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Advice on Student Loan? what to do

Anything related to matters of the mind

Koen_88

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Hi everyone,

Here we go, not this again you might think, but it's not a drastic situation but more a question of how can I resolve my debt with a well considered financial decision.

I have a similar question as "arfadugus" in the thead below but i didnt want to hijack it.
You tell me what to do. Need advice.

I dont know how to evaluate my situation to make a sound financial decision. (I dont think i'll be a fastlaner that soon)

I have a 5 figure college debt with (only) 0.12% interest. I have been paying it off @ 160 a month with the income of my 40hr /wk Job.

My parents offered to pay off the debt at once and that I pay them monthly instead of the lender.

And everything I pay back I can lend another time (only for things like housing or furniture when I move out)

So I have these options as far as I can think:

  • I can pay off the debt with 160 a month (maybe more after a raise) until I buy a house or move out (then the loan is a heavy cut on your mortgage here) and use the excess amount that my parents offer to buy furniture / additional expenses.
  • I can let my parents pay off the debt (so that I owe it to them) and pay them 160 a month. When I move out I can use the amount I payed them back to buy furniture or for additional expenses.

I really cant figure out how to compare these to situations and decide what's financially the wisest choice..

can anyone help?
 
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Ascension

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That depends entirely on what you want.
From a financial standpoint focused purely on yourself there would be no reason to not let your parents pay off the debt.
0% interest compared to 0.12% and the option to get a loan at 0% approved for furniture etc. later on.

For your parents though, this is horrible. I'm sure they would be happy to help but you have to ask yourself if you really want them to take on your debt and all the risk involved with it. It might be that you're never able to pay them back and even if you do, those are five figures they couldn't use for emergencys, they couldn't receive interest on and they couldn't use to enhance their own lives.

It might be that those five figures impact your parents so little or they want to help you so badly that they are happier giving you the money but I would aks of you to seriously consider if that is what you want to believe or what is actually the case.

Oh and also think about how good you'd feel not relying on anyone else for your well-being and how proud your parents would be seeing their child growing self-sufficient. In the end it's (almost) every parents goal to see their children reach a point where they no longer need you.
 

Lex DeVille

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The best thing I ever did was stop relying on my parents to handle my problems. It wasn't until I stopped relying on others to fix shit for me that I was able to figure out my situation and how to overcome it.

As the saying goes, "bandaids don't fix bullet holes."

There's a lot of ways out of your situation. At least one of the ways you described has a high chance to leave you with a heavy heart and your parents with a bad taste in their mouth.

Other ways out:

• Freelancing
• Crowdfunding
• Craigslist reselling
• Military
• Student loan repaying jobs

Those are just a few that come to mind.

This isn't a student loan problem. It's a problem solving problem. Gotta learn to ask the right questions, so you can come up with better answers for yourself. It's a requirement of successful entrepreneurs.

• What options do I have?
• What other options do I have?
• How can I make it happen?
• How else can I make it happen?
• What path have I chosen?
• What's the first step on that path?
• What's the next step now that I've taken the first?
 
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JWelch

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Hi everyone,

Here we go, not this again you might think, but it's not a drastic situation but more a question of how can I resolve my debt with a well considered financial decision.

I have a similar question as "arfadugus" in the thead below but i didnt want to hijack it.
You tell me what to do. Need advice.

I dont know how to evaluate my situation to make a sound financial decision. (I dont think i'll be a fastlaner that soon)

I have a 5 figure college debt with (only) 0.12% interest. I have been paying it off @ 160 a month with the income of my 40hr /wk Job.

My parents offered to pay off the debt at once and that I pay them monthly instead of the lender.

And everything I pay back I can lend another time (only for things like housing or furniture when I move out)

So I have these options as far as I can think:

  • I can pay off the debt with 160 a month (maybe more after a raise) until I buy a house or move out (then the loan is a heavy cut on your mortgage here) and use the excess amount that my parents offer to buy furniture / additional expenses.
  • I can let my parents pay off the debt (so that I owe it to them) and pay them 160 a month. When I move out I can use the amount I payed them back to buy furniture or for additional expenses.

