In Over $200,000 Of Debt and Don't Know Where To Start

Brought to you by YRefi. Refinance your defaulted private student loans today at YRefi.com slash Ramsey. My husband just finished BSN school in May. We didn't take out any additional debt for him to go to nursing school. Once he finishes orientation in December, his estimated birth income will be about $88,000 with the opportunity to make $100,000 if he picks up an extra shift every pay period, which would net us about $70,000 after tithes and taxes. He'll get a $10,000 tie-down bonus that comes in four installments over his first year of employment. He would like to go back to school in two years for a doctorate in nurse anesthesia, which is a three-year program. It would increase his earning potential to $250,000. The cost of tuition is about $125,000, which you could get covered by going into the military or getting accepted into a rural medicine scholarship program. However, you're not allowed to work in years two and three of the program. We currently have $200,000 in student loan debt with varied interest rates. We have $4,300 in credit card debt with a 25% interest rate. We've been married for three and a half years. We're trying to start a family. We've been trying for about 11 months with one miscarriage at the seven-month mark. We have a 2007 Toyota, which has one to two years left of life in it. We're wondering what to put our money towards first between saving up for a baby, the car, needing a new 2S car, and the debt. Once we save up for a new car, save up for the baby, and pay off that credit card debt, should we start saving for him to go to school since it would increase the size of our shovel significantly to $250,000, or should we pay off our student loan debt before sending him to school? What's the $200,000 student loan debt? Whose was that? Half of it's my student loan debt and half of it is his. Okay. What do you do? Currently, I work part-time as a nanny. I make about $900 a month, just a little extra on the side. What was the degree for? I did a grad degree in art therapy, but I did it out of state. I wasn't able to get that degree transferred without having to jump through a bunch of hoops. What is that? What kind of job is in art therapy? I would be a licensed therapist. I would be a licensed therapist. Are you a licensed? Did you get the license with the $100,000 tuition? No. You can get your license in some states, but the state that I'm currently in doesn't let me get licensed right away without having to pay a couple thousand dollars for additional classes here in my state and having to do a bunch of testing and jump through a bunch of hoops. What does a person who does finally get that certification, what kind of money do they earn? I'm thinking, I can't remember. I'm just trying to decide, is it worth paying the couple of thousand for you to get your art therapy license so you can actually work in your field? Yeah. I could also work not through a license. I could work in a community center and say, I can do therapeutic art with your clients. I just can't be a licensed therapist if I could do that, which that would be determined by the company. But getting my license here in Oklahoma, it would take me five years to get there. If he goes to nurse and method school, So here's what I would do, Olivia. He's making 80, going to be making 100 because I would definitely take that shift. You guys are in debt. If I were you, I'm applying for jobs and I'm going to be a receptionist at a dental place. I'm just like, you're going to go and make it a goal to make $50,000 a year. You need to go do something, Olivia, really. Because you guys have over $200,000 in debts and have a dream of other big things, which is amazing, that's going to cost money. So we need money coming in. So he's going to be working an extra shift. Can he pick up an extra, extra shift? I mean, nursing is like an amazing field to be in because you guys are dual income, no kids. You're in the dink phase. And so take advantage of it, Olivia. Start working your butts off because yes, I want all of this debt paid off before you guys get a second degree. Even though it's going to cause a shovel to be bigger, the shovel will be bigger when you guys start working extra and you work in two jobs. I'm like, you can start making the shovel bigger now. And so that's what I would focus on. Save up 10 grand for a crappy car when the Honda goes out in two years, create a sinking fund where you put $500, $600 a month for a sinking fund. And then on the side, yeah, let's be trying for kids. And I'm going to say, when you get pregnant, that's my prayer for you, pause everything. You guys save up cash when that happens. We call that stork mode. And pile up a big part of cash. You guys still working, working, working, working, working, working, working. Baby comes. All right. Everyone good. Okay. Whatever's left in the savings, we're going to throw at the debt. But my goal for you guys would be, gosh, I mean, if y'all could make, I mean, try to get this paid off. I don't know, Jade, is this crazy to say two and a half years? I don't think so because if she starts making 50, that means you're making 150. But if you live on a half, where are you guys? Yeah. You're in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Yeah. You live on 75,000. That's average income, median income. So if you live on that, and so that means you're putting the other 75 towards your debt. I get it, max taxes. I think that you guys could do this. No, I don't think you're crazy. Two and a half years. Yeah. Two and a half years. Make some crazy goals, Olivia. Crazy goals. And then in two and a half years, then in two and a half years. Does it make sense for me to get a job, like a full-time job while we're trying for babies? Yes. I'm not going to tell them I'm not going to be there. Yes. Because you don't know what the future holds and you can still work for the eight of the nine months that you're pregnant. So, you know, there's, there's a lot that can take place in nine months, money wise with you at the full earning potential. You're not currently expecting, are you? No. No. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. So I would now, if you were expecting, you would have to, you know, I would be forthcoming with an employer probably, you know, in that case, just as good courtesy. Yeah. Okay. I don't know. Whatever. It depends. Okay. All that to say, that's fair. All that to say, all that to say, you can work and try and have the baby and that's great. And then you got nine months of work. We're both moms. We've both, we've both expected it. Listen here at Ramsey. Cause I know what kind of company it is. I'm being forthcoming. That's fair. That's right. I wasn't. That's true. That is true, Jade. That is true. And you don't legally have to say, you don't have to say it. Yeah. So anyways, but you're not pregnant right now. So be applying for jobs and go work your tails off, Olivia, get this paid off and then continue to live on nothing on nothing to save up 125 and take them through the program. And if you guys are in your early thirties doing that by the time all this is said and done, it's great. It's great. You're living a great life. Why refi refinances delinquent private student loans for struggling borrowers. Learn more at Y R E F Y.com slash Ramsey.