Student Loans and Top Surgery

[BMXJake]

I know this has come up in the forum before and I read some of them- but no one commented if they actually did it.

So I want to know- who used excess student loans for (top) surgery and how did it work out for you so far?

[Jigsaw]

I have put my extra student loan money in savings along with extra pay, so I can't say my surgery was paid for by just that, but I also can't say it wasn't since it all went into the same account.  Kinda a stupid answer I know, but I just put money into the account, I don't keep track of every penny that goes in.  I was lucky enough to get vacation pay while working another job that paid decently, so the extra paychecks were put into savings to help build it up.

Even now I put extra in savings since it is not very much. I normally take a few months off in the fall, and that money helps make the payments back until I restart classes since I don't budget my student loans in my month bills while I am taking classes.

I have no idea if people have done it before, but odds are some folks have.

[lexical]

Hmm, can't say I've used student loans for top surgery money. I've tried to minimize those as much as possible considering half of them start accruing interest immediately (on the other half the government pays the interest until I graduate). I've got about $4.5k in savings that I contribute to from my paychecks. Eventually my surgery money will come from that account.

I would just keep interest rates in mind if you're thinking of using student loan money. Sure, student loans have lower interest rates than loans in general but if at all possible I think it'd be better to wait til you have the actual funds. Either way, I'd say start saving whatever you can afford to no matter how little it is.

[BMXJake]

Hmm, can't say I've used student loans for top surgery money. I've tried to minimize those as much as possible considering half of them start accruing interest immediately (on the other half the government pays the interest until I graduate). I've got about $4.5k in savings that I contribute to from my paychecks. Eventually my surgery money will come from that account.

I would just keep interest rates in mind if you're thinking of using student loan money. Sure, student loans have lower interest rates than loans in general but if at all possible I think it'd be better to wait til you have the actual funds. Either way, I'd say start saving whatever you can afford to no matter how little it is.

I'm definitely keeping interest in mind; the loans are federal and 80% of the money I'll have from loans will be subsidized so I'll have a good year and a half of it being deferred and then on the other 20% it collects interest but I'm not going to defer payment (on interest, which is like not even $12 a month if it's at 6.8%). Hopefully Congress will reinstate the 3.4% apr and it won't go up to 6.8%.

I don't have any debt, loans or anything right now; I've avoided debt like the plague that it is. Top surgery is the only thing I'd be willing to take a (low interest) loan out for, next to school (which is currently covered by scholarships)- and as weird as this sounds, it's because I feel that top surgery is more of an asset as it is something that will only continue to gain (non-financial) value/equity for me once I get it.

I'm on a very tight budget to begin with and utilizing the loans to save for surgery is pretty much the only option I have if I want to have surgery before I graduate. My goal is then because the more I think about it and analyze it, the better it is for me to have surgery the summer before I graduate (I'll be graduating in the winter). After that, with how sketchy the job market and economy is I'd be lucky to get it within 3-5 years unless I landed an awesome job- and even then I have to worry about things like medical leave (where as a college kid in the summer, I can take way more time off to recover and live off of practically nothing like I am now).  I really don't like the idea of using a loan/money I don't currently have and would much prefer to pay things off in cash, but I know the way I am about finances and am the kind of person who can honestly say I'll pay the loans off as soon as I can- rather than use the money from a new job to buy a new car, new furniture or live in a nicer place. Sorry for this turning into a spiel about my financial ethics, haha.