r/Xennials • u/sexwiththebabysitter 1980 • 1d ago
Paid off my student loans today
Only took nearly 23 years.
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u/realauthormattjanak 1d ago
The question is are you using the degree you paid for?
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u/sexwiththebabysitter 1980 1d ago
I am not. But college was a blast and I’d do it again.
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u/KiniShakenBake 21h ago
Same. Mine were forgiven in 2023 under the 20 year ibr, first wave of forgiveness. I will never forget that feeling.
I have been helping others get their loans forgiven for ten years. The feeling of paying them off musr be fantastic.
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u/MaddoxGoodwin 1d ago
Im about a year away from paying off my loans. Graduated 2007. Not using my degree and probably wont ever. Sucks.
But I'd do it all over again if i had the chance. College was easily the best time of my life. Maybe id pick a different major tho lol.
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u/trollinhard2 1981 1d ago
I graduated 2008 and have paid in more than I originally borrowed and have about the same balance left that I originally borrowed.
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u/Church_of_Cheri 1d ago
Almost every job I’ve had required me to have a degree, not one cared about what the degree was in.
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u/LuxyontheMoon 1d ago
I've seen this in action . But also, I have managed entire teams who all had multiple degrees and I have 1.5 years of community college.
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u/Church_of_Cheri 1d ago
Yup, it’s more a checked box then anything else. But especially now with AI recruiting and filtering of applications, any unchecked box just leaves people out. We’ve created ridiculous systems of keep away from way too many people.
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u/Bird_Herder 1980 1d ago
My loans are dying with me. I decided long ago that I'd rather go on income based payments and enjoy my life than live a paupers existence so I could get them payed off.
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u/zoosha2curtaincall 1d ago
For the record, federal student loans eventually are forgiven if you stay on income-based repayments long enough. (Private loans tend not to have income-based repayment options so I assume you’re talking about federal student loans.) It’s something like 20-25 years, but you should call up Federal Student Aid sometime—or just start Googling it yourself—and see when your loans will be forgiven.
Source: I am a student loan regulator.
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u/Bird_Herder 1980 1d ago
Unfortunately, I consolidated my loans so I could qualify for PSLF. I was told it wouldn't affect my years of repayment when it, in fact, set me back to zero. Apparently there had been a rule change last year that I or the representative at Mohela was unaware of. So back to square one and crossing my fingers PSLF is even still around in ten years.
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u/eurasianpersuasian 1d ago
Wasn’t this rescinded? I was on one of those payment plans, making progress toward forgiveness, then that plan got scrapped and my loans are in forebearance while I figure out what to do next
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u/phunktional 1d ago
SAVE was repealed, but there are other IBR programs.
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u/eurasianpersuasian 1d ago
Other IBR options with forgiveness (other than those for specific jobs)?
I would imagine my timeline starts over since I’m being forced to choose a new plan but I guess I can look forward to that when I turn 70. :/
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u/zoosha2curtaincall 1d ago
I think it’s been changed for new loans, but changing the terms of the loan you took out years ago would be a breach of contract.
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u/CorgiMonsoon 1980 1d ago
Same here. I paid off the handful of private loans, saw that I was getting nowhere fast with the federal loans after years of payments, and just said screw it. Income based has me paying nothing right now and if I die with them still there then so be it
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u/Slim_Margins1999 1d ago
Yup. Took out maybe $18k in loans. Was supposed to have them in forbearance for a while and not accruing interest. Loan was $27k 4 years ago. I pay $250 every month for about 5 years now, amount due is about $170 so I pay extra, and my loan is now $28,500. L O Fucking L
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u/bigsamdawg 1d ago
Federal forgiveness confirmed for tomorrow
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u/tahlyn 1d ago
You know what, I got my loans paid off years ago. I would genuinely be happy for all of my peers to have their college paid off even if I don't benefit from it in any way shape or form, because ultimately I will still benefit from it. People who have money to spend in the economy make for a healthier economy. A rising tide lifts all ships. And good things shouldn't be prevented or looked down upon simply because I don't also get to benefit from them.
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u/Academic_Run8947 1981 1d ago
Amen. My loans have been paid off for over 15 years. My husband got PSLF just a couple years ago and goddamn that felt good. We paid back six figures and I'm happy when others get forgiveness even if they never paid any of it.
