Caving Memes

carpet

Member
I have a spreadsheet to explain student loans to my kids in detail. All three have about £90k of debt. We have discussions about whether I should just pay it off. I am holding out for the NHS clearing a couple of them and the last fled abroad a month after graduating and now I get letters with menaces. A techie detail for all you budding expats is that you can choose to pay a flat rate based on about £55k, even when being paid as a banker in Basel.

I can heartily recommend housewife as a career choice. Let someone else put chops on table.
My student loan is i think low enough that it makes financial sense to pay it off ASAP, partly thanks to me being welsh and getting a slightly nicer deal as a result, though I haven't actually sat down and done the maths yet. I probably should since i finish uni this week. Unfortunately, running off to Basel isn't massively practical for me 😅
 

Fjell

Well-known member
My student loan is i think low enough that it makes financial sense to pay it off ASAP, partly thanks to me being welsh and getting a slightly nicer deal as a result, though I haven't actually sat down and done the maths yet. I probably should since i finish uni this week. Unfortunately, running off to Basel isn't massively practical for me 😅
The maths is that the lower the loan the more likely it is you have to pay all of it back. To pay back £90k over 30 years you would have to start on about £50k and end up more like £150k in todays money. Working full time.

Hence the discussion. If they owed £30-40k I would pay it off to get rid of the annoyance.

It is in fact the most progressive tax in the UK. Should def cut NI before cutting student loan payments.
 

nearlywhite

Active member
It is in fact the most progressive tax in the UK.

[citation needed]

You'd have thought property taxes affecting generational wealth are far more progressive than a tax that actively makes people from lower income backgrounds who succeed pay more than people who have lower earning potential but large amounts of inherited wealth.

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Speleofish

Active member
If you're a hospital doctor, you're likely to hit the sort of salaries Fjell mentions - ie you'll end up paying it all off. Given the current interest rates, this is akin to having a rather expensive second mortgage. However, if you try to pay it off as a lump sum, you either need generous parents/grandparents or you may have to sacrifice any chance of raising a deposit for a house - at least for several years.
 

Fjell

Well-known member
If you're a hospital doctor, you're likely to hit the sort of salaries Fjell mentions - ie you'll end up paying it all off. Given the current interest rates, this is akin to having a rather expensive second mortgage. However, if you try to pay it off as a lump sum, you either need generous parents/grandparents or you may have to sacrifice any chance of raising a deposit for a house - at least for several years.
Hence the discussion with my FY1 youth element. My current take is to not pay it off and see what happens over the next few years. I am of the opinion this is going to an election issue within the next 10 years as the numbers of people mount up and they reach adulthood and vote (ie over 25).

People earning less than £30k need not engage with this discussion. You got it for free. Someone else will pay.
 

Speleofish

Active member
I get the point about going off topic. However, it's an important subject for many of us (parents or recent graduate cavers) so I think it's pertinent to discuss it. If moderators want to open a separate thread, that's up to them and I'd be happy to continue it there.
 

Fjell

Well-known member
This one is off the official Labour X feed. My wife is popping. We’ll see how long it stays up. My objection is that it is pathetically inadequate in addition to being haplessly sexist.

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