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Wiggy, first of all thanks for a great thread. I can't express how much of a pain it can be to understand school loans. As a recent grad, I'm wondering if you could point me in the right direction: My parents have an AES loan in their name and I have two SallieMae loans co-signed with my parents. I also have some Stafford and federal loans mixed in there. I have to pay back all of it, of course. I believe consolidation is the best option as soon as my grace period runs out. All told I'm about $45k in the hole and currently have a job paying $64k gross. What's the best route to take in this situation? Also, from what I'm hearing student loan rates are set to drop tomorrow (as they always change July 1st), what does that mean for me? arkiteKt fucked around with this message at 14:57 on Jun 30, 2008 |
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Jun 30, 2008 14:55
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I am envious of all the fairly debt-free people here.  Enrolling as a junior this fall at UCLA (probably a treacherously expensive choice), I have two loans from Chase totaling just over 30000$--20000$ for this year, which very well might not cover all costs (UCLA might cost around 25000$/year), and the remainder on medical fees from last year. My financial aid advisor at my community college told me I do not qualify for any federal aid, and I have not had any luck contacting the UCLA financial aid office. I am still physically quite disabled from an incident which has yet to be resolved eliminating most part-time jobs. In any case, an ideal part-time job that covered fees and to any significant extent would force me to reduce credit hours such that I would have to spend an extra year in school, so that is not really a preferable option. Might anyone have any advice for possible college-financing options?
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Jun 30, 2008 15:05
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arkiteKt posted:Also, from what I'm hearing student loan rates are set to drop tomorrow (as they always change July 1st), what does that mean for me? I would also like to ask this same question. I have ~$64,000 in outstanding government loans right now which I am making repayments on at $1,100 per month. I have not consolidated them due to being told that I would lose my guaranteed deferral for returning to school again (I haven't ruled out going back for my PhD yet). (Is that true, by the way? If I do a government consolidation do I *really* lose the ability to defer my loans during further full-time education?) 50% of the loans are at 6.970% interest, and the other half is 7.650% interest. How does one go about getting their specific loan interest rates decreased if the rate goes back down?
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Jun 30, 2008 17:10
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Dear Wiggy, here are my facts: -I need a private loan of $7500. -My parents passed away so I don't have a co-signer. I don't have brothers or sisters either, and I could never ask my grandparents for various reasons. This also makes me "independent." -My credit score is a lovely 620. The last two digits are my age. -My tuition has already been covered through Pell and New York TAP, but I need the money to help pay for the cost of rent, etc. New York is so pricey.  I also want to use it to pay off credit cards I used during a financial emergency so I can try to boost my credit score and sort of consolidate things. Is this a good idea? I want to pay off three cards, chop them up, and then pay down the last one but keep it open. Then, when I graduate school, I want to consolidate my Federal and private loans so all of my debt can be in one place.What should I do? Man, it sucks to be an orphan.
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Jun 30, 2008 20:18
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I'm starting a JD at UCLA. Are there convenient, programmable online loan calculators that can accommodate odd terms like "+1% rate reduction every year for up to three years"? I have four GradPlus loan lenders that look to have competitive terms, but I'd like to see under what payment plans/lengths one starts to the best deal compared to the others. The loan is for ~$15k for the 08-09 academic year. As an aside, should I just take 25 years to pay off this loan (making my varying timeline considerations moot)? I'm guessing no, but I don't know what realistic repayment timelines would be (10 years?). If one of you is apt at these sorts of calculations and would be generous enough to help me make sense of who's a good lender and what's a good deal, the various terms are below, but all have a 3% origination fee: #1 Bank of America: (the one I think is the best, but would like my calculations reviewed) 3% principal rate reduction after making 36 payments on-time:1% principal rate reduction after making payments 1-12, 1% principal rate reduction after making payments 13-24, 1% principal rate reduction after making payments 25-36. 0.25% interest rate reduction with ACH debit from any checking or savings account. 45 day grace period. #2 ALL Student Loan Corp 2.25% immediate interest rate reduction at repayment (includes a 1.00% interest rate reduction for on-time payments and a 1.25% interest rate reduction for automatic debit payments). Interest credit, equivalent to the applicable origination fee, at the beginning of repayment. $10,000 aggregate balance required. (Does the 2.25% from the get-go + ~157.00 credit make this one competitive) #3 CHELA (I figure this one is only attractive if I want to take forever to pay the loan off) Fees: 3% origination fee and 1% loan default fee. CHELA will forgive the last five payments on your loan after all previous payments are made on time (no more than 3 days past the scheduled due date). Additional two last payments will be forgiven for using auto-debit to make your loan payments. To qualify, you must sign up for e-correspondence and complete exit counseling at https://www.nelnet.com. If prepayment exceeds more than three times the value of regularly scheduled payment, the last five payment s will not be waived. #4 Nellie Mae For loans guaranteed on/after 02/01/08: 2.25% loan credit for making the first 12 payments as initially scheduled. To qualify, the borrower must sign up for Manage Your Loans. 0.25% interest rate reduction for auto-debit payments. punkrawk fucked around with this message at 23:19 on Jun 30, 2008 |
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Jun 30, 2008 22:04
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Hey Buddy, Hope you do not mind answering my questions, their pretty basic and im sure you have gone over them somewhere in this huge thread. I currently have $5000 in Stafford/School loans, and will still owe $12500 to the school. My parents credit is not good, and they cant help pay. I'm currently applying to the CAL http://www.hhloans.com to get a loan, but I need to find a cosigner - to hopefully cover the rest. Does that loan program look like a good idea? If that falls through, do you have any other suggestions that do not involve parents? I always see Banks and credit unions advertising student loans, which one of those do you think is the best bet? Thank you.
