What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14 Forum

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by CPA-->JD » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:14 pm

What be the maximum debt you would take on for HYS?

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by BigZuck » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:19 pm

zerato5 wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I mean this in the least snarky way possible: What's the point of this thread? It gets made a lot and I'm not sure I've ever understood why. Is something of substance/something helpful to someone supposed to come from it? Or is it just a time killing hypo?
I'm comparing schools right now. It's helpful for me to see what amount of debt people are comfortable with.
Just seems like such a personal choice to me
sjs12 wrote:
loslakers wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I mean this in the least snarky way possible: What's the point of this thread? It gets made a lot and I'm not sure I've ever understood why. Is something of substance/something helpful to someone supposed to come from it? Or is it just a time killing hypo?
hahah it came about as more of a time-killing hypothetical and just general curiosity. i just wanted to see if there was (somewhat) of a consensus about the amount of debt you'd be willing to take out for these schools. is 75k of debt for UT too much if you wanted to work in texas? 50k too much for Washington U if you wanted to work in St. Louis? etc.
I think 75k is reasonable for UT if you want Texas, 50k reasonable for Wash U if you want STL AND have ties there (very insular market). But this is my own personal opinion, take it with a grain of salt.

It also depends on your personal situation. Do you have a spouse who makes decent money that could make a payment if you can't find a job right away? Parent? Etc.
I took out more than 75K for UT. A little less than 100K. I don't really know how to quantify "worth it" but I can say that paying $1100 a month FOR 10 YEARS is going to suck. I'll probably get numb to it soon but right now it hurts. It really sucks. I was debt averse when choosing a law school but I think it's almost impossible to understand these types of numbers unless you have to sit there and actually pay off loans.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by loslakers » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:20 pm

sjs12 wrote:
loslakers wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I mean this in the least snarky way possible: What's the point of this thread? It gets made a lot and I'm not sure I've ever understood why. Is something of substance/something helpful to someone supposed to come from it? Or is it just a time killing hypo?
hahah it came about as more of a time-killing hypothetical and just general curiosity. i just wanted to see if there was (somewhat) of a consensus about the amount of debt you'd be willing to take out for these schools. is 75k of debt for UT too much if you wanted to work in texas? 50k too much for Washington U if you wanted to work in St. Louis? etc.
I think 75k is reasonable for UT if you want Texas, 50k reasonable for Wash U if you want STL AND have ties there (very insular market). But this is my own personal opinion, take it with a grain of salt.

It also depends on your personal situation. Do you have a spouse who makes decent money that could make a payment if you can't find a job right away? Parent? Etc.
do you think 75k-90k is reasonable for USC or UCLA if you wanted to practice in LA?

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by BigZuck » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:20 pm

CPA-->JD wrote:What be the maximum debt you would take on for HYS?
In this hypo have we figured out a way to eat prestige?

Or nah?

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by TAD » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:22 pm

CPA-->JD wrote:What be the maximum debt you would take on for HYS?
Not sure, but a lot less than sticker, and would take on more debt for Y than HS.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by waldorf » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:24 pm

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by CPA-->JD » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:29 pm

BigZuck wrote:
CPA-->JD wrote:What be the maximum debt you would take on for HYS?
In this hypo have we figured out a way to eat prestige?

Or nah?
Lol! Seriously though, I would love if someone can quantify the expected value of a H degree over Penn for example. Is the only real bump that you have a much wider safely net to get big law or is there a real value that you can utilize over the course of your career.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by loslakers » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:30 pm

BigZuck wrote:
zerato5 wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I mean this in the least snarky way possible: What's the point of this thread? It gets made a lot and I'm not sure I've ever understood why. Is something of substance/something helpful to someone supposed to come from it? Or is it just a time killing hypo?
I'm comparing schools right now. It's helpful for me to see what amount of debt people are comfortable with.
Just seems like such a personal choice to me
sjs12 wrote:
loslakers wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I mean this in the least snarky way possible: What's the point of this thread? It gets made a lot and I'm not sure I've ever understood why. Is something of substance/something helpful to someone supposed to come from it? Or is it just a time killing hypo?
hahah it came about as more of a time-killing hypothetical and just general curiosity. i just wanted to see if there was (somewhat) of a consensus about the amount of debt you'd be willing to take out for these schools. is 75k of debt for UT too much if you wanted to work in texas? 50k too much for Washington U if you wanted to work in St. Louis? etc.
I think 75k is reasonable for UT if you want Texas, 50k reasonable for Wash U if you want STL AND have ties there (very insular market). But this is my own personal opinion, take it with a grain of salt.

