Kristen Pickett
Appearances
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
Middle of my freshman year, I was pulled into the financial aid office with this, either you take loans or you can't go to school anymore. So I took the loans and in my head, you know, early 2000s, it was like, oh, you're going to graduate and have this great job. And so I'm thinking, if it's like $500 a month, that won't be a big deal, right?
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
I thought that in the end it would move me forward and advance me in my, you know, in my pay it would be some kind of difference. But it wasn't.
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
I remember when I got my first job as a professor in 2008 and I had like an adult job with adult pay. Like that was the best pay I had had. I remember I went to get a car and my uncle had to co-sign because I had this huge student loan debt.
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
Did you take advantage of that pause? I did. My partner and I discussed it and we decided like it was a good thing for me to not pay them during the pause because I was able to do things I hadn't been able to do, like pay my car off and get ahead on medical bills, like things that I wouldn't have had the ability. So I took advantage of it.
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
I felt like I actually was an adult with an ability to take care of things.
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
But it just felt good to be able to be like, okay, my car payment's usually $250, and because I'm not paying student loans, I'm going to pay $500 on it. So I paid my car off much faster. And... We were able to leave the state and buy a house and do things that like... You're like living your life. Yeah, at almost 40 years old, it was a great feeling.
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
Well, it would mean a lot of things. Number one, I've gotten adjusted to not having that like three to four hundred dollars, whatever it might be, payment. That money is spent very differently now than it was in 2020 when I was paying my loans. You've gotten used to having that extra cash. Yeah. And it's also gone other places like car insurance has gone up.
The Journal.
For Millions of Student-Loan Borrowers It's Time to Pay
You know, the cost of living has gone up. Groceries are mind blowing to me, like how expensive they are. Even if you're I'm a good budgeter, I'm a good Like, a coupon? None of that matters.