they relocated for a job and need to find a new place for their family, of course they're gonna have to pay for a new place, and it would look like they spent a lot. If they also need a new car because their old one is too old and is on the verge of breaking down on the road, they're gonna buy a new one.

Getting a brand new car doesn't mean you go out spending 50K or higher after graduating.

 

[rph74]

The point I am trying to drive home is that we all need to live on less than we make if we want to succeed financially. That means buying things (cars included) when you actually have the money to pay for it. Sure, roadblocks come up for people. But nobody NEEDS a new car. If that old beater got you through college and runs ok there is no need to buy a new car because you suddenly have a higher income now. There are plenty of good used cars out there. Even though I have a great income and no payments (not even a house payment), I drive a 12 year old Chevy pickup with 232,000 miles, and still love it.

The great thing about being a pharmacist is that we make a great income. But I know too many rph's out there that still spend more than they make. They couldn't produce $5,000 in cash if their life depended on it. Debt is a slow (and for some a fast) spreading cancer that causes people to not win financially.

 

[flip33]

How would you like to retire when you are about 55? Or working one day a week relief and having fun with your hobby?

If you save hard now, your chances are better. So yes, live at home.

Pharmacist's salaries are not much different across the USA. You can live in a dog town in a VERY NICE cheap house, or you can blow your income on a more expensive home if that is important to you.

I would like to retire at 60. I live like I make $40,000 a year and save the rest.

 

[Its Z]

Hey, your dad called. He's saying his dating life has taken a major set back. But he doesn't have the heart to kick you out. Oh, he said, take the trash out and stop ordering pay per view porn.






I kid.

I graduated last year, and I've been working as a pharmacist since then. I graduated with no debt whatsoever, so I have no loans to pay back.

I've been living with my Dad in his trailer in the woods in the middle of nowhere for the past two years. Unless we have a falling out, I don't plan to leave for another 1.5 - 2 years.

It wasn't really my plan all along, but I couldn't find a pharmacist job in a more desirable city, so I came back to my hometown. And since I had to come back here, I figured I might as well save some money...

It hasn't been too bad. The only major drawback is that it makes dating essentially impossible. You can't tell a girl, "Hey, you wanna come back to my Dad's trailer in the woods? I have a whole room to myself! We can make out on my small, uncomfortable single bed. You down? 😀"

I posted on this same topic a few months back: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=10278282&postcount=30