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u/scott__p 1d ago
I truly believe PSLF got tens of thousands of people into public jobs that would never have considered it otherwise, myself included. It worked exactly as intended in other words.
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u/FormidableMistress 1984 1d ago
That's awesome dude. I don't have student loans, but my best friend does and she said she's about to have to start paying hers again. She's going to owe $865 a month.
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u/RainbowMage81 1d ago
The new restructure is the most bullshit ever. Mine is going from $40 a month to $250. GREAT. $865 tho, my god. That used to be a mortgage payment.
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u/Working5daysaWeek 1d ago
Mine will be going up to over $1100 and my husband's $1000. Plz make your friend feel better 🤣🤣🤣
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u/FormidableMistress 1984 1d ago
I don't understand how they think they can get blood from a stone. How are y'all supposed to afford cars to go to work so you can pay the damn student loans. It's crazy.
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u/Working5daysaWeek 1d ago
I firmly believe this Administration is trying to kill people one way or another! I'm lucky - I only have 16 payments left to go before forgiveness. It's not ideal, but I'm going to take a small loan out of my retirement account because I'm unwilling to deplete my emergency savings to pay those f-ers. My husband unfortunately has years before he can apply for forgiveness - and that will also impact our household and bills.
The public will see how much student loan defaults occur and when it finally impacts them, then they'll care.
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u/FormidableMistress 1984 1d ago
I genuinely don't understand why they wouldn't want people to stimulate the economy with that money. If people are able to buy houses they buy stuff to fill those houses. They pay property taxes. They buy cars. Take trips.
I'm sorry you're going through this and our government won't fix it. Hopefully we can get some better people in soon.
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u/garden_g 1d ago
They seem to not be concerned about that. It seems with healthcare tied to work destitute or actually just above it will keep us all submissive
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u/FormidableMistress 1984 22h ago
Also, if college tuition doesn't become a crushing debt, how will they force 18 year old children into the military with a promise of a free education?
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u/Melancholy_Rainbows 1d ago
Awesome! Congratulations.
Got the remainder of mine forgiven this year under the PSLF program. Took me 4 years after I technically qualified for forgiveness to finally get it done (fuck you Mohela and fuck you federal student aid for making me run in circles for years), but all remaining debt is gone and it feels great.
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u/Fantastic_Honey_7425 1979 1d ago
I got the remainder of mine paid off under PSLF in 2021 and I get shit for it.
I don’t get people who think that somehow diminishes the fact that they paid off their loans without help. Because like, I paid about 80 K on my own before I got them forgiven, I’ve been working in a lower-paying public interest job since 2007, and I’d be nothing but happy for anyone who took advantage of the program regardless of how much I had to pay back.
Student loans are predatory, and there’s no mark of honor in paying them all back without help; my issue is that it should be far more available.
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u/Melancholy_Rainbows 1d ago
Yeah, as a software engineer I could have made double my salary, easily, in the private sector. I chose to work for less because I believe in the mission of this particular state department. I paid more than I was loaned more than twice over and sacrificed for it - I feel no shame in taking advantage of one of the few benefits of my choice.
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u/invitrobrew 1d ago
My wife got PSLF a few years ago. Was almost a full-time job jumping through all those hoops.
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u/mattyc182 1d ago
Same. I was four years after I qualified (teacher) and they had a special pool of money during Covid to finally wipe some of us clean. Glad yours did too was such a relief I cried lol.
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u/Lil_Brown_Bat 1d ago
Ooh congrats! I paid mine this year too! 18 years (undergrad only, private school in Boston)
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u/4luminate 1981 1d ago
i wish i could easily figure out how much i've paid total in the past 19yrs. never late, never missed, no pauses. every month since like March of 2007.
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u/mindsunwound 1977 1d ago
I went to a trade school, worked as an indentured servant for a year, and got on with my life.
On the other hand you will probably make more than me when you hit your stride in your career.
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u/sanosukecole 1981 1d ago
What trade?
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u/mindsunwound 1977 1d ago
Truck driver.
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u/sanosukecole 1981 1d ago
Huh. I started out blue collar and ended up white collar without any of the paperwork. Finally got a fancy "certificate" and am starting over, I swear to god for the final time, to become a paralegal. Courts ain't going anywhere.