It also depends on your personal situation. Do you have a spouse who makes decent money that could make a payment if you can't find a job right away? Parent? Etc.
I took out more than 75K for UT. A little less than 100K. I don't really know how to quantify "worth it" but I can say that paying $1100 a month FOR 10 YEARS is going to suck. I'll probably get numb to it soon but right now it hurts. It really sucks. I was debt averse when choosing a law school but I think it's almost impossible to understand these types of numbers unless you have to sit there and actually pay off loans.
wow. thats insane... i guess that puts it a lot more in perspective than my original question

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Thomas Hagan, ESQ.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by Thomas Hagan, ESQ. » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:35 pm

loslakers wrote:
BigZuck wrote:
zerato5 wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I mean this in the least snarky way possible: What's the point of this thread? It gets made a lot and I'm not sure I've ever understood why. Is something of substance/something helpful to someone supposed to come from it? Or is it just a time killing hypo?
I'm comparing schools right now. It's helpful for me to see what amount of debt people are comfortable with.
Just seems like such a personal choice to me
sjs12 wrote:
loslakers wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I mean this in the least snarky way possible: What's the point of this thread? It gets made a lot and I'm not sure I've ever understood why. Is something of substance/something helpful to someone supposed to come from it? Or is it just a time killing hypo?
hahah it came about as more of a time-killing hypothetical and just general curiosity. i just wanted to see if there was (somewhat) of a consensus about the amount of debt you'd be willing to take out for these schools. is 75k of debt for UT too much if you wanted to work in texas? 50k too much for Washington U if you wanted to work in St. Louis? etc.
I think 75k is reasonable for UT if you want Texas, 50k reasonable for Wash U if you want STL AND have ties there (very insular market). But this is my own personal opinion, take it with a grain of salt.

It also depends on your personal situation. Do you have a spouse who makes decent money that could make a payment if you can't find a job right away? Parent? Etc.
I took out more than 75K for UT. A little less than 100K. I don't really know how to quantify "worth it" but I can say that paying $1100 a month FOR 10 YEARS is going to suck. I'll probably get numb to it soon but right now it hurts. It really sucks. I was debt averse when choosing a law school but I think it's almost impossible to understand these types of numbers unless you have to sit there and actually pay off loans.
wow. thats insane... i guess that puts it a lot more in perspective than my original question
That's incredibly helpful in putting this into perspective, thanks! For me, personally, that seems manageable but absolutely terrible at the same time. I'm paying almost $1200-$1500 per month right now on my UG loans (I don't have too much so I'm trying to pay it all off before law school) and it's terrible....especially living in Manhattan and with a job that pays only about $60k a year....

So yeah, it seems manageable because I'm already do that now with a much smaller paycheck (assuming I don't strike out in law school) but I can't imagine having to do this for 10+ years goddamm.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by BigZuck » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:40 pm

I have a market paying job in a relatively low COL area so it's technically manageable. But there's always the downside risk of getting laid off/having to take a big paycut. And to be honest I could pay it off faster, rent a cheaper apartment, etc. At some point I probably will pay it off faster or maybe refinance, I just have other priorities now (like trying to save up money for a house).

I guess my main point is it's easy to think "Yeah, 100K, I went to a good school and got a good job and at least I didn't pay sticker!" but interest is real and having to actually start paying that bastard off is a totally different animal.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by zerato5 » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:42 pm

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Last edited by zerato5 on Wed Jan 25, 2017 10:38 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by BigZuck » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:51 pm

zerato5 wrote:
BigZuck wrote:I have a market paying job in a relatively low COL area so it's technically manageable. But there's always the downside risk of getting laid off/having to take a big paycut. And to be honest I could pay it off faster, rent a cheaper apartment, etc. At some point I probably will pay it off faster or maybe refinance, I just have other priorities now (like trying to save up money for a house).

I guess my main point is it's easy to think "Yeah, 100K, I went to a good school and got a good job and at least I didn't pay sticker!" but interest is real and having to actually start paying that bastard off is a totally different animal.

