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96 votes

My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

Some folks have touched on this, but I wanted to make sure I emphasize this. Getting a college degree does not require going into massive debt. In fact it doesn't require debt at all. Here are some ...
Ogre Psalm33's user avatar
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82 votes
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My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

You really have only three options (leaving out somehow legally forcing them to pay, about which I know nothing). I'm also assuming you're in the US. Somehow get enough in scholarships and grants to ...
jamesqf's user avatar
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79 votes
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Should a high-school student invest their (relative meager) savings?

You should invest in that with the best possible outcome. Right now that is in yourself. Your greatest wealth building tool, at this point, is your future income. As such anything you can do to ...
Pete B.'s user avatar
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66 votes

How do I raise 30k to keep my best friend in college?

Might be a better investment to go to a different country and study. The US prices for education are incredibly overpriced (having taught at both European universities and an Ivy league university in ...
Per Alexandersson's user avatar
53 votes

My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

It seems everyone has left one conspicuous option unspoken: Don't go to college. Let me be clear. I am not saying you should not go to college, but it is important to remember that not going to ...
BlackThorn's user avatar
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50 votes
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Taking college classes to avoid student loan payments indefinitely

You mentioned that this is a private student loan, not a federal loan. There are no standard terms for private loans like there are for federal loans. To find out the deferral rules, you would need to ...
Ben Miller's user avatar
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40 votes

When paying for college, should I take out (interest-free) loans and pay them off with saved money, or use the saved money directly?

Here are the risks involved with student loans: They are very difficult to get discharged in a bankruptcy - the only way you can get rid of them is through death or disability (there are forgiveness ...
D Stanley's user avatar
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40 votes
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How to equally split college fund between 2 children going to college 5 years apart?

If you want to remove X now and expect that the remaining (T-X) grows to X in N years at annual rate r, the formula would be: X = (T-X)(1+r)^N X + X(1+r)^N = T*(1+r)^N X(1+ (1+r)^N) = T*(1+r)^N ...
D Stanley's user avatar
  • 142k
37 votes

How do I raise 30k to keep my best friend in college?

He could speak with a financial aid counselor to make sure he understands all of his options, including whether there are any policies/petitions that could take into account his parents' "weird ...
nanoman's user avatar
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36 votes

Paying off debt and living within means vs. long term planning

In my opinion, your idea is bad and your husband's idea far worse. You need to find a way to live within your means, that is spend no more than 84K/year. That could be done in a few ways: You get ...
Pete B.'s user avatar
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36 votes
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Paying off debt and living within means vs. long term planning

Frugality When someone mentions living frugally, I always point to the book "America's Cheapest Family". I'm not affiliated with this book in any way and do not gain anything from promoting ...
computercarguy's user avatar
35 votes

Taking college classes to avoid student loan payments indefinitely

Money interactions/discussions often draw a lot of emotions out of people and this is often complicated by in-law relationships. The best advice one can give you is to stay out of this conversation. ...
Pete B.'s user avatar
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30 votes

My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

Divorce records are public. Go to the county Clerk's office and read through all the documents (Divorce Decree, Property Settlement, etc). It'll be depressing, but that'll show how much your father ...
RonJohn's user avatar
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26 votes
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Would it be beneficial to not claim my daughter as a dependent so that she can qualify for a Pell Grant?

For FAFSA purposes, your financial information is required regardless if you claim her or don't. In the federal government’s eyes, parents are responsible for their children’s’ education, regardless ...
Michael's user avatar
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26 votes

Paying off debt and living within means vs. long term planning

While your husband's basic premise that debt is reasonable to secure higher earning potential, not all debt is created equal. For example, mortgage debt may be reasonable because the interest paid is ...
NL - SE listen to your users's user avatar
22 votes

My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

My wife and I have six children who are in college or have graduated. So far, with almost no financial help from us, they have earned 4 Bachelors degrees, a Masters degree, and an Associates degree (...
Chad's user avatar
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22 votes

Buying new car at 18

Remember who you're asking: Personal Finance and Money. Many of us are older (meaning "parents"), and financially conservative (meaning "live below your means" and "don't spend a lot on a car until ...
RonJohn's user avatar
  • 50.8k
21 votes

My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

This may or may not answer the question, but is far too long for a comment. Many people's parents do not pay their children's tuition in full in the US. I'm writing this as if your parents will not ...
Jared Smith's user avatar
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20 votes

529 (college saving) account for multiple kids

With that close an age gap it would probably make sense to use separate 529s. Technically you can transfer funds and even change the beneficiary from one sibling to another, but if both are in college ...
D Stanley's user avatar
  • 142k
18 votes

When paying for college, should I take out (interest-free) loans and pay them off with saved money, or use the saved money directly?

Plus you already have money in a 529 plan that is meant for college expenses (and cannot be used to pay student loans) - use that money for what it's for. I disagree with @DStanley, as a current ...
Liam's user avatar
  • 1,096
18 votes

Paying off debt and living within means vs. long term planning

This statement My attitude has always been that I prefer to live frugally and within our means both because it is a good habit and because I have always been very afraid of debt. and this ...
sevensevens's user avatar
  • 4,109
13 votes

How do I raise 30k to keep my best friend in college?

Given his circumstances I would go to a community college for significantly cheaper, and accumulate as many transferable credits as possible. While at the same time working and saving up as much money ...
Hatman's user avatar
  • 246
11 votes
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Is the child responsible for the Parent PLUS Loan when the parent has passed away?

No: From The Federal Student Aid Office of the US Department of Education: What happens to my parent's PLUS loan if my parent dies or if I die? Your parent's PLUS loan will be discharged if your ...
D Stanley's user avatar
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10 votes
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How do Roth IRAs compare to Traditional IRAs for college savings?

Can I not use a Traditional IRA for college savings as well? Not without tax and early withdrawal penalties. Roths can be used for education to avoid the 10% withdrawal penalty, but since the money ...
D Stanley's user avatar
  • 142k
10 votes

My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

Don't let your parents drag you into their arguments. This is BAD co-parenting. Yes there is probably alimony paid. It is much harder for 2 people to afford living independently than together (2 ...
Paul's user avatar
  • 291
10 votes

First car out of college

Of course you'll be considerably wealthier in the long run (and the short run!) if you buy a reliable, low-cost car rather than an expensive, high-maintenance car. That's nothing but simple math. ...
RonJohn's user avatar
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9 votes
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529 (college saving) account for multiple kids

In my opinion, this is probably a personal choice. With no extra paperwork, you and your spouse can each gift $15000 per child. Unless you are planning to gift more than $30K combined, one acct, to ...
JTP - Apologise to Monica's user avatar
9 votes

Should I follow Robert Kiyosaki's advice and drop out of college?

Dropping out of school may or may not be the right move for you, but don’t base your decision solely on on a tweet, or even a book. Robert Kiyosaki likes to make points by saying shocking things and ...
Ben Miller's user avatar
  • 116k
8 votes

My parents claim they cannot pay for my college education; what are my options?

The other answers are great but I will add my own experience. I started college right before my parents got divorced. My dad was making a decent amount of money. Too much to qualify for Pell grants ...
Lux Claridge's user avatar
8 votes
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28 yr old male. Dropout Self-Taught Programmer. Earning $20k a month. Should I go back to college?

What do you want to do? All personal finance is based upon helping people achieve their goals. So far, you've not established any major goals... so it's going to be hard to provide any useful advice. ...
NPSF3000's user avatar
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