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This is a tough subject. Off the cuff, I don't like the idea of student loan debt being allocated to anyone, but the student. OTOH, if the marriage benefited from the degree then that needs to be taken into consideration, but those numbers should be crunched.
Some states treat a degree acquired during the marriage as a joint "asset". As a practical matter, the court will project the degree-holder's increased earning capacity to the limit of her actuarial life span, adjust it for present value, then order her to pay her spouse half. In those situations, I suppose student loans are deemed a joint debt, too. Not all states do this, though.
Some states treat a degree acquired during the marriage as a joint "asset". As a practical matter, the court will project the degree-holder's increased earning capacity to the limit of her actuarial life span, adjust it for present value, then order her to pay her spouse half. In those situations, I suppose student loans are deemed a joint debt, too. Not all states do this, though.
Yea, that's what I was thinking as well. Either way, food for thought.
One of my best friends got into this situation with her student loans and they ended up taking her house and selling it to pay back the loan and she ended up with nothing.
No, not naive. I was married to a man who had debt. He knew that his debt was his to pay off, and it was still his to pay off when the marriage ended. He didn't pay his share of household expenses, but that didn't have to do with his debt. It had to do with him going back on his word about finishing his education and then getting a full-time job with it.
Yet somehow, I managed to get over it.
I do agree that the photographer is a bit of a dumbarse in that she didn't even know how much she owed. That would have been the biggest red flag to me, more than the actual number.
However, one thing her ex-fiance didn't take into consideration is that there are no guarantees in this life. He can go marry a woman who is debt-free, then something bad happens, and whoop, there is bankruptcy. If the recession hasn't shown everyone that, I don't know what will. So, while many feel the ex-fiance dodged a bullet, I feel the photographer dodged a bullet, too, because even if they both started out with out debt, he'd have probably divorced her had they ever been hit with tough times financially, for whatever reason. He's not marriage material any more than a lot of folks here think she is.
The reason many think he dodged a bullet is not only down to the astounding amount of debt she owed but also that she didn't know how much she actually owed. She told him it was 41% less than what she actually was. Now she was either LYING to him or she was just to STUPID or IRRESPONSIBLE to manage her finances. Now do you really blame him for calling the whole thing off?
Entering into a partnership with someone who's a bad risk is not advised in business so if the same precautions were taken when entering into the legal binding contract we call marriage. Then maybe there would be a lower divorce rate ….who knows. I'm just guessing.
You can't say how he would react if they were unlucky enough to get into money worries down the line - if they both entered debt-free. Handling new debt under shared circumstance is very different from taking on your flaky girlfriends preceding debts especially at such a life changing sum. Who knows what they both would do in this situation.
I myself don't have a degree in hair brushing, air guitar or charades. so I'm proud to say I don't have any debt. I lucked out. Worked from 16 and landed on my feet and i'm earning more that I thought I would. I do feel for people with 'real' degrees though…(Marketing, phycology, engineering) that can't get jobs and are bundled with huge debts and coffee shops jobs. It's such a waste. It's awful.
Photography didn't seem like a valid reason to be in such debt either. Law, Medicine, yep but photography…come on!?
Very true. The bottom line is these things matter. If they were to marry, her debt would become their debt. "Dealbreakers" are discussed all the time on this forum.
The "love conquers all" belief doesn't make debt disappear.
I believe that student debt is one thing that actually does not become the responsibility of the partner, both during marriage and in the case of divorce.
I paid off my student loan on my own.
Although it was not even close to that amount.
BA in Information Technology .
$20k
The system in Australia is your loan is issued from the govt. You pay back percentage of the loan once you start working and earn over $40k - as you earn more the percent of what you pay back increases ... the interest on the loan is inflation, so if the govt is doing a decent job that should be between 2 & 3%
We don't really get these massive loans
I don't blame the guy either.
When you're $170k In debt and not clear about that... what else aren't you being clear about!
That's a completely different world Americans can only dream about, our college costs are insane because there are people who are getting rich off of naive' young people. Our student loans often have very high interest rates, and if you get into any difficulty finding a job, you can see the loan grow astronomically from fees and interest. A 20K loan could grow to 80K in just a few years in the US.
I have a large loan, thankfully I have been doing okay, I work in health care, and have always kept my loan in good standing, but it can be difficult to look at it sometimes, you pay it and any extra you can, that's all you an do. I understand why she wouldn't want to look at the actual amount, there are people who literally think about suicide when dealing with these loans. Young people think they are making an investment in their future, when people are young they tend to assume they will succeed and be able to pay the loan off. Some college counselors get a commission when a student takes the loan so they will push it on the students and tell them it's no big deal, it's an investment, and they will be able to pay it back, no problem. It's hard to realize how quickly loans can get out of control because of the high interest rates, and fees if any payments are missed during tough times which is probably what happened to the photography major.
Banks are getting rich off of students, loans are often pushed on naive' young people who simply aren't ready to handle such a large life decision. It's likely there is nothing else she isn't being clear about, this issue doesn't mean she is an irresponsible person who will always be irresponsible, and continue to make nothing but mistakes in life. It's so easy for some to judge, but I do believe she was lying to herself as a survival instinct, someone who hasn't experienced having to take a large loan to go to college with high interest rates can't understand how painful it is to have that hanging over you, sometimes the only way you can keep moving forward in life is to not think about it, especially considering that she was paying it every month, she was doing her best to be responsible. She was not in default yet all I read is how flaky and irresponsible this full time x ray tech who pays her bills is. She was paying the loan herself, and there was no reason to believe she wouldn't continue to pay it, she did tell him it was over 100K, and she wasn't sure how much. I do think she dodged a bullet because he obviously was not going to be in it for the bad, and the good.
This is a tough subject. Off the cuff, I don't like the idea of student loan debt being allocated to anyone, but the student. OTOH, if the marriage benefited from the degree then that needs to be taken into consideration, but those numbers should be crunched.
If the marriage is benefitting from the degree and paying the student loans, wouldn't the income from the spouse who brought the student loans into the marriage be community property in a divorce?
The photographer is foolish to rack up that kind of debt. The medical student is a different story, she will be able to pay back her $250,000 in the first year or so of working.
That is not even close to being true. Physicians have to go through residency which pays very little, and many specialties don't pay the sky high salaries people imagine, unless she is going to be a very successful surgeon which takes years to accomplish, she will be paying that loan for 10-25 years.
If the marriage is benefitting from the degree and paying the student loans, wouldn't the income from the spouse who brought the student loans into the marriage be community property in a divorce?
Good question, tho, it looks like it would mostly be a wash. While the marriage benefits, it also pays. If the marriage ends, so will/should any benefits and debt obligations.
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