However, I am not prepared to do this for the next 5 years in order to fly RHS next to chris-squires (for example) who took out a loan, qualified earlier and got his captaincy while I was saving my coppers!
But if you can't get the loan, then you'll have to. So hey ho.
The morgage comparison is irrelevant, as you then have an asset which can be resold to pay off the loan should you default. With a career loan which you are given but don't get the career at the end of it, there's nothing for the lender to get back - hence much higher risk - hence more difficult to get.
I'm 32, I'm looking at going commercial after doing the PPL 2 years ago - but there's no rush. I'll work and do it modular, and in another 3/4 years time, I'll have made more contacts in the industry, know more about flying, have more hours under my belt, and might be an even more mature personality and team player to have in the RHS of something which flies. Even if I get to fATPL and get a RHS job in 5 years time, I've still got another 20 odd years left career wise. That's a long time.
A mad desire to rush rush rush into the training doesn't necessarily mean you'll be any better placed to get that first job than you would be in 5 years time (after you've got involved in the flying community and know *exactly* who to speak to).
Like quite a few professions now, it's WHO you know, not WHAT you know which can make the difference, and fresh out of an integrated course at a young age, you're going to know nobody.
Just a thought...