|
I can honestly say that there is no way my daughter could attend college without some student loans unless she was going to go part time for 7 or 8 years. For some reason, FAFSA thinks I can afford one third of my income to pay for her college. I can't. In the 7 or 8 years that she was going part time, I would be continuing to feed her, pay for her living expenses, car, car insurance and gas. In fact, we'd have to buy another car. Even if she got a full scholarship to a community college for the first two years, my expenses would be more than I could afford. She'd be better off if I made $20K less or $20K more a year, but I seem to be in this middle place that just screws us. She wants to go college, there will be loans. On the plus side, I have every intention of paying off this year's loans for her. She will still have some big loans next year, but they will drop considerably the next year, when her brother starts college. That's the equivalent of me making $20K less a year.
I think the danger is in stating black and white absolutes. Saying that all student loans are bad or bankruptcy shouldn't be an option at all is too extreme. There are smart ways to do it and not smart ways to do it. There is a lot of gray.
|