I dont mean to pry, but why are you saving for a house instead of using that money to pay your loans?
Haven't figured out a way to live inside of my loans yet

Also probably something about the American Dream, families, it's not all about me necessarily, etc.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by cavalier1138 » Wed Jan 18, 2017 4:54 pm

Ferrisjso wrote:
cavalier1138 wrote:
Ferrisjso wrote:Less than 100k for TT, 100-150k at non T20 T1, not willing to go north of 150k. I don't have the numbers for T14 so I don't really know how far I'd be willing to go for that, maybe a little higher. I would be thrilled to have Vandy at 100k even 150k though that's a great deal(I like Nashville and would pick Vandy over every non T6 T14 if I had the sort of crazy numbers necessary to get into that sort of law school, just want to make that clear if people think I'm nuts for that )!
I'm not sure how that parenthetical made you sound any less insane.
I don't know what makes me insane about answering the question and saying what levels of debt I would be willing to take to go to different types of schools. I'm trying to keep my debt as close to the 100k mark as possible and far away from 150k as possible, seeing the crazy prices of law school today I feel that is a realistic goal. I know the prices are crazy but I'm not going to let a little bit of debt be a career roadblock because I'd rather pay an extra 50-75k for the school with the better employment prospects.
You specifically said you would take Vandy w/ $150k debt over any lower T14 because you "like Nashville". That, along with every other word of your post, makes you a nutjob.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by loslakers » Wed Jan 18, 2017 5:17 pm

cavalier1138 wrote:
Ferrisjso wrote:
cavalier1138 wrote:
Ferrisjso wrote:Less than 100k for TT, 100-150k at non T20 T1, not willing to go north of 150k. I don't have the numbers for T14 so I don't really know how far I'd be willing to go for that, maybe a little higher. I would be thrilled to have Vandy at 100k even 150k though that's a great deal(I like Nashville and would pick Vandy over every non T6 T14 if I had the sort of crazy numbers necessary to get into that sort of law school, just want to make that clear if people think I'm nuts for that )!
I'm not sure how that parenthetical made you sound any less insane.
I don't know what makes me insane about answering the question and saying what levels of debt I would be willing to take to go to different types of schools. I'm trying to keep my debt as close to the 100k mark as possible and far away from 150k as possible, seeing the crazy prices of law school today I feel that is a realistic goal. I know the prices are crazy but I'm not going to let a little bit of debt be a career roadblock because I'd rather pay an extra 50-75k for the school with the better employment prospects.
You specifically said you would take Vandy w/ $150k debt over any lower T14 because you "like Nashville". That, along with every other word of your post, makes you a nutjob.
just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by cavalier1138 » Wed Jan 18, 2017 5:19 pm

loslakers wrote: just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.
<$100k for Vanderbilt and UT, nothing anywhere else.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by tncats » Wed Jan 18, 2017 7:03 pm

This is a genuine question for everyone who's saying $0 or <$50k. How do you plan on paying for your living expenses?

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by PrezRand » Wed Jan 18, 2017 9:05 pm

I would pay sticker tuition for UT since my parents are covering rent. Sticker is about 100k. For the t14s I am considering, 150k unless HYS.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by UVA2B » Wed Jan 18, 2017 9:11 pm

tncats wrote:This is a genuine question for everyone who's saying $0 or <$50k. How do you plan on paying for your living expenses?
Depending on cost in the region, living expenses can/should keep you <50k if you budget appropriately. But mostly people saying $0 are probably saying so because they have another method to pay for living expenses and they're just saying they wouldn't pay for any tuition. My personal opinion here, but I think most people frame in terms of tuition cost when making these claims, while including living expenses/COA when considering whether a given school is a smart financial decision. That's the somewhat more relevant discussion.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by zot1 » Wed Jan 18, 2017 9:12 pm

No more than $450k.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by Gitaroo_Dude » Wed Jan 18, 2017 9:20 pm

loslakers wrote:do you think 75k-90k is reasonable for USC or UCLA if you wanted to practice in LA?
I think it's justifiable if you're willing to live a little frugally. I remember Paul Campos' book said that if you're going to attend a strong regional that doesn't guarantee you big law, you want to have debt somewhere between 60k-90k. You'd be pushing up against the upper limit of that principle but I think it's still a justifiable cost. LA's CoL just adds extra pressure though.
cavalier1138 wrote:
loslakers wrote: just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.
<$100k for Vanderbilt and UT, nothing anywhere else.
No love for the great state of California, huh? :cry:

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by Ferrisjso » Thu Jan 19, 2017 11:49 am

cavalier1138 wrote:
loslakers wrote: just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.
<$100k for Vanderbilt and UT, nothing anywhere else.
So you think only 16 schools are worth taking on debt for? Yeah, I'm the crazy person.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by A. Nony Mouse » Thu Jan 19, 2017 12:30 pm

Ferrisjso wrote:
cavalier1138 wrote:
loslakers wrote: just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.
<$100k for Vanderbilt and UT, nothing anywhere else.
So you think only 16 schools are worth taking on debt for? Yeah, I'm the crazy person.
He's not crazy. He answered a question asking for his personal opinion on this issue. So did you. Just because you have different definitions of what's worth it doesn't make him crazy, just a lot more conservative than you are.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by cavalier1138 » Thu Jan 19, 2017 12:36 pm

Ferrisjso wrote:
cavalier1138 wrote:
loslakers wrote: just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.
<$100k for Vanderbilt and UT, nothing anywhere else.
So you think only 16 schools are worth taking on debt for? Yeah, I'm the crazy person.
Just out of curiosity, you mentioned that you would take on $150k in debt for a T1 school. How would you be paying that debt back?

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by Ferrisjso » Thu Jan 19, 2017 12:45 pm

A. Nony Mouse wrote:
Ferrisjso wrote:
cavalier1138 wrote:
loslakers wrote: just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.
<$100k for Vanderbilt and UT, nothing anywhere else.
So you think only 16 schools are worth taking on debt for? Yeah, I'm the crazy person.
He's not crazy. He answered a question asking for his personal opinion on this issue. So did you. Just because you have different definitions of what's worth it doesn't make him crazy, just a lot more conservative than you are.
That's true but he did call me insane first(twice) so I was just responding to that, if one dishes out they should be able to take it(I do not think Cavalier is crazy). I do think it's a little silly to basically say though all but 16 law schools are worth no debt whatsover at all(I'd think under <50,000 is quite reasonable for a halfway decent school for most people)
Last edited by Ferrisjso on Thu Jan 19, 2017 1:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: What level of debt are you comfortable with for nont14

Post by Ferrisjso » Thu Jan 19, 2017 1:02 pm

cavalier1138 wrote:
Ferrisjso wrote:
cavalier1138 wrote:
loslakers wrote: just curious cavalier how much debt would you be willing to take on for a Vandy, Washington, UCLA/USC, UT. assuming you would be cool with living and working in nashville, st. louis, los angeles, and texas.
<$100k for Vanderbilt and UT, nothing anywhere else.
So you think only 16 schools are worth taking on debt for? Yeah, I'm the crazy person.
Just out of curiosity, you mentioned that you would take on $150k in debt for a T1 school. How would you be paying that debt back?
Well I said 100-150, 150 is the ceiling, I'm thinking 120-125 for the T's I'm applying to. I also might take out around that much for a T2 in the region I'm heavily leaning on practicing in(not sure the amount it will cost, it's dependent on getting in state residency or not/negotiating). How I'd pay back my debt depends, for some options it'd be solely based on me working for others i'd potentially receive financial assistance from my family(i would not get this for most of my cheaper options for a particular reason). Don't really feel comfortable explaining the details further, it's somewhat tentative though. Once I get my decisions from W+M and W+L, I am going to make a "Choosing a Law School thread" to discuss my situation further. Anyway I think less than 100k for a TT is pretty reasonable and a little more for a T is reasonable(I know you may think the employment opportunities are pretty similar but the T's i'm applying to do good enough stats and an area I prefer and I think that's worth 20k-30k more. Right now, I'm more worried about picking my region of practice, the schools that are giving me the best offers are either TTT's or schools in an area I'm leaning against practicing in. Seeing this though, for me Vandy would be a no brainier at 100, even 150(still haven't actually been rejected yet;). If I did have really good stats though I would take Vanderbilt over almost any T-14 though because it was my dream school and Nashville is an area I'd love to live in and practice.

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