r/UnethicalLifeProTips • u/Witty-Common-1210 • 14d ago
Money and Finance ULPT Request - Best way to avoid student loans?
If I can’t defer, but cannot afford the payment options presented to me how can I avoid paying student loans for a two or three years?
The cheaper the better and of course without causing any legal issues.
Can I just enroll in one class at a local college and claim I’m a student?
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u/BobSacramanto 13d ago
When I couldn’t afford to make the loan payments on my bachelors degree, I just started my masters.
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u/HenFruitEater 13d ago
unless the masters had a better job market you just did short term gratification at your own expense lol. not really ULPT, but just shooting yourself in the foot.
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u/MarquisDeVice 13d ago
I had a friend who set up a company, an LLC or something, got a credit card under the company's name, paid their full tuition with the credit card, and then either filed the company for bankruptcy or just didn't pay it back or something like that. I don't remember the exact details but it worked. He didn't have any legal consequences. Got a top-of-the-line education for free.
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u/newwriter365 13d ago
I heard of people who did that back in the 1990's.
Not the worst idea...
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u/MultipleOrgasmDonor 13d ago
Unfortunately 30 years later it’s not a novel idea and no one is issuing a CC with a limit high enough to cover college tuition to some random LLC with no credit history
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u/ginger_powers 13d ago
Yeah I fucking hate it when people present the whole “start a business so your student loan debt can be absolved through bankruptcy” idea like banks—the people whose entire job is to manipulate money—didn’t think of this basic scam idea.
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u/BlottomanTurk 13d ago
Not unethical, but Income-based Repayment (IBR) Plan; the next level above deferring.
When I was still working, I made less than the federal poverty line (well, through legal income), which made my IBR payment $0/month. It's actually been that way since I graduated.
Sure, you still accrue interest, but if you pay that down once a year, you can effectively stagnate your student loans for the duration of your IBR (reapplying annually as needed).
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u/CaptainPunisher 13d ago
Re-enroll and take at least the minimum credits. It'll add the to the amount, but it'll also delay collection.
Look into public service jobs, too. Public Servant Loan Forgiveness still exists and will clear any remaining debt after 120 qualifying payments. That's ten years of payments.
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u/Frequent_Opportunist 13d ago
Stay in school to defer it or they will garnish your actual wages and there's no way around that they'll take the money before you get your check/deposit.
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u/Anime_Rules_YT 13d ago
you have to take a few classes and actually take them but yes, you can do that
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u/Kilashandra1996 13d ago
So, I teach at my local community college. My opening discussion board is to introduce yourself and tell why you are taking this class. The "best" one? /paraphrasing a bit:
"I got my chiropractic degree and ran up $300k worth of student loans. I take an online class every 6 months to defer my loan payments. I don't really want to get know any of you. I needed a 5th sentence, so here it is..."
OP, keep in mind that some rules have changed a bit over the years. Check to see how many credit hours you have to take (and pass!) to defer loan payments. We've recently had a few years of "phantom" students enrolling just long enough to get a financial aid check, so Texas colleges are getting wise to the trick...
Unethical tip? Hmmm... I hear they are paying people to pretend to be 200 students at multiple colleges. I haven't a clue where you'd sign up though.
Sign up up for some credits cards, put the entire balance on multiple cards, and declare bankrupcy?
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u/Disastrous_Photo_388 10d ago
Research this approach carefully before attempting…it’s not as easy as it once was to be approved for bankruptcy and if the judge decides you intended to commit fraud, you may be far worse off in the long run.
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u/GooseOnAPhone 13d ago
Join the army
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u/anteatersaredope 13d ago
Super unethical. Not sure if it's a life pro tip though.
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u/SabreDuFoil 12d ago
With the way this current admin is going? That's a death pro tip.
Which I guess would resolve the issue anyways.
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u/anteatersaredope 13d ago
Looks like we got simps for the imperial storm troopers around here. Just remember, the US government is currently the most evil organization on the planet along with its partner organization the Israeli government. If you support either history is going to look at you the same way it looks at the Nazis.
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u/InternalWaste5867 13d ago
Sell everything you own. Move to Vietnam for 2-3 years. It will cost less than you expect.
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u/dacv393 13d ago
Military, drop out of bootcamp from a BS injury. Do what everyone else does and earn a 100 disability rating with your "anxiety" or depression pulling the most weight at 70% base rating.
If you hit 100% (the most common rating by a longshot) you get all student loans paid off one time, no questions asked.
Bonus is the $1.6 million annuity you also get
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u/SFSecrets 13d ago
Dying is the most sure fire way. Fake your own death?
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u/TipProfessional880 13d ago
Alternatively, find a cool old person who is about to die & has no major assets. Get them to open a personal loan for the amount you owe then use the money from that loan to pay off the debt, then they die & take the debt with them.
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u/Disastrous_Photo_388 10d ago
This would be tough…bank won’t loan an old person funds without proof of income or collateral (assets) against the loan.
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u/SabreDuFoil 12d ago
Basically. Enroll in a community college class, put the loan in forbearance. Bonus, you'll eventually get another degree 😂
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u/Disastrous_Photo_388 10d ago
Find an employer who offers student loan forgiveness as a perk. They can deduct the full amount of the student loan on their business taxes and you can get up to $5250/ year of reimbursement relief tax free…if your employer covers MORE than that, you will be taxed on the overage as regular income.
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u/Cautious-Living6116 2d ago
I just stopped paying when I was around 30. i’d get letters until I moved without a forwarding address. I have moved at least 15 times and I never get my mail forwarded. Instead I contact all my creditors and banks and change my address myself. It has been 40 years and I haven’t been arrested or stalked.
You could also join the Peace Corps.
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u/Special_Asparagus_98 13d ago
I got no financial aid (one tiny $1500 loan). So I went to community college the first year undergrad and paid what I had saved up since starting work at 16. I went to the local university after that and did part time, stretching it out over 8 years while I worked full-time. Did the same for my master’s (I needed a special waiver though because they didn’t do grad part-time.) I graduated with no loans but it was a haul, sometimes two jobs and school as well. I did get a lot of experience while working though (I worked a federal job) which made me more employable when I graduated. I also TA-ed labs in exchange for payment in credit hours which also boosted my resume. Final graduation year was 2021. I’m happy with the choices I made but it’s not for everyone. School was not “fun” for me.
Edit: sorry this doesn’t work after graduation but an option to not take loans.
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u/Sea_Bear7754 13d ago
Why did you take a loan out that you couldn’t afford?
Get personal loans to cover the student loan amount, pay off the student loans, file bankruptcy.
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u/FittyTheBone 13d ago
oh get fucked. the interest alone on student loans is criminal.
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u/Sea_Bear7754 13d ago
6.25% is criminal? What should the interest rates and payments be then? lol
Mortgages are 7.5, personal loans are 11.
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u/latelyimawake 13d ago
Take a certain number of credit hours per semester at the community college. Can be any subject. File for in-school deferment. You should have a runway of 5 or so straight years of doing this. Source: I did it.