The Frugal Shrink

 Welcome to The Frugal Shrink!!  I am a 30-year-old licensed psychologist living in a low cost of living area in the Midwest.   This means low expenses but also low salary compared to other parts of the country.  It still seems like a lot of money to me!  I work as an independent contractor at several different jobs and love the variety.

I live in a 1200 sq ft home that I purchased in 2010- 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, so plenty of toilets to clean!  I drive a 2004 Chevy Cavalier that I own free and clear and don’t intend to upgrade anytime soon, although people keep asking me when I am going to buy a “doctor” car.  I have high hopes that this car will last for at least another year and would really like to pay cash for my next car.

I have a bachelor’s degree (2004), a master’s degree (2006), and a doctorate in clinical psychology (2008), so I spent many years in school and a crap-ton of money to get through it all.  I graduated with my doctorate (Psy.D., not Ph.D.) and left with about $146,000 in student loan debt.  Looking at that number right now just makes me want to vomit.  I was so YOUNG (not quite 22) when I decided that was a good financial decision.  I thought it would “only” total around $100K when I graduated but tuition raises + compound interest bit me hard.  I didn’t know at the time that you can attend some doctoral programs tuition-free AND get a stipend. Oh well…  $8,000 of the $146K total came from my undergraduate schooling, so the bulk was from grad school. 

I went through an accelerated program, so I finished my doctorate when I was barely 26.  Believe me, it was accelerated!  Looking back, I am so glad that I did it that way, but it seems impossible to have completed so much schoolwork, practica, thesis and dissertation, and a one-year internship in such a short amount of time.  It was a little crazy, but I think a person can easily handle crazy schedules in their early twenties.

After graduation, I completed a one-year residency and took a very ugly licensure test called the EPPP.  By the grace of God I passed the EPPP the first time, took my state juris prudence exam, and became a licensed psychologist. 

I then completed a two-year contract with the National Health Service Corps, a program that will help psychologists, physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists, and many others pay back their loans if they commit to work with underserved populations for the minimum length of time.  I received $50,000 tax-free from them to put toward my student loans.  This was a HUGE, HUGE help and I applied it to my highest interest loans. 

Current Debt Stats as of December 2012- 

Credit card debt:  $0

Car loan debt:  $0

Student loan debt:  $79,000.  Approximately half is at 1.8% interest and the other half is at 2.47% interest.  Yes, you read those percentage rates correctly.  I am thankful to have crazy low interest rates.

Mortgage:  $105,000 (originally $109,000- owned since June 2010) at 5% interest. This was the lowest mortgage rate available at the time.

I haven't made a lot of progress in debt repayment this year because I have been focused on getting my jobs up off the ground.  I'm hopeful that 2013 will be more financially productive!