Looks like I’m presenting the minority view. I’m OK with that. I have an opinion.
IMO a simple refi, 2nd or HELOC is still doable depending on a whole bunch of factors that none of us are privy too. Nor should we. A lender will have access to tax returns, credit reports, bank account statements, insurance policies, etc.
Yes, we can all die or become disabled tomorrow. The real estate and stock markets could collapse. But if the family would meet with a loan officer/underwriter and if their ENITRE financial picture would allow them, then a small increase in the loan amount on their home is NO BIG DEAL for a 62-year old. A $100,000+/- cash out refi could get done in 30-60 days, at least here in CA.
It’s really up to the parents and the girls. Personally, I’d like them to go where they want to go.
@lookingforward I joined CC because I have a junior. I guarantee you we’re doing fantastic! Thank you
And personally I wouldn’t listen to hyperbole. Crisis management? Financial disaster? Eyes wide open? No more dreaming? Wow. I just don’t see it.
We’ve presented our opinions and let the OP and her parents decide. Please, insulting or demeaning the opinions of others is not necessary. I just have a different perspective on life and differing opinion on the subject at hand. And I wouldn’t listen to your advice or mine for that matter.
The girls and her parents should talk to a loan, financial or tax advisor/accountant now. Someone who can decipher the complete financial picture of the family.
“The thing is my dad doesn’t think the loan is a bad idea. And I know he’s not financially stupid. So I’m thinking he is not telling me somethings as well…but I really need him home from his business trip to answer questions about net income and how much he can REALLY spare.”
I think you missed the post where the OP said that her dad had told her that they now owe more on their house than they paid for it, due to interest on their loan. Possible they got an adjustable rate mortgage with negative amortization the first few years.
It doesn’t look like they have $100K in equity the home to draw on. OP says it is a 30 year mortgage, house bought about 6 years ago… that’s not much time to build up much in the way of equity.
The OP also said the mortgage owed was greater than the $750,000 cost of the house. Which I think must actually not be possible in post GFC times. The thing for me is a financially savvy family would have a college plan, I think there is a college plan, it just hasn't been made clear to the OP. At this point, the actual facts don't seem to really matter as this has now become an exercise in the abstract. Give it one week and this will all be clear.
@sushiritto: Obviously, your money is your money and their money is their money and both of you may choose however you want to spend it (or borrow), but for someone doing engineering mainly for the quantitative and technical background and who plans to get a business degree and work in business anyway, taking out loans and maxing out all types of borrowing for a slightly better undergrad degree (in the eyes of her future employers) makes no sense when the prestige of the business masters will matter and the opportunities presented by the business programs will differ and they almost certainly will be at full cost or close to it.
That’s why I advocate saving dry powder for the business masters program and borrowing lots for undergrad doesn’t make sense.
@Sushiritto, OP’s parents already told her what they can REALLY spare. They don’t need an accountant or well meaning internet strangers to push them for more. If you, personally, aren’t willing to underwrite the $200k loan + interest that OP would need to take to go OOS, you should really quit derailing the thread by suggesting that it’s a perfectly reasonable financial move. It isn’t.
brb taking out a 200k loan for a bunch of ice cream
I mean, total hyperbole, but I’ve never understood that argument. Happiness is, barring depression or other barriers, largely a choice. “Bloom where you’re planted.” Go to an affordable school and decide to be happy there; it’s really that simple (I’m doing that).
@austinmshauri you think I’m derailing the thread, but I don’t. Again I’m allowed to have an opinion. So, please just move on and do not respond to my posts if they upset you. Really, just let me have my opinion.
Over 34 pages, there’s been a lot of info, some of it conflicting. We don’t know if the mortgage is a “neg am”, maybe the OP or someone is looking at what is called in CA, the Regualtion Z - “Truth In Lending” where the interest owed is added to the original loan amount, so the number looks abnormally big with 30 years of interest added to it.
The OP’s dad has said the lending idea is interesting and he’s not stupid, so let the OP and her dad talk to a loan/financial/tax professional and after seeing the whole financial enchilada, they can make a more informed decision.
@PurpleTitan
I understand my opinion here regarding the OP is a minority view. What I don’t understand, in an online forum of complete strangers, some posters blowing their horn about their vast experience, and my lack thereof (and I should listen to you folks more in regards to my kids college tuition situation, which is simply ridiculous, coming from complete strangers), is why my opinion has to be suppressed.
Or I’m derailing the thread, because I’m advocating debt. Hey I get it. Debt is very bad. A very big generalization. And we’re all making a lot of assumptions based upon very limited information. Some think the info given is enough to make decisions. I don’t.
The kids and a least the mom, IIRC, want the kids to go to Cal. If their financial picture is in dire straits, then of course I wouldn’t advocate more debt. But I don’t think I know or anyone else knows THE COMPLETE PICTURE and that would include pay stubs, tax returns, bank account statements, home appraisal, other personal and real property, credit report, amount of life insurance policy, etc. Even the OP has said she may not have the entire picture. And I don’t doubt that, because she’s young and parents don’t always disclose a family’s financial situation to their children.
My apologies if I’m upsetting some folks with an opinion that’s outside the “mainstream” of thought here. But I’ll walk away for now and let everyone tell the OP to go to UH.
