Necessary to keep receipts from loan money use?

[downtownjon]

A fellow colleague was telling me that I need to keep track of everything I buy/use with my student loan money and keep all those in a separate file for proof in case I'm ever audited. How is that even possible to keep track of everything?

Also, I was thinking I could help out my gf with some of her expenses if needed with my loan money. However, due to my paranoia after signing the MPN, I feel that I will be repremended for that. I was warned that the feds could find a way to look into my bank account and could tell that I've been using the money on non-educational uses since I would have no other source of income. How are all these students brazenly using their loan money on vacations and buying a car without getting in trouble?

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[TMP-SMX]

You can use the money you receive for whatever you want. Keeping receipts would be a nightmare. Don't worry about it.

 

[osli]

Part of your loan money is approved for "cost of living" which includes the normal rent, utilities, food, and gas. Well, apparently some schools assume everyone walks or rides a bike. Others assume everyone is on a water diet as well.

Anyway, "cost of living" also includes other incidental costs that are necessary for you to exist. That may be some new underwear or shoes (or other clothing, of course), or maybe a new backpack. Or maybe your car breaks down and having it repaired is sort of essential to you making it to school. Or perhaps your girlfriend's birthday requires a gift, otherwise you will be found dead the next morning... making it a bit difficult to get to class as well. Or perhaps you need to see a movie on occasion to keep your sanity during studying for exams. Maybe there's a family emergency and you have to buy a plane ticket. Or perhaps getting drunk on weekends is the only outlet you have that is keeping you from committing suicide (see above about having a hard time making it to school the next day).

The point is that living expenses can't be written down explicitly for everyone, because everyone's lives and situations are different. And "for school expenses" when applied to the cost of living while attending school pretty much includes whatever it is that keeps you ticking, living, and able to study. It might be underwear, chocolate, or Absolut.

Don't worry about receipts. When they give you money for living expenses, all the really expect is that you survive on that amount and don't come asking for more. They really could care less how you manage to survive. If you live in a box and vacation in Tahiti every summer, so be it.

 

[rpkall]

I have a "friend" who used student loan money to finance furniture, put in central air, and make car payments. Once your debt burden gets so high, you're like "Screw it, I owe couple hundred thousand dollars anyway...."



PS: I concur; definitely no worries about receipts. No one audits your loan expenses; the IRS just sees that you're in a god-forsaken amount of debt and they have pity on you. For a little while, anyway.