High Finances.... again

Here is the deal. I had worked out a budget so that I could stretch out the money I"ve already got in student loans almost until I graduate. Well the budget apparently isn't as realistic as I've tried to make it and it's just stressing me out. The plan was to not get any more student loans, though I am eligable for the 80/09 ones, trying to minimize the amount of debt I have coming out of college.

Well I"m reconsidering. Apparently I greatly underestimated my budget, and I'm doing things to cut back, eating at home, not going out much at all, but it's just not making it. With my home equity line of credit being drastically cut back due to my house being worth about 20% less than it did in January, my really low interest cushion is gone and the alternatives are credit cards.

Honestly I figure, at this point I either get the extra loans and stop stressing so much about every penny, or I could have to carry a balance on my credit card. The interest on the loan is hugely less and tax deductible, so it makes sense to just take it out, and honestly if you counted up all of my debt, while none of it is on credit cards, I'm not sure it really matters anymore.

The thing is I have to make this decision now as the next check is issued in about three weeks. I think I'm going to take it and then after graduation instead of X debt it will be X + 10 grand debt. I'm not eligible for any subsidized or free money, it's all costing interest, which I pay each month, and I've got most of it in a high interest savings account, just transferring X a month into my checking account.

I could sell my house and be free and clear, with none of my equity back and no where to live. I think the plan is my last class ends on May 2nd, baby cousin walks sometime that month and then my brother's wedding is Memorial Day weekend. That eliminates most of May for anything really serious. I'll send out resumes and maybe do an interview (maybe!!) or two but I won't take a job before the wedding, too much hassle. Then baby cousin and I are looking to go to Mexico, or Hawaii, or somewhere, and that would work after the wedding. Then a month after we'd get back I walk down here in San Diego, so if I do take a job somewhere else it will have to be after that date.

That puts me at August for a first paycheck assuming I have something lined up for after I walk, which realistically could happen. Taking out this next set of loans gets me just barely there, but with much less stress. I was just raised to abhor debt, a good attitude to have and why I'm agonizing over the decision. Ok not agonizing but writing out a huge blog post to put my thoughts in order. My mother is a saint and is paying for my health insurance, which actually allows me to do this. It's just adding X amount of time on to the time it will take me to pay all of this crap off.

And, tying this into the theme of the blog, I have 10 to 15 years less of time at work to pay this all of than someone who did this traditionally. I don't think that will be a problem but most people have their student loans paid off by their mid thirties, I'm getting more.

And before anyone says 'well duh get a job stupid' my internship isn't being picked up this fall due to no fault of my own, and I didn't know this until it was too late to pick up a random part time job for the summer. Damn kids took them all :) I'll start calling around near the end of next month to see what is available once everyone goes back to school. That internship last year made all the difference, I won't find a part time job that pays nearly as much as that internship did, but maybe something small will help alleviate the stress a bit. What I don't want to do is work full time as I'm about to start the real hard core classes and even if I have to eat peanut butter to make ends meet I want to rock those classes.

So my epic, and I'm sure most people have stopped reading by now, decision is to take out the damn loan, deal with the debt and have significantly less stress every time I go grocery shopping.