I really cant figure out how to compare these to situations and decide what's financially the wisest choice..

can anyone help?
How much are we actually talking here because "5 figures" is vague? Big difference between $11,500 and $88,000. Advice would certainly change if the amount were actually tipped heavily to one side or the other.
 
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JAJT

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- Do you know how much interest you are going to pay, roughly, over the period of the loan?
- Do you know how long it will take to pay it off?
- Are your parents going to charge you interest?
- Do you have a good relationship with your parents?
- Are you the type of person who will be MORE or LESS inclined to pay off a loan knowing you owe family? Most people are far less since they know if shit happens their folks won't do anything about it but a bank will.

If I had a good relationship with my parents, and they weren't going to charge me interest, and it was going to save a ton in interest payments, then I would let them pay it off for me and I would pay them back ASAP.

That being said, regardless of who you are paying off - you need to increase your earnings.

$160 per month is nothing. I'd be looking at picking up a second or third job, or getting a much more difficult but higher paying job, or freelancing, or whatever to get that payment up into the $1,000 level or higher. At a minimum. Throw all your efforts towards paying it off before anything else.

Can you move back in with your folks? That would cut your expenses to almost nothing and allow you to throw TONS more money at the loan.

Basically, what I'm saying here is get rid of that shit. You need to get to zero as fast as possible. If you have debt, get rid of it.

Debt is only useful when it's used for income generation. When it's useless debt, it's a drain on your life. Treat it like a cancer and get rid of it aggressively.
 

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160 is nothing my man. I didn't start reading TMF until I was finishing up freshman year of college and by then I was already too committed, didn't realize what massive debt would be like, and was determined I could start a business while in college to get a head start on it. Well that didn't happen, and now I've been paying $800/month at 9%.

So here is what I would do: keep paying it off yourself. That will build your credit in the long term more than paying it off all at once. And there's 3 reasons you build your credit, and its not to take out another massive loan. 1: its the biggest factor in having cheaper car insurance. And it will get you into better carriers. That means less monthly expenses and less headache. 2. If you need a slowlane job in the future, they will look at credit. 3. Wherever you move, that is also based on credit. So keep the loan and pay it off timely to build your credit so other areas of life are easier.

I am willing to guess you owe a small amount, like $10,000-$20,000. If you have multiple loans, focus on aggressively paying off the smaller ones and that good feeling momentum will snowball: "hell yeah just paid down that $2500 loan from freshman year, now I only have a $5000 loan and a $3000 loan. Let's do this!

Keep your other monthly expenses to a minimum while looking at ways to increase your income (via SinisterLex's post) and get rid of it as fast as possible without relying on your parents.
 

CareCPA

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160 is nothing my man. I didn't start reading TMF until I was finishing up freshman year of college and by then I was already too committed, didn't realize what massive debt would be like, and was determined I could start a business while in college to get a head start on it. Well that didn't happen, and now I've been paying $800/month at 9%.

So here is what I would do: keep paying it off yourself. That will build your credit in the long term more than paying it off all at once. And there's 3 reasons you build your credit, and its not to take out another massive loan. 1: its the biggest factor in having cheaper car insurance. And it will get you into better carriers. That means less monthly expenses and less headache. 2. If you need a slowlane job in the future, they will look at credit. 3. Wherever you move, that is also based on credit. So keep the loan and pay it off timely to build your credit so other areas of life are easier.

I am willing to guess you owe a small amount, like $10,000-$20,000. If you have multiple loans, focus on aggressively paying off the smaller ones and that good feeling momentum will snowball: "hell yeah just paid down that $2500 loan from freshman year, now I only have a $5000 loan and a $3000 loan. Let's do this!

Keep your other monthly expenses to a minimum while looking at ways to increase your income (via SinisterLex's post) and get rid of it as fast as possible without relying on your parents.
9%? Have you looked into consolidation/refinance options?

To OP, 0.12% is practically 0. I don't see any major benefit to your parents paying this off for you, and it may strain family relations depending on how the pay-back goes.
 
