<p>Wow! Too bad these parents didn't know about CC, maybe they could have been spared!</p>
<p>And by 500k in student loan debt, you really mean $150k in debt for 3 kids (2 already paid off their loans) with the last kid a junior in a public college.</p>
<p>Yes, another sensationalist article.</p>
<p>“With all three kids attending private universities, their collective student debt bill quickly grew to more than $500,000.”</p>
<p>Worth a read - a cautionary tale. I do believe that too many families are racking up debt and underfunding retirement in order to send their children to private colleges. </p>
<p>@rockvillemom,</p>
<p>I can’t imagine taking on that much debt. Then to pay for a wedding on top of it. I feel for them…Gluttons for punishment! </p>
<p>I’m getting a serious case of déjà vu! Did we have a story similar to this last summer? I remember it was a family that had an outrageous amount of student loan debt and it turned out to be split amongst the family…</p>
<p>Oh good grief. On top of that, there’s this gem: </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I can’t be the only one who is just sick of these stories, am I? </p>
<p>The parents must have terrific jobs and credit history and no other debt in order to have managed to be approved for this kind of loan money. OR They must have taken some on, paid it off, and then taken on more later.</p>
<p>The part of the article that disturbed me most was the quick mention that the kids applied for federal aid but didn’t qualify for any. That is flat-out wrong. Anyone who is eligible to file the FAFSA automatically qualifies for at least the unsubsidized Stafford-type student loans. Either the reporter got it wrong, or these parents are even dumber than they originally sound.</p>
<p>No one held a gun to these parents’ heads. They chose to send their kids to colleges/universities that were only affordable with what many of us consider to be ridiculous levels of debt. There is every chance that there would have been less debt-inducing options had the parents kept costs in mind.</p>
<p>My takeaway from this genre of article is the need for parents to manage their kiddo’s expectations - on college costs and budget, on wedding expenses, etc. Have the talk early - let them know what you can and cannot afford, and then stick to it. Accumulating ridiculous amounts of debt when there are more affordable options is just foolish. </p>
<p>@newhavenctmom. </p>
<p>Yes I read that sentence</p>
<p>Read the next one. </p>
<p>So it is even better than I thought. </p>
<p>After 3 kids who went to private colleges and one junior in public more that 2/3 of their loans are paid off and are down to about 150k. </p>
<p>How can these people take on this kind of debt and not understand the ramifications of what they’re doing? Something is very wrong here. Furthermore, whomever approved these loans also bears some responsibility. I hate these kind of stories…very sad.</p>
<p>crazy. </p>
<p>what made them think that the music therapy major child could pay off that much debt? the only reason the other two have been able to pay off their debt is because they moved home…often times that isnt possible. </p>
<p>The comments are hilarious. </p>
<p>$170k in debt for an undergrad degree in music therapy?!</p>
<p>Some well educated people are very dumb. </p>
<p>You can’t protect people from themselves. If they’re gonna make bad decisions they’re gonna make bad decisions. </p>
<p>I find this story incredible. Both parents are well educated and both have graduate degrees. They must have understanding of the system, at least in part. For the youngest daughter to claim the financial aid office made it seem like free money, nope not buying it. To top it off they refinanced their home to pay for a wedding!?! I think the parents have a hard time saying no. (That’s just my take)</p>
<p>Borrowing that type of money is ludicrous. I was pleased to read the children are moving in with their parents to pay off the loans as quickly as possible. </p>
<p>Cautionary tale to be sure!!</p>
<p>I wonder if the daughter knows what her parents went through for her wedding. (I admit, I only skimmed the article). As a daughter who is going through wedding planning right now, I’d be beyond horrified if my parents were even thinking of doing something so drastic for something so pointless (note: weddings are not pointless but having something beyond your means absolutely is). </p>
<p><<
I think the parents have a hard time saying no. (That’s just my take)</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>I think that is a reasonable conclusion.</p>
<p>wonder what they are going to do when the next D gets married…or when they need to retire.</p>
<p>@Vladenschlutte Yes, sometimes we need to protect people from making bad choices…especially when these poor decisions affect our society , such as what happened in the mortgage market collapse. We’re all still paying the price.</p>
<p>Somehow there are big infusions of money into this family. If the older two paid off $150k+ each in a short time, how could they do that? One child gets a great job? Maybe, but unlikely for two</p>
<p>I do have a friend who told me one night he added up how much he had spent on his three kids (I’m sure he’d been drinking!) and came up with $400k for catholic grade school for 3, high school for 2, and then college for 2 OOS. The third went just one semester, then has been going to a commuter school a class at a time, working, and living at home. However, this $400k was over 20 years or so, not 5 or 6 years as I assume this family has done.</p>
<p>When I was telling my Dr yesterday ( who Ive been going to for thirty years), that my daughter eloped in January, she laughed and said when she was preparing to get married, her * mother* kept suggesting that she consider eloping!
:D</p>