What actions have you taken to increase income? Sounds like you’ve cut costs enough

A down payment is used to pay off part of the car, and then you finance (get a loan) for the remaining amount.

If you paid the dealership $5k for a car worth $15k, but then get a loan for $15k (which they wouldn’t allow anyway since you have a down payment), you would end up paying $20k (not including interest) for a car only worth $15k.

So it’s better to give them a high down payment so you don’t owe as much on the loan.

The loan has interest too, which means even if you get a loan for $10,000, you will end up paying more than that depending on the interest rate and the length of the loan.

Can you afford to pay it?

Ally

Do you have enough money liquid (or that can become liquid) to support yourself for the foreseeable future?

How much money do you on food, travel, and alcohol each month?

Are you writing and actually following a monthly budget?

Why not wait a few years to return to school once you have more money saved up? Your mindset around “that would only save me a couple hundred a month” is probably hurting you more than you realize—even $200/mo extra savings turns into $2400/year towards grad school

Pay off the credit card debt, there’s not even a question about it. Rebuild your savings once paid off

That’s great. Is there any expenses you can cut until then to help speed up that process? I’m thinking maybe cut back the haircut to every 2 months, pause the YouTube red? I know it’s small things but every dollar counts with high interest debt

How much debt do you have?

Does the haircut happen every month or is that just an example of this month’s?

Not paying the loans will cause your servicer to begin reporting late payments, and eventually your loans will go into default. You will still owe the money, but your credit score will be absolutely trashed for around 7 years. A low credit score will make it very difficult for you in the US to refinance loans, buy a car, qualify for an apartment, get a credit card or personal loan, or buy a house.

You could call your servicer and ask about other deferment options, such as in cases of hardship. When you refinance the loans, you could look for some that offer forbearance for foreign grad schools. Idk if they exist but it’s worth a try.

You could take out a grad loan but you might run into the same problem where repayment starts immediately instead of being deferred. You’d have to research your options carefully.

Is this a degree you can get in the US instead? You would be able to defer your loans if it’s a US grad school, right?

If you can’t afford to pay the difference on the loan and can’t get $18k for it in private sale, then this is probably your only option.

They will usually send a letter in the mail with the specific reason fyi, wait about a month and see

Is your credit frozen?

Have you been a victim of identity theft or even at risk due to data leaks?

Have you had a bank account before?

LOL I didn’t even notice that typo. *banked with

Make sure you follow up with them and make sure they correct the title and everything. I sold my (paid off) car to them and they missed filing some paperwork, and I didn’t realize until months later when I got a registration renewal notice for my old car!!! They fixed it after I called them

I’ve never had an issue with Ally, I’ve banned wifi them for 2 years. They’re FDIC insured

Looks like some dye rubbed off on the tag

The extra $2500/mo should be going towards the private student loans once your kids finish daycare

Is 300k your take home pay or your gross?

Ok. I would definitely start by doing that, you have a ridiculously high amount in savings; might as well max out the 401K to reduce your tax burden and grow your money more than a savings account

Are you maxing out your 401Ks?

You should move a lot of your $710k in savings to other accounts that grow, such as high yield savings accounts, bonds, and maybe an IRA

Would you still be able to afford the payment when you move out, on your current income?