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Koen_88

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Hmm several considirations to put in the evaluation that I didnt think of Thanks!

For your image, I live in Holland so the effects of a debt may differ from yours. Its a 10.200 loan atm. (minus 160 after this week)

@Ascension
My parents did the same for my older brother when he bought a house, so they want to give us equal chances. Their lifestyle wouldnt suffer under the situation where they pay my debt, but it isnt a gift. More of a relaxed revolving credit loan.

But beïng self sufficient is at stakes then.. If I choose to quit my day job in the time I owe them money they will probably want to have a say in this. They will allways disprove of that choice no matter what, but when I'm selfsufficient I can respectfully mind my own business(es).

@SinisterLex
As you can see I had a much limited view of my options and didnt know what more stakes could be at play so I count this as considering options and searching for other options I might have. Thx for suggestions I think I can make more of a focused decision if I go through those steps. And I'm better in abstract problem solving and skillfull in making things more abstract, accept, this problem is hard to make abstract for me.

@JAJT
there's a 0.12% interest at this time it'll take 4 tot 5 years to pay off my parents wont charge interest, I have a good relationship with my parents. I'm more likely to pay them off faster then a vague and distant facilitator that's governement run. I allready live with my parents (cant afford a place just yet) but I pay them fairly for what I use.

I've had by a car earlier this year (accident not my fault) but my car was a totall loss so got nothing from insurance. So my savings are in a dip I would like to have something in the bank for emergencys as well before I throw everything into the loan.

But I think I have to adapt more of your mindset "reat it like a cancer and get rid of it aggressively"

@Dark Water

1: credit doesnt affect my car insurance
2: I work 40hrs a week allready so slowlane is my current path
3: My parents can pay the creditor so that is the decision i'm trying to make.

I will have to take a look into additional incomes.
 
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JAJT

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I allready live with my parents (cant afford a place just yet) but I pay them fairly for what I use.

Here's a weird question - do you have a full time job? How can you only afford $160 to your loan if you have basically no expenses?

5 years at $160 with no interest is less than 10k. So I assume your debt is just about $10,000?

Go get a full time job. Something that pays around 40k. That will give you about $3k per month in income. Use $500 of that for necessities like food and put the other $2,500 towards your debt every month. You'll have this paid off in 4 months.
 

Koen_88

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Here's a weird question - do you have a full time job? How can you only afford $160 to your loan if you have basically no expenses?

5 years at $160 with no interest is less than 10k. So I assume your debt is just about $10,000?

Go get a full time job. Something that pays around 40k. That will give you about $3k per month in income. Use $500 of that for necessities like food and put the other $2,500 towards your debt every month. You'll have this paid off in 4 months.

I signed the conract - to a full time job -l ess then 2 months ago, so I'm just now considering my options. Pay is a bit less here I think I earn less then 2k / month and that's industry standard. And as said in an earlier post, I had a dent in my savings bc of a car payment in the beginning of the year so I want to balance that a bit for emergency funds.
 
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Do you literally mean 0.12% and not 12%? Government subsidized loan or something?

This is just me, but 0.12% is practically free money. I would pay that bad boy off on schedule and not a minute earlier.

As for borrowing from parents, I have to go with @SinisterLex on this.
 

Koen_88

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Yeah i literally mean 0,12% so if you would calculate the amount you'll multiply by 0,0012.

It is Indeed a government subsidised loan which only negatively affects any housing market opportunities. Because the mortgage broker has to know your debts.


Verstuurd vanaf mijn HUAWEI VNS-L31 met Tapatalk
 

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It is Indeed a government subsidised loan which only negatively affects any housing market opportunities.

Is there any particular reason you're in a hurry to buy a house? Is renting exorbitantly more expensive? I know 0 about the Netherlands.
 
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Unless you need the leverage and credit there's no real reason for your parents to pay it.

I also had 5 figure Debt. I saved up all my money and deleted all of it last year. I didn't care about the difference in interest rates compared to the market etc. I just wanted it gone. I have no regrets.
 

