How does a Canadian pay for law school in the US?

[Geo_Storm]

My local Royal Bank branch just gave me a 50,000 CAD line of credit at prime plus 2. If you secure that line of credit you can get a better rate. I figure if you just pay the interest on that while at school and pay off the balance after finishing. That's one year accounted for.

That said, my parents are Chinese and they can foot the bill plus debts. You better believe that you can pay off your debts after graduation.
If you come out with say 100,000K in debts but make say 90,000K/ year won't take much to pay off yoru debts.

[FossilJ]

Sadly, it will.

100K in loans, even at a modest rate, builds interest like a mofo.

90K adjusted for taxes is going to amount to something between 60K and 70K.  Let's say it's 65K, for argument's sake.

Living costs, depending on where you live, come out to around 20K a year.  Some places less, some places more.  We'll go with 20K a year.  Actually, let's say you need a decent car for your job and it comes to 25K a year.  That's VERY modest.

Now you're looking at 40K that you're able to spend per year on other things.  Even if your loan accrues slowly, you're looking at around 10K in interest per year.

In this hypothetical, it takes you at LEAST three years to pay off your loans, and you're living like a pauper.  Now, for most foreign students, the tuition (plus living expenses) comes close to 150K.  Imagine all of THAT in loans.  Trying to pay it off at 90K/year.

Yeah, it's tough.

That said, I'm still doing it.  Whoop!

[Geo_Storm]

Going into debt is what smart investors do.

[FossilJ]

Brilliant!   

I'm so using that as motivation.

[gillesthegreat]

Living costs, depending on where you live, come out to around 20K a year

let's say you need a decent car for your job and it comes to 25K a year.

If you're paying 20K a year for rent, you're in a big city and you don't need a car.

Even if your loan accrues slowly, you're looking at around 10K in interest per year.

Even if you borrow at prime +2, you don't reach 10%, so your 10K is excessive.


The substance of your post, despite the bad numbers, remains correct, though.

[FossilJ]

Living costs, depending on where you live, come out to around 20K a year

let's say you need a decent car for your job and it comes to 25K a year.

If you're paying 20K a year for rent, you're in a big city and you don't need a car.

Even if your loan accrues slowly, you're looking at around 10K in interest per year.

Even if you borrow at prime +2, you don't reach 10%, so your 10K is excessive.


The substance of your post, despite the bad numbers, remains correct, though.

I was exaggerating for effect.  The truth is that, most of the time, there are unforeseen circumstances for which you did not plan. 

But yes, the point was quite clearly that it sounds a lot easier than it is.

[gillesthegreat]

unforeseen circumstances for which you did not plan

I just hate those. I much prefer the unforseen for which I did plan ...

[FossilJ]

Strangely enough, that's what I was doing in my hypothetical...

[Elemental]

I assumed he was caluculating 20K living expenses, as expenses that also cover the sustinance of life (i.e, food, clothing, etc...), hence the term 'living' expenses .  Correct me if im wrong.

[gillesthegreat]

In Philadelphia, one can find a 2 bedroom apt. for 700. I can however imagine someone spending 20K in a year, if that covers monthly excursions to Atlantic City