Got first nursing job but can't afford loan payments

[venousr3tuRN]

Hello AN! Hope I'm posting this in the right section. So 6 months after graduating nursing school, I was finally able to land my first nursing job. It's in LTC and although not my ideal, after being there for almost a month I have grown to love all of the residents and found kinship with my coworkers. The pay is great, but with the extent of my loans, it is not viable for paying them off on a standard plan and being able to live. Now for a little back story: I have kept nursing on the back burner through college and slowly took prerequisites for it while majoring in other things that interested me. I switched my major twice until finally realizing that nursing was what I really wanted to do. After finally completing my prereqs I applied to various nursing programs around Southern California. I was put on various wait lists, most likely due to the fact that my core science GPA was only slightly above average and not the best as most schools I guess look for. After 3 years of waiting, I couldn't wait any longer and just wanted to start my nursing career sooner. I decided to go private--West Coast University--and ended up taking over $80,000 in private loans (Wells Fargo and Sallie Mae). I know that I should have waited for a more affordable school option but I didn't want to find out how long that wait would be. This is where I could use your guys' advice: I have been looking everywhere in Southern California for any lender, both big banks and credit unions, that can help me consolidate my private loans so that the payments are more affordable. With my private and federal loans my monthly bill comes up to $1500 and that is about how much I make in one paycheck but I also live on my own and have those bills to deal with as well. I'm in the process of lowering the federal loans and hope to hear good news from that, until then I'm in forbearance. My parents are helping me pay one of my private loans while I take care of the other. I really don't want to have my parents have to foot my bill, at least when I know I can take care of it if I can just get them consolidated. Has anybody gone through a similar situation and if so, we're you able to find a lender that would consolidate such a high debt? I've tried with Wells Fargo but got denied with a cosigner. Other lenders couldn't help me because my school made me ineligible for their program, or my debt was too high. Does anyone know a lender in California that would consider consolidating a student loan debt this high? I've been trying to figure this whole thing out during my days off, before work, and after work. With just barely starting my job, I've been stressed out trying to learn my job and figure out my finances. I have found that there is no time to relax. I'm keeping up hope though and am still really excited to finally begin my nursing career.

A little random fact: I was able to get the interview for the LTC facility because I share the same exact name, first and last, with the DONs nephew. I also kind of think that's how I got the job.

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

call your current loan company(s) and see if there is anything that can be done. I have a friend who was unable to pay her entire monthly loan bill but she didn't want to go into default. She called and they worked with her. I believe they put it on hold under a hardship thing and then when the monthly payment were to start again they worked with her and lowered the payments.

Do this before you get in too deep. I can't promise they will do anything but it can't hurt to give it a shot.

This.

Loan companies are often willing to work with borrowers if contacted early. It may be possible to negotiate a lower monthly payment or deferment. As already stated, there's no guarantee they'll do anything...but they won't be as willing to work with you if you've missed several payments and are about to default.

And yes to the more hours/second job, getting a roomie, and budget tightening already mentioned.

Also, you want to do whatever possible to avoid defaulting, late payments, etc., as these WILL affect your credit rating for at least the next seven years. And as someone who's had dings to their credit...trust me, you don't want them. Seven years is a looooong time to suffer for your mistakes: bad credit affects you in more ways than you'd realize.

Last, readers should consider this a cautionary tale. I won't tell anyone where to go (or not go) to school or whether they should take out loans, as those are decisions that people need to make for themselves. But definitely consider how hard it is for new grads to find jobs, as well as the fact that the salaries offered in most places are not going to be as high as you'd hope, before signing on for an expensive program and/or student loans.

Best of luck.

[NewNurse2013]

the government has a program called Nurse Corps that if you are willing to work for three years at a area hospital in a disadvantage area they would pay 10,000 to 20,000 for every year you work towards your loans. Please look into asap the program registration just opened up and will only be open until mid May i believe. Is . Hopes it helps:)

[Mulan]

Do you have a BSN?

If so, what about joining the military.

I don't know if they would help with your loans or not, but it would be a full time paycheck and good benefits.

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

The next financial crisis that will make the housing market look like child's play. Nurse corps is good suggestion.

[h=3]Nursing Education Loan Repayment Program - HRSA[/h]

[tnmarie]

Do you have a BSN?

If so, what about joining the military.

I don't know if they would help with your loans or not, but it would be a full time paycheck and good benefits.

With all of the budget cuts (not to mention rampant MST), I'd be careful with this one. Civilian pay is also generally higher for most jobs (with the big BUT being if you can get civilian jobs). Otherwise, I cant really add to all the other excellent advice (budget, work with creditors, etc).

Good luck.

[DizzyLizzyNurse]

Get a second job, get a roommate. Cut expenses - no cable, dinners out, very basic phone service. Make up a budget and stick to it. Also I second calling the loan company and seeing if they will work with you.

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

What is your interest rate on these loans? I graduated with over $90K in debt and my monthly payment at its highest was less than half of what yours is. I agree to call your lenders and see if they can lower your payment in some way. I was able to lower my payment considerably when I was buying my house.

[tigerlogic]

Indian Health Services has loan forgiveness extras. As does much of the state of Alaska. I just talked to a super cool recruiter from Nome at a job fair.

And good on you for posting a cautionary tale.

Best of luck.

(and personally, I'm a fan of ditching the car and commuting everywhere by bike. If it's less than 15-20 miles one way, it's probably bikable.)

[rita359]

Sounds like it is time for some professional advise from Suze Ormon or somebody like her. Options seem to be 1. get a second or third job 2. cut expenses to the very minimun 3. cook at home (eating out is expensive) 4. no gifts to others because you can't afford it. You would be surprised what you can do without or get by with that is cheaper. Furnish your apartment from yard sales or swap meets.

Know that those loans in forebearance are only INCREASING as time left in forebearance increases. That is an option that isn't an option if you want to get out of debt.

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

You have to realize that your loan payments will be high taking on 80,000 in debt. As others mentioned, try to cut back wherever you can.

When I was in nursing school, I cut my grocery bill in half, few nights out, no cable for four years, and a cheap cell phone. Drastic? Maybe. But well worth it, because I didn't want an overwhelming debt.

Find as many ways as possible to conserve. In the long run, it will be worth it.

[Suey816]

Your tax refund should be high from the large amount of student loan interest, so pay it down using the tax refund as well, that should help :)

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

With all of the budget cuts (not to mention rampant MST), I'd be careful with this one. Civilian pay is also generally higher for most jobs (with the big BUT being if you can get civilian jobs). Otherwise, I cant really add to all the other excellent advice (budget, work with creditors, etc).

Good luck.

Also, the military branches are cutting back on the number of candidates they accept since they don't have the funding they used to...plus the fact that the bad job market is causing many active duty to continue to stay in instead of discharging to take a chance in the civilian world. In addition, they are overwhelmed with applicants (again, a result of the bad job market) that competition is exceptionally tight. Definitely look into it though, but don't expect it to be a sure-fire thing.