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Do you literally mean 0.12% and not 12%? Government subsidized loan or something?

This is just me, but 0.12% is practically free money. I would pay that bad boy off on schedule and not a minute earlier.

As for borrowing from parents, I have to go with @SinisterLex on this.

I would also go this way.
In addition, for what you mention of planning to quit your job and start something on your own, you say that will bring unease with your parents if they paid the debt for you, right?
If you were paying like an 8% interest I would consider it, but at 0.12%.... I would take advantage of that rate (and that is coming from someone who avoids debt as much as possible)!
 

Koen_88

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Is there any particular reason you're in a hurry to buy a house? Is renting exorbitantly more expensive? I know 0 about the Netherlands.

The housing market is getting tighter again and prices are rising at levels like before the crisis and higher. Meanwhile mortgages harder to get and lower comparing to your income as before the crisis. The renting market is high on demand low on supply so renting is indeed quite expensive actually too expensive for me.

Fastlane would be having houses or appartments for rent now ;-)
 
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G-Man

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The housing market is getting tighter again and prices are rising at levels like before the crisis and higher. Meanwhile mortgages harder to get and lower comparing to your income as before the crisis. The renting market is high on demand low on supply so renting is indeed quite expensive actually too expensive for me.

Fastlane would be having houses or appartments for rent now ;-)

Sounds like instead of asking your parents for money, you need to ask them to sleep on their couch.

If you go that route and are working a day job, make sure to get decency points by keeping your area clean and buying groceries at least a couple times a month. :)
 
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Gigi Rodgers

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Hi everyone,

Here we go, not this again you might think, but it's not a drastic situation but more a question of how can I resolve my debt with a well considered financial decision.

I have a similar question as "arfadugus" in the thead below but i didnt want to hijack it.
You tell me what to do. Need advice.

I dont know how to evaluate my situation to make a sound financial decision. (I dont think i'll be a fastlaner that soon)

I have a 5 figure college debt with (only) 0.12% interest. I have been paying it off @ 160 a month with the income of my 40hr /wk Job.

My parents offered to pay off the debt at once and that I pay them monthly instead of the lender.

And everything I pay back I can lend another time (only for things like housing or furniture when I move out)

So I have these options as far as I can think:

  • I can pay off the debt with 160 a month (maybe more after a raise) until I buy a house or move out (then the loan is a heavy cut on your mortgage here) and use the excess amount that my parents offer to buy furniture / additional expenses.
  • I can let my parents pay off the debt (so that I owe it to them) and pay them 160 a month. When I move out I can use the amount I payed them back to buy furniture or for additional expenses.

I really cant figure out how to compare these to situations and decide what's financially the wisest choice..

can anyone help?

A five figure college debt? Welcome to the oversaturated club.

I actually signed up for Mint so I could look at all of my finances across different platforms in one place, and it consolidated all my student loans into one place.
It's five figures. I looked at it yesterday, and you know what?...
I could destroy that in 1-2 years, if I got boss with it.

When you're in your 20's to early 30's that amount looks like a mountain, until you break it down.

So let's say that you owed $60K.
$60K/52 weeks = $1,153.84/week
That's $164.84/day
Which is $20.60/hr for an 8 hr. day

This is perfect timing.
I wrote a case study about a mom of 5 who made $1K (in a week) teaching small to mid-sized business owners how to build a website for their business.
She taught 3 in-person, local, workshops (Mon, Wed, Fri)
She only taught 5 people MAX per workshop.
The workshops didn't last more than 1-hour. Sometimes a little more if someone needed more 1-on-1 attention.
She charged 60 Euros per person = $66.93 USD.

[(60 Euros per person x 5 people)] x 3 locations = 900 Euros
900 Euros = $1,007.58 USD

So that just leaves, "What is a skill that you could teach 5 people, that they would pay $67 dollar for"?
In the article, as an example, I mentioned an intensive workshop - teaching people how to use Google Docs, Spreadsheets, Forms.