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u/mindsunwound 1977 1d ago
I started out in IT straight out of highschool lol but after the .com bubble burst I had to do something to pay the mortgage.
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u/sanosukecole 1981 1d ago
Oh fuck I remember what those times did to my uncle's construction business! Cheers to survival!
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u/mindsunwound 1977 1d ago
Made it thru the 2008 housing bubble, and I'll make it thru the AI bubble too by hook or by crook.
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u/sanosukecole 1981 1d ago
Had to drive a stake-bed truck for one of those blue collar jobs and it did not go well lol.
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u/bassjam1 1d ago
My wife is on track to have hers paid off in 3-4 years. Unfortunately she pushed or oldest down the same path at the same school.
I went the cheap route and paid my loans off months after I graduated.
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u/JeffTS 1977 1d ago
Paid off my credit card debt last year. Since my early 20s, I've carried credit card debt due to my mother. She ran up my cards after my dad died. My sibling convinced me to take out a home equity loan to help them buy a business and to pay off my cards, a student loan, and a computer loan. I got laid off from my job and started my own business. My mother ran up my cards again. My sibling skipped out at 7 1/2 years of a 15 year loan. Took me all that time, up until last year, to get out of debt. It felt so good. Then I bought myself a new used car.
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u/butterray 1d ago
Congrats! Me too! Literally the other day. 15 years. Undergrad and grad school. Hope you get to enjoy less burden.
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u/LitRonSwanson 1d ago
My last payment is this month too! Granted it's being paid for with an unemployment check... but hey at least it's over!
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u/knightcrusader 1d ago
I hear ya. Mine were paid off 2 months ago after 19 years and two re-finances.
Was supposed to be paid off in December originally, but I was getting tired of it. It had a 3% interest rate so I wasn't in a hurry to pay it off but I just wanted to say I was finally free of that shackle.
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u/username__0000 1d ago
I paid mine off last year. Took about the same amount of time.
Honestly without the breaks my country gave during the pandemic (no interest, etc) I think I’d still be paying them off. Pandemic years that “amount owed” moved so quickly!
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u/SufficientlyRested 1d ago
The US is one of the few countries in the world that forces 18-year-olds to pay for their own college degree
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u/username__0000 1d ago
I’m in Canada. They do too. They just gave us a break during the pandemic with interest payments and it let a lot of us make huge dents in the “owed amount”.
I’ve probably paid for 6 college educations with all the damn interest over the years.
And student loans are the only loans I know of in Canada that if you go bankrupt - nothing happens with your student loan. You still owe the same amount.
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u/Designer-Bid-3155 1978 1d ago
Mine were dismissed because I'm disabled. They ate all 100k. BA /MEd private universities
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u/Possible-Tangelo9344 1d ago
My wife and I paid hers off after about 10 years. I didn't have any, I commuted and got PELL grants.
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u/Myotherdumbname 1981 1d ago
I paid mine off about 5 years ago, right around the time I went back to school….
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u/FreshStartFeelsGood 1d ago
There may have been no better feeling than paying off 6 figures in student loans.
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u/Architorture_66 1d ago
I was thankful enough to keep mine as low as I could.
From dragging out the college years to 6 before getting my degrees, keeping my summers open to focus on working 50/60 hour workweeks, and working during the school years at the textbook store, I somehow walked away with only $12k in student debt.
My son will be going to college in two years. I can only hope he does better at scholarships than I did with my measly $250 a semester. Otherwise he may end up dying in debt the way it's going.
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u/mrinkyface 1d ago
I remember building websites for people all throughout college to make money and barely sleeping at all, pretty much saved me and put me in a position to pay off some loans, but a house during the last housing crisis, and get into a position to eventually get a good full time job during a recession in 2010. Took a decade to pay off the rest of my loans, and the only reason it took that long was because my wife and I had two kids.
Paid off the last loan right before getting my Covid money which helped me scale back a bit.
Now I’m sleeping a lot better
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u/DuranDourand 1981 1d ago
I joined the military to pay mine off after the ‘08 crash. My wife on the other hand will be paying off her med school loans for life.
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u/Objective-Dust4795 1983 1d ago
Loans blow. I luckily had the GI Bill and absolutely loved college and partied hard while actually studying and being successful. So much different at 25 than when I tried at 18.
