My fiance and I are in our early 30's and both have substantial student loan debts. I'm at $62,000 and she's at about $160,000. I have strong earning potential and am on track to pay my debt off in 5 years. She is in the midst of a career change to graphic design, so her earning potential is somewhat unclear (I strongly encouraged her to do this despite the shift in financial standing because she is passionate about it and her previous job made her depressed). She assures me that her debt will remain her responsibility, but I know that I'm going to be paying for it whether directly or indirectly.
We had discussed all of this before I even proposed, but I periodically go through intense anxious breakdowns because of the incredible burden it feels that I'm walking into. I'm seeking some input on how to approach our massive debt and how it impacts decisions about marriage and filing taxes.
Should we file separately after getting married so she can stay on IBR, pay the minimum, and have her loans in 20 or so years?
Is there any financial reason to wait to get married?
Should she consolidate all her loans (just hers, not mine) to get a lower interest rate and start paying more aggressively?
It's hard to not see her immense debt as a red flag and potential (likely?) cause for real financial struggle (and subsequent problems). At the very least, it changes the plan and feeling for other major life things like buying a house or having children. Neither of those things seem reasonable for a long time, if ever.
I am hoping she and I can come up with some plan that makes me feel more confident about the financial stability of our future marriage. We both plan to speak with a financial advisor in the near future, but any insight or advice from this subreddit would be much appreciated.
Submitted November 26, 2018 at 08:44AM by itsme2099 https://ift.tt/2R9Z0Zn
