An amusing thing nobody ever talks about is what the banks do to you if you don't pay them back. They call a lot. They ruin your credit. They go after your wages. It's more difficult to get into someone's bank account than their wages. If you don't have traditional "wages," say because you do business directly with your customers, then they have a hard time taking anything from you other than your credit rating. It's true that landlords care about credit ratings, but in my experience they care more about whether or not you've ever fucked another landlord over. If you've never been sued by a former landlord, never had an eviction, never been late on rent, landlords don't seem to care about your situation with the banks. You might not be able to live in the nicest place in town, but you'll be able to find a decent enough place. What they don't do is send armed enforcers to your house ready and willing to kill you for what you owe. If you risk a bunch of borrowed money and lose it, so what? Either pay them back, file bankruptcy, or ignore them until you have enough money to do something about it. You only have one shot at this life. When you're gone, you're gone. Prudence is for the meek. Take big risks, go for broke, don't take no for an answer, and keep on trying until you either drop dead or have everything you ever wanted out of this life. This isn't advice most people should take, but, if it resonates with you... you do what you have to do.