Why So Few Talk About Student Loan Debt

Why So Few Talk About Student Loan Debt

by | Dec 19, 2018 | Think Pieces

You probably know a bunch of your friends have student loan debt.  You probably know that they hate it. But do you know how much debt people have and what they’re doing to get rid of their debt? Chances are you don’t, and your friends don’t know your situation either. Even though the vast majority of college graduates (more than 70%) finish with student loan debt, it’s still a taboo topic of conversation.

Today’s post talks about the problems borrowers face when talking openly about student loan debt and tips for overcoming the challenges. Estimated read time ~5 min Estimated watch time at 1.5x ~3 min.

Uncertainty

The first thing that comes up when someone wants to talk about their student loan debt is a sense of uncertainty. You might wonder Did I make mistakes no one else did? Is my situation bad because I was worse than average at navigating college? The uncertainty of how you stack up compared to others keeps many borrowers from sharing their story.

The easiest way to overcome uncertainty is to start by sharing your story with folks who are close to you and very trustworthy. Think your bestie from college, or that cool cousin of yours from a similar background. The more you talk to other borrowers the less uncertain you’ll be about how you stack up. Turns out almost everyone has student loan debt (more than you’d think), and most everyone made a couple of mistakes a long the way.

Hopelessness

What’s the point of sharing your student loan debt when it’s a hopeless mess you’re never going to get out from under? It’s not like anyone holds some magic key to unlock your student loan debt shackles. Many borrowers feel like there’s nothing that can be done about student loan debt, so why talk about it.

Student loan debt isn’t an entirely hopeless situation. Even if you really extended yourself financially there are repayment strategies that can help you. Talking to someone else going through it can help you learn new approaches and tips for navigating your own situation.

Fear of Criticism

If you share a story about your student loan debt, someone is going to be unhappy about it. That’s the ugly reality of it, someone who went to college when it was 4x less expensive and they could work 21 hours a week at minimum wage to pay for it is going to be critical. Not everyone understands objective financial reality, some only understand their own experience.

I share my story all the time and I get trolled all the time. If you’re worried about it, don’t feel the need to share your story publicly. Share it with your peers, other borrowers with debt and looking to talk, and share it with your younger siblings. There are so many people who can benefit from your story because they’re struggling with the same thing. Don’t feel like the only way to make a difference with your story is to share it big. If even one person picks a better strategy because of your story, you’ve done an amazing thing.

Talking about student loan debt is still a taboo topic. I think one of the biggest ways to solve the problem is for all of us borrowers to talk to each other about it. Think of all the problems you solve based on someone else’s experience. I mean if I want to buy a shirt I probably read at least 10 reviews as I make that decision. We can crowd source information about student loan debt repayment in a similar fashion. Learn from the experiences of those around us.

What do you think? Do you share your student loan debt story with folks or keep it close to the vest? Let me know in the comments below or on the Repayable Facebook Page. 

How to Assess Your 2018 Student Loan Progress

How to Assess Your 2018 Student Loan Progress

by | Dec 12, 2018 | Money Matters

It’s December, and amid the hustle and bustle of the holidays you might be wondering about your personal financial situation. If you’ve got student loans you can’t think about your money without thinking about your debt. So what’s a borrower to do? The answer, a 2018 student loan debt assessment. Read on for the top three things to look at when you assess your progress on student loan debt. 

Estimated Read time ~4 min Estimated watch time ~3 min.

1. Total Balance Change

The first place to start is with the objective progress. Look at your statements back to Dec 2017, and write down your student loan balance. Now take a look at this month’s statement and write down your current balance. How’s your student loan balance looking compared to the end of 2017?

Hopefully your debt has gone down since December of 2017. The degree to which it has gone down will depend on your personal repayment strategy and your interest rates.

2. Current Repayment Strategy

The next thing to review in your annual student loan assessment is your repayment strategy. If you have a mix of Federal and private student loans you might have different strategies for different loans.

Federal student loans will be on one of the federal repayment plans i.e. Standard 10 year, extended repayment, income-based repayment, etc. Private student loans will have a fixed monthly payment for a certain number of years. Your student loans could also be in the grace period, deferment, or forbearance.

3. How Student Loan Repayment Fits

The last thing to look at is how your year of repayment felt. This step is entirely subjective, but here are two questions to ask yourself. How did your student loan repayment approach fit in with all your other competing financial needs in 2018? How does repaying your student loans impact your future financial goals?

Answering these questions will help you decide if your current repayment strategy is working out for you. If you feel like you’ve had enough extra money to spend on wants and didn’t make the progress you wanted on the principal, it may be time to look for a repayment plan with a higher monthly payment or pay extra each month.

Taking time to assess your student loans at the end of the year can set you up for financial success in 2019. I love hearing from my fellow borrowers, so if you want to share the assessment of your student loan progress leave me a comment below or on the Repayable Facebook page.