Comments on: Pay off Student Loans, or Save for House?

By: J. Money

J. Money — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 01:27:48 +0000

Oh man, def. tricky… I’d probably work towards both if it were me (lame answer, but it’s the truth) but I think it really comes down to personal preference and what makes you FEEL better in the end… both routes give you an incredible advantage financially though, so at least you’re winning either way! :) If it’s gonna take you years to pay off your loans, and you think housing prices will go up (and you DEF want a house soon), maybe prioritize that way too? I don’t think there are wrong answers here.

By: laura collins

laura collins — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 22:48:36 +0000

My husband and I are $80,000 in debt from student loans. Yikes! Due to recent lifestyle changes and my husband found a job, we are now able to save $3,500 to $4,000 per month. Should we pay the loans off or save agressively for a house. Every month I write a rent check, I feel like I am giving money away. Also, with compound interest, we would be able to put 30-40% down after a few years of saving. Which direction should we go?

By: J. Money

J. Money — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 20:30:57 +0000

Tough one! Sucks that all the comments here were erased before I ported over to WordPress (I think a lot of them would have helped you out!) but I’d say wiping out that $70k (if it’s your highest) should be priority #1. But only if you’ve changed your ways and know how to live w/out getting back into debt (not all of that is student loans, right?).

So if it were me, I’d probably throw $500 of it towards that high % rate first, and then the other $200+ into your house account. But that’s just me. In fact, I’d use that house account as an emergency fund and just keep renting for a while ;) Not sure where you live, or why you want to buy a house, but it’s much easier/stress-free to do so after you’ve wiped out a lot of the other issues on hand.

By: Someone

Someone — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 17:26:33 +0000

$5000 in debt is nothing. I WISH that was my problem. I’m 170K in debt at various interest rates including 70K at 8.25% (it’s ridiculous, I know). I’m already saving 20% of my monthly net income for a down payment and paying the minimum payment for the student loans. I have an EXTRA $700-1K every month to contribute to EITHER my down payment savings or an additional payment to my student loans. I don’t know which to do!

By: J. Money

J. Money — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 23:30:37 +0000

Unless your house costs $50-$100k ;) but yeah, I get where you're going – def. something to keep in mind.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 22:04:57 +0000

Honestly, if you're worried about saving $5,000 for your loans or shoveling that $5,000 to a house downpayment, then you can't afford a house. It's financially irresponsible not to have a 10% or 20% downpayment, and that's a lot more than five grand.