<prompt> Human: To get it out of the way: yes, I know co-signing means Im responsible and there is a significant chance Ill end up paying it off myself, and this is acceptable to me.The situation: I make good money and my nephew cant afford to finish college engineering at a good school and cant get more loans without a cosigner. I have been considering just paying for his education straight up, but of course Id prefer to avoid that expense if possible. Im considering instead co-signing a loan. If his career launches successfully then he can pay it off himself and thats great. If not and the loan is a major burden for him, then I can take over payment. Id also get to spread out payment over a longer period so Im not suddenly writing massive checks right now to get him through school. This way I get to hedge by delaying the decision and arrive at the best of all worlds minus some interest. So am I missing something? This seems like a great option, but the advice on this subreddit is all absolutely against co-signing anything ever.  <response>: 99 of people cosigning things cant themselves afford whatever they are cosigning. Were against cosigning because the other person promised they could afford it and youll never have to worry about it. Sounds like you have a good handle on the situation and how it impacts your finances, so do whatever you want. 