Comments on: In Australia, We Don’t Worry So Much About Our Student Debt

By: eemusings@twitter

eemusings@twitter — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 19:28:17 +0000

The student loan system is similar here in NZ – I had a tuition scholarship so didn’t need to worry about borrowing money, thankfully, but reading about all the student loans that personal finance bloggers juggle (and I read a LOT of PF blogs) kind of gives me stomachache.

By: novembertea

novembertea — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 14:14:02 +0000

This person’s student loan situation reminds me of mine in the sense that I don’t worry about it too much. I know I am fortunate compared to many people I know who are struggling with huge amounts of private loan debt. I am able to not worry so much because I have only federal loans. I did have a Sallie Mae loan at one point, but I paid off the balance with a new Stafford loan I received because of none other than Suze Orman – if I never watched her show I never would have known to do that. Now all of my loans are under IBR (Income Based Repayment). This means that my loan payments will be based on my debt to income ratio until after 25 years, when the debt is erased. No matter how much I earn, or how much the debt balloons, I’ll never pay more than the standard monthly payment for a 10 year repayment plan on the original principal. Right now, I’m earning $15,000 a year with two jobs and I have no monthly payment. If and when I earn enough to make payments, I still believe I’ll never pay back the entirety of the 45K loan plus interest by the time I’m 49. Check out IBR if you haven’t already.

By: Mitch Edgeworth@twitter

Mitch Edgeworth@twitter — Sun, 02 Dec 2012 04:51:10 +0000

@notetoself I’m far from an economist but we are definitely well, well overdue for a massive housing market crash. The price of property has been outpacing wages and CPI for about two decades. Owning a home is deeply ingrained in the national character, which was fine, until property investment became the national pastime. I have had several homebuying friends of my age (early 20s) say to me, in a heartbreakingly earnest tone, that property is a good investment “because it always goes up in value.”

People of my generation haven’t been locked out of the market, exactly, but I would rather rent in a decent neighbourhood for the rest of my life rather than buy a display home in a treeless suburb in Deer Park or Fountain Waters are whatever other crummy development 50 k’s out of the city first homebuyers are living in these days.

By: plumb-bob

plumb-bob — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 22:23:18 +0000

@stuffisthings Point of balance – I live in Melbourne, I take public transport nearly every day to and from work, several different lines, and have done for years. It’s so common to hear other languages it doesn’t even register, yet I have never in 30 years seen anything like that video. It was a big deal here because people were shocked.
Sorry, I just needed to defend my lovely melburnians (not that guy if course, he’s an arse).

By: stuffisthings

stuffisthings — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 22:07:17 +0000

@questingbeast You can’t imagine earning more than £15,000 p.a.?

Cameron’s Britain.

By: stuffisthings

stuffisthings — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 22:06:41 +0000

@kellyography In the US we just have Humongous Endless Loan Payments. HELP!

By: stuffisthings

stuffisthings — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 21:59:21 +0000

Australians are also incredibly racist. Even against white people! EVIDENCE

By: WaityKatie

WaityKatie — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:24:51 +0000

@tuntastic All of that, gay marriage, AND Flight of the Conchords!

By: tuntastic

tuntastic — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 03:07:40 +0000

@WaityKatie If you want all of that AND gay marriage, come to New Zealand!

By: notetoself

notetoself — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 21:36:24 +0000

@WaityKatie Totally! Tell immigration I sent you! (I think you’d have to become a permanent resident if not a citizen, but no big deal).
There are bad things about Australia, naturally – I don’t want to be a total jerk – but I’m proud of much of what our government does.