College students would pay for that - to up their skill sets for job hunting.
Anyone who wants to consolidate all their finances in one place would pay for that.
Small-to-mid sized business owners would pay for that to keep track of their inventory, their business finances, etc.

And then there's the upsell with the business owners where you can do 1-on-1 training for a significantly higher cost.

If teaching doesn't suit your fancy, this dog walker makes over $100K per year.

The point is, instead of getting your parents to pay off your debt - start a side hustle that you can do part-time, but make full time dividends off of.
It doesn't have to be a big and extraordinary idea.
It can be a run of the mill skill that you have, that if marketed to the right people, can become something bigger.

But "run of the mill" can pay off debt.
And to walk away without that financial anchor around your neck and some newly developed skills under your belt is something you and your parents can be deeply proud of. And where you can go from there...oh man...oh man...

Hope this helped you.
 

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Ok I have to ask again. Is that 0.12% a month or a year?

If it's per year, then I'd treat it at zero and just pay it. Having your parents pay it doesn't really save either of you any money. You are talking about $1/mo interest on a $10,000 loan.

I guess I see the disadvantage from a lenders side. So clearing the loan may help you qualify.
 
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Koen_88

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Sounds like instead of asking your parents for money, you need to ask them to sleep on their couch.

If you go that route and are working a day job, make sure to get decency points by keeping your area clean and buying groceries at least a couple times a month. :)

We've got an agreement where I (automatically) transfer a monthly amount to them for living expenses and such. Plus I'm still the compute, WiFi and printer expert in the house :hilarious:

A five figure college debt? Welcome to the oversaturated club.

I actually signed up for Mint so I could look at all of my finances across different platforms in one place, and it consolidated all my student loans into one place.
It's five figures. I looked at it yesterday, and you know what?...
I could destroy that in 1-2 years, if I got boss with it.

When you're in your 20's to early 30's that amount looks like a mountain, until you break it down.

So let's say that you owed $60K.
$60K/52 weeks = $1,153.84/week
That's $164.84/day
Which is $20.60/hr for an 8 hr. day

This is perfect timing.
I wrote a case study about a mom of 5 who made $1K (in a week) teaching small to mid-sized business owners how to build a website for their business.
She taught 3 in-person, local, workshops (Mon, Wed, Fri)
She only taught 5 people MAX per workshop.
The workshops didn't last more than 1-hour. Sometimes a little more if someone needed more 1-on-1 attention.
She charged 60 Euros per person = $66.93 USD.

[(60 Euros per person x 5 people)] x 3 locations = 900 Euros
900 Euros = $1,007.58 USD

So that just leaves, "What is a skill that you could teach 5 people, that they would pay $67 dollar for"?
In the article, as an example, I mentioned an intensive workshop - teaching people how to use Google Docs, Spreadsheets, Forms.

College students would pay for that - to up their skill sets for job hunting.
Anyone who wants to consolidate all their finances in one place would pay for that.
Small-to-mid sized business owners would pay for that to keep track of their inventory, their business finances, etc.

And then there's the upsell with the business owners where you can do 1-on-1 training for a significantly higher cost.

If teaching doesn't suit your fancy, this dog walker makes over $100K per year.

The point is, instead of getting your parents to pay off your debt - start a side hustle that you can do part-time, but make full time dividends off of.
It doesn't have to be a big and extraordinary idea.
It can be a run of the mill skill that you have, that if marketed to the right people, can become something bigger.

But "run of the mill" can pay off debt.
And to walk away without that financial anchor around your neck and some newly developed skills under your belt is something you and your parents can be deeply proud of. And where you can go from there...oh man...oh man...

Hope this helped you.

Good ideas in there thanks, maybe I could do something with how to manage teams with dropbox or google drive. Or i'm skillfulll in the Sibelius a music composing software package. I'll start looking for a side hustle, I've allready made an account on upwork too but no one has catched the bait yet.

Ok I have to ask again. Is that 0.12% a month or a year?

If it's per year, then I'd treat it at zero and just pay it. Having your parents pay it doesn't really save either of you any money. You are talking about $1/mo interest on a $10,000 loan.