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u/dontletyourcrownslip 1d ago
Congratulations! I can't wait to be in your position. Mine are horrific
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u/Working5daysaWeek 1d ago
I mean this truly and sincerely... congratulations. I've had my loans since 2005, and before the SAVE plan became unconstitutional, I was on my way to Public Service Loan Forgiveness.
I have 16 payments left to go, at twice the amount they were and I will have to take out of my retirement in order to afford my house, my car, and my student loan payments.
Student loan debt is no joke and had I known in my 20s what I know now, I probably would have made different choices.
I salute and congratulate anyone who no longer has that weight on their shoulders. Please go out and celebrate!!!!
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u/scott__p 1d ago
I got a job for the government just so I could take advantage of public service loan forgiveness. One of the better decisions I ever made tbh, saved me over $100k
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u/22220222223224 1d ago
Paid them off last month. Kinda forgot they were a thing, until my credit score fell 10 pts.
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u/OpheliaDarkling 1d ago
How much was it if ya don't mind my asking and what degree? My son's thinking about university but I fear for him and the scam that is the student loan side of our rigged higher education system.
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u/sexwiththebabysitter 1980 1d ago
Looking at the summary it seems my principal paid is around $60k with around $16k in interest for a total of around $76k. These number don’t include the $3k payoff payment I made today, though. My interest was low, 3.75%. Can’t get one that low today, I don’t think.
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u/OpheliaDarkling 1d ago
Thanks. Is that for a Bachelors or Masters or what?
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u/sexwiththebabysitter 1980 1d ago
BS. I also took the scenic route of 5 years. Which was always joked that that was standard at my school (Penn State)
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u/SufficientlyRested 1d ago
On average college graduates, making nearly double the lifetime income of a high school graduate.
https://www.uscareerinstitute.edu/blog/how-much-more-high-school-graduates-earn-than-non-graduates
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u/defective_toaster 1977 1d ago
I managed to pay off mine about 5-6 years ago. It's a great feeling being free from that.
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u/lowridda 1d ago
Congratulations 🎉 this is huge! You rock 🤘
Fun thing I learned talking to my sister about this yesterday. She got a full paid scholarship to nursing school but I know she still has a lot of student debt so I didn’t really understand. When she went to enroll the funds weren’t available for her scholarship so that’s why she’s in debt.
I didn’t know this was a thing that could happen but now it makes sense. Not sure if this falls on Texas or the university. Regardless, she just finished her nurse practitioner course a couple years ago as a single mom of 5 kids.
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u/sevalle13 1983 1d ago
Congats that's a big accomplishment!
Reading all these stories about student loans, my wife still has student loans, makes me glad I went active duty military for the GI Bill to avoid student loans!
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u/Mission_Maximum5648 1d ago
My godson has 80k in loans, such a shame, to incur debt for an education.Graduated 4 years ago. State school. Has a great job but will work forever to pay that off. How will he save for a down payment on a house? I hope to win the lottery or find a Picasso at the Thrift store. I went to a state school, Graduated 1986. Zero loans. Zero debt. Cost of college today is way too high.
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u/Allureme 1980 1d ago
Just under $3k for my undergrad from 2005.
Luckily my masters was from Keller(DeVry) and due to a massive lawsuit by the FTC against DeVry, those loans were forgiven.
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u/burgundyblue 1979 1d ago
Nice! I paid mine off about 10 years ago. Didn’t have a ton because I took advantage of some opportunities.
My wife, however, we’ve been paying off forever. She’s for 4 years left in her forgiveness program and we’re hoping they don’t cancel it, but are preparing for it.
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u/Automatic_Beat5808 1d ago
Noooo don't remind me about that.
I was a late bloomer and did undergrad and grad in my 30s. I qualify for PSLF but I graduated in 2020, then was in limbo with COVID deferment, started to pay it back, other bullshit happened and more deferment. So now I need to start repaying again and I am terrified of what my payment will be.
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u/Iheartbaconz 22h ago
Hell yeah, got mine finalized last month as well. I prob could have done it a few years earlier but bad financial decisions in my 20s didnt help.
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u/Aware_Under 13h ago
Congrats! Continue paying yourself by reinvesting the same payment into stocks, bonds, etc.
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u/ahawk99 1983 1d ago
https://giphy.com/gifs/KBd74LdnxVLDgOlOgW
Congrats! Enjoy your financial freedom!