Again I’d like to say that I appreciate everyone for their time to give me the best advice possible. However, I did not make this post asking about whether or not my major is good for my career path or if I can handle the work that comes with getting into a competitive major. If i were worried about that, I would’ve made a thread in another category and not the “FA and Scholarship” category. Thank you for the concern about getting into Industrial Engineering at UW, but I am fairly capable of managing that if I do go (yes, yes, without crushing debt, which is a bad idea). I was not directly admitted because of the lack of advanced math on my transcript, but I was in fact admitted with a $4,500 merit scholarship, more than most OOS students receive (this scholarship ranged from $3k to $5.5k, putting me on the high end). And my bio teacher majored in engineering btw (she is only teaching bio to get grants for her grad degree), and my math teacher has a PHD in engineering as well.
I am open to all suggestions about the financial situation, what is a good idea, bad idea, etc, but being questioned about my major choice and my ability to be a competitive student just because the advanced physics/math prep ideal for STEM majors were not available to me, frankly, is insulting. I realize most of the parents on this thread taking the time to help me (thank you again) has decades of real life experience on my 17 year old life, but my stats were not a fluke and neither were my sister’s. I know what I am capable of doing academically, and I am aware that knowledge wise, I will be behind some classmates, but just I am not going to listen to someone’s assumptions that I have no idea what to expect in STEM college classes just because there is no AP calc on my high school transcript.
This is not me saying I 100% refuse to go to UH for engineering, nor me being an over defensive/ over confident teenager, but please stop questioning my ability to keep up with future classmates. My work ethic, study habits, and raw intelligence are not going to disappear in college, I assure you. I appreciate the concern, really, I never expected so much support and such from strangers when I first posted, but this is just me letting you know that, the argument of it being risky I will struggle in STEM classes is not what I asked about, nor what I am concerned about.
Oh and I’ll repeat that the $15K each per year, (30k total) out of salary was MY CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATE. How conservative it is, I can’t be sure. Which is why I REALLY need to talk to my dad abut what is ACTUALLY financially feasible without debt and with minor lifestyle changes when my sister and I are college. (I know gas and utility costs will be cut, because my sister and I take long -like, really long- showers, stay up late at night with lights on, and are driven around a lot). And mom used to be an accountant (that’s where the slush fund came from) before she retired early and moved here when she married my dad, so, she also has an idea of how money and stuff works. It is ME who does not know a single thing about finances, and not my parents.
Oh, and I’ve already accepted Cal is not possible (sigh), because my sister has to go to college to (haha, being a twin in this case is inconvenient). But I’ll be going to the reception this Sunday, with my friend (from Punahou, the top private prep school- I go to public school), who is probably going to Princeton, because we are teenagers who like free food at fancy hotels. I won’t get enticed by Cal though, I promise
Your “stats” say nothing at all about how well you will do in college. A lot of high stat students flounder when they find themselves in more competitive academic environments at college- especially those who sailed through high school without much effort. You’ve got a great score on the ACT, but that only tests math skills through algebra II - and it tests scientific reasoning but not actual scientific knowledge. So your ACT scores tell college basically that you and your sister were particularly good at mastering everything needed to pass 11th grade.
The other “stats” are your AP scores & GPA – which you yourself have acknowledged is light on math and science due to limited opportunities at your school.
Your teachers may have faith in you and you may faith in yourself, but from your post #175 It appears that the ad coms for Tufts, USC, & Johns Hopkins were not so impressed. And you acknowledge that your lack of AP calc is probably the reason that UW would not directly admit you into an engineering program.
No one here is saying that you can’t do the work, but it’s already been established that your father can’t pay for the schools that have admitted you without taking on a significant amount of debt. I made a simple suggestion that if finances force you to enroll at UH, then you could use that time well to focus on math & science courses that you couldn’t get at your high school. That would enable you to pick up courses like calculus that your high school didn’t offer, and at least in theory give you a chance to also get A’s in courses that would clearly be transferable to other universities. If you are going to be at UH anyway… why possible reason would there be for not taking that approach? A’s in those courses would both provide the advanced math & science foundation your high school fell short of providing, and also enhance your chances of transferring into a stronger program. For example, Cal Poly is a WUE school that takes transfers
Hubris isn’t going to help you, but it certainly can hurt you. I think it already has, given the predicament you are in.
And if parents with direct knowledge/experience are telling you that it is next-to-impossible to get into some majors at UW unless you are a direct admit… pay attention. You at least need a good “Plan B”-- what will you major in if you can’t get into the ones you are hoping for?
Ask your mother if she thinks she and your dad can live off your dad’s current salary for four years - and use the pension from your dad’s military service to pay for college using the monthly system.
Based on your results, it’s clear you can 'keep up’in stem. The issue is that, if you were to go to UW, you would be facing students who have already taken the course and you not only would have to keep up, but to be better than most of them. It’s already not a good investment if you have the money, but borrowing for that doesn’t make sense. It’s not wise when you’ve got direct admit at UR. In my opinion, UW is not an option for someone who had to borrow.
Okay, I will ask them about where the retirement pension is going, the monthly system would be better for us anyway probably.
I believe UR allows the switching of majors easily, and something about “clusters”, which encourage multiple focus areas of study. Also, yes, UH for engineering is still an option I’m considering
It might be late, but New Mexico State has IE, is WUE, and has a diverse campus. While my sample point of having taken a couple IE classes from there years and years ago maybe isn’t worth much, those classes have been.
@calmom - I think it’s a bit harsh to say schools that didn’t admit were “not so impressed.” In the current environment, that’s not a given. Only so many seats to offer. Apart from that, carry on.