I guess I see the disadvantage from a lenders side. So clearing the loan may help you qualify.

0.12% a year, indeed practically zero. Thx for your input
 

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Marry a girl that has enough cash saved up that you can pay off your student loan the first week you're married...that's what I did lol.

In all seriousness though,

$10,000 is not a lot of money, and the interest rate is laughable at best.

I'd be more worried about not damaging your relationships with your parental units than I would the loan.

Get a side hustle going and you can pay that sucker off in a few months.
 

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Good ideas in there thanks, maybe I could do something with how to manage teams with dropbox or google drive. Or i'm skillfulll in the Sibelius a music composing software package. I'll start looking for a side hustle, I've allready made an account on upwork too but no one has catched the bait yet.

I've never heard of Sibelius, but that sounds perfect.
So, this is what you can do.

1) Make 5-7 tracks
2) Post those tracks on Soundcloud
3) Start emailing or DMing every video influencer with over 20K followers and tell them about your tracks. Tell them that they can use this bundle for free on any of their YouTube videos but make sure to give you credit in the video AND in the description of their videos.
4) Come out with AT LEAST one free song a week, though honestly it should be 3-4. And you're still doing outreach. This builds exposure within a community that is CONSTANTLY looking for free, good music to use on their YouTube channel. And you NEVER KNOW, some influencers may want something custom. And for a premium price - sure! And that's your marketing plan.
5) So, while that's happening, and you're getting exposure, find the beginner to intermediate musicians who would want to learn Sibelius LOCALLY. You could put up flyers on a college campus that directs people to a landing page website to sign up.
- You could be one of the authorities in a local forum that talks about music and you make a post in the forum saying, "Hey, I'm going to be conducting a workshop on how to use this music composing software package. This is what you're going to get out of this 2-hr workshop - Benefit1, Benefit2, Benefit3. It's going to cost this much. It's going to be at this place. You bring this. I'll provide this. Here's my contact information if you have any quesion. And I'm only taking on 5 people".
Boom. Done.
- You could be the local music guy that makes one of a kind music for small to large-sized businesses for their Facebook video campaigns.

Test out one or all of the above for 90 days STRAIGHT. Set your weekly financial goal and work backwards from there.
 
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Koen_88

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I've never heard of Sibelius, but that sounds perfect.
So, this is what you can do.

1) Make 5-7 tracks
2) Post those tracks on Soundcloud
3) Start emailing or DMing every video influencer with over 20K followers and tell them about your tracks. Tell them that they can use this bundle for free on any of their YouTube videos but make sure to give you credit in the video AND in the description of their videos.
4) Come out with AT LEAST one free song a week, though honestly it should be 3-4. And you're still doing outreach. This builds exposure within a community that is CONSTANTLY looking for free, good music to use on their YouTube channel. And you NEVER KNOW, some influencers may want something custom. And for a premium price - sure! And that's your marketing plan.
5) So, while that's happening, and you're getting exposure, find the beginner to intermediate musicians who would want to learn Sibelius LOCALLY. You could put up flyers on a college campus that directs people to a landing page website to sign up.
- You could be one of the authorities in a local forum that talks about music and you make a post in the forum saying, "Hey, I'm going to be conducting a workshop on how to use this music composing software package. This is what you're going to get out of this 2-hr workshop - Benefit1, Benefit2, Benefit3. It's going to cost this much. It's going to be at this place. You bring this. I'll provide this. Here's my contact information if you have any quesion. And I'm only taking on 5 people".
Boom. Done.
- You could be the local music guy that makes one of a kind music for small to large-sized businesses for their Facebook video campaigns.

Test out one or all of the above for 90 days STRAIGHT. Set your weekly financial goal and work backwards from there.

Damn now that is some advice here! you are making me think in opportunities.

I'm not that much of a good composer though, I'm skillfull in arranging the music (So i hear music and write it down and make it into decent scores) for coverbands. And alo sort of marching bands but that would be more of a seasonal niche market, and it isnt the right season.

I have a guitar pro friend (not the game, but he's a professional guitarist / producer) maybe he can chime in on that bc I dont have any idea on copyright or anything.
 

Koen_88

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But to answer my original question myself, you all converged my thinking and I have a clear picture of what to do.

1. I won't lend the money from my parents: they'll hold me accountable for my career and or life choices, and as sinisterlex said its better to stand on my own.
2. I have the advantage of a low (or laughable) interest rate: I'll use that to stop worrying
3. I will pay off more of the loan with my own salary but I will keep building on a stable backup funds for when I move out.
4. I'll try to get a side business going and all of the money from that will go into that debt.

When the opportunity of a house or (affordable) appartment arrises I'll have to re-asses but if I have a side business taking care of a part of my debt and the backup funds grows I have a better chance of getting a good agreement.

Thank you for guiding my thoughts to this point!
 

RBefort

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There is literally zilch incentive to pay off that student loan early. the only way I'd pay it off early is if you stuck all of the cash you ever made under your mattress and made 0% earnings. Me pissing in a toilet could earn more than .12%. I'm at 2-6.8% so .12% is nothing (unless you are on 100k, but even then, you surely could make more doing something else). Hell, the student loan system could even blow up somehow and you get away with 0 debts. The only real downside I can think of is you having a large outstanding loan...I didn't read thru to see what your balance is, but if it is somewhat smallish 5 figs and didn't have an effect getting necessities you deem to have (house at a great interest, vehicles, etc), then I'd care less. It'd be annoying as hell to have a lingering debt...but it really only hurts you having a large outstanding loan and the thought of having it out forever.
 
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RBefort

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Student loans are some of the worst debts to have. A house you can sell it off and have equity or get rid of most of the debt....a car you will be f**ked, but you can sell off most of it. Credit card debt, you most of the time have something you want in return (clothes you don't need, a nice PS4, etc). A student loan you have....zilch? A worthless degree when you can get the job you want without it? Just nooooooo way out...and it massively depresses me when I pay my bill and look at the balance.
 

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Marry a girl that has enough cash saved up that you can pay off your student loan the first week you're married...that's what I did lol.

In all seriousness though,

$10,000 is not a lot of money, and the interest rate is laughable at best.

I'd be more worried about not damaging your relationships with your parental units than I would the loan.

Get a side hustle going and you can pay that sucker off in a few months.

I second this. Let your parents keep the money and just pay it off slowly.
 

Gigi Rodgers

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Damn now that is some advice here! you are making me think in opportunities.

I'm not that much of a good composer though, I'm skillfull in arranging the music (So i hear music and write it down and make it into decent scores) for coverbands. And alo sort of marching bands but that would be more of a seasonal niche market, and it isnt the right season.

I have a guitar pro friend (not the game, but he's a professional guitarist / producer) maybe he can chime in on that bc I dont have any idea on copyright or anything.

Yes! Pull those resources!
Who do you know that could give you information about X, Y, and Z. Once you get it - execute on it immediately before the buzz wears off. LOL!

As far as copyrighting for YouTube - where you are giving it away for free - just copy these guys. And they make sure to tell people:
Link to us in the description box and in the video credits (if they have any). If they don't, that's a violation and they might be able to force them to take it down.
These YouTubers and Instagrammers will expose your music across their massive fanbase. And that's just SMART marketing and exposure.

If you're not a good composer - link up with someone who is up and coming, they're dependable, you work together as a team, and do it.
And again, you can offer premium prices for people who want a specific song for their channel, video, or whatever.

OR

If you are a master at Google Drive e.g., teaching Spreadsheets, Docs, Slides, and Forms - people will pay for that as well.

For all of the above you really just need to explain the benefits of what they will get out of coming to you.
For the music: A variety of no copyright music that you can use across your social media channels to promote your brand, business, product.
For Google Drive: Impress your CFO and consolidate all of your business financials in one place so everyone has a clear idea of what you can and can't do moving forward in your business.

Hope that helps and again, good luck!
Now go DO!
 
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