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Jul 1, 2008 05:25
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So, now that it's July 1st, will Stafford rates change for the coming term? EDIT: I randomly clicked on page 15 - it will, but not for me. Oh well. My question: I'm gonna start law school in the fall. Thanks to a really good credited co-signer, I can get a private loan at prime - 1. This means that it would almost assuredly be a better deal, interest rate wise, than a Grad PLUS loan, right (since even if the prime rate goes above 9.5%, it would take a while to get there, so I'd probably save money in the long run.) Am I missing out on any kick rear end benefits of having a federal loan? Do federal consolidation programs just kick the poo poo out of private ones in so many ways its not worth saving the money now? EDIT again - actually, I just remembered that my SO already took out an alternative loan (through the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority.) Given that I would probably want to consolidate my loans with hers, should I discount the federal consolidation factor since she already took out a non-federal loan? Also, if I go private, it looks like I can get a Discover loan that has a slightly worse interest rate (prime - .5 - .25 for auto deduct) but will give me a 2% graduation bonus applied to principle. Given this discover loan and the straightforward prime - 1 (it's with Chase, if that makes a difference), which should I go for? This thread rocks. 
Boxman fucked around with this message at 06:35 on Jul 1, 2008 |
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Jul 1, 2008 06:21
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Wow, thats a thread with a lot of info. I'm sorry if this is a question similar to one already asked but I didn't make it the whole way through. I'm transferring to a four year university in the fall. They estimated my tuition will be $21k and my EFC is roughly $7k and they're matching the rest, so it shows that my college will be completely taken care of. Thing is, my parents aren't going to help and I owe some money on credit cards. Not an obscene amount, but considering my major, I want to limit the number of hours I work when I transfer. Thats where my question comes in. I'm working this summer to pay off my debt, but I was thinking of taking a private loan out to help pay everything off so I can worry about my debt when I'm done with college. My parents won't cosign with me, my credit score is about 700-720. I'm not sure the best step to take to finding a loan. I looked at the website, but a lot of the loans required a cosigner and it needed to be sent to the school to verify a need for the money. Advice, anything, would be appreciated.
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Jul 1, 2008 08:14
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2 Slice Toaster, yes. Honestly it's a lot easier to just keep using the same company because then all of your information is in the same place. Even if that company is Sallie Mae. If you've been satisfied with their service so far, then keep chugging along. arkiteKt, if you can, I would highly suggest consolidating those bad boys. If you had older loans they should have the lower interest rates as of today, so take advantage. When you do a consolidation, they take a weighted average of all of your interest rates combined; there's no fixed federal consolidation rate for federal loans (yey). That would only apply to federal loans in your name, though. I would also suggest consolidating your private loans, but that can get tricky and is definitely not my area of expertise. Shop around and see what you can find for those. Catenoid, you're physically disabled and yet don't qualify for aid? That sounds...well, odd. Are you still a dependent? Anyway, disabled students *do* have alternate funds available to them in the form of scholarships and grants - you just have to hunt them down. Check out https://www.fastweb.com as a starting point and see what you can come up with. I would also suggest hitting the hell out of the financial aid office at your school, because telling you you're not eligible just sounds very weird to me. Then again, I'm not an employee there...so who knows. Sundae, that was a horrible dirty lie and I don't understand why you were told that. If you have federal loans, even consolidated federal loans, when you are at least half-time or more at a school that is eligible to participate in the federal loan progam (note - they don't have to actually participate, they just have to be eligible to), your loans are deferred. Private loans, however, may cause this to happen. I honestly don't know. But federal loans still have all the deferment/forbearance time you would have unconsolidated. Based on your interest rates, though, it sounds like you might have private loans - which would explain why you were told you'd lose the in-school deferment. The only thing to do is wait and see how your rates fluctuate. If they lower, jump on a consolidation (assuming that would be in your best interest, financially). If not, and if you can afford the payments as they are, you probably shouldn't bother because you never know. The Ginger Ninja, have you checked for additional scholarships and grants due to your situation (orphan)? It couldn't hurt to check. In terms of your credit, it is actually better to pay them down over time if you can afford to, in order to build up a credit history and thus increase your credit score. If you pay them off that is of course a good thing in terms of saving money, but do not close the card once you have done so. This will HURT your credit score. I found that out the super fun way. Hence, I would recommend paying them over time instead of paying them off immediately. That will help you out, score-wise, far more than paying them off in one go. Beyond those pieces of advice, the only thing I could really say is to contact the financial aid office for further advice - what private loans they might recommend and with whom. Unfortunately all the companies left have tightened their belts as well as their restrictions - but surely, somewhere out there, is a company that could do it. https://www.myrichuncle.com has gotten a couple of goon plugs in this thread. Maybe they could help? punkrawk, go here and see if there's a calculator for what you need: http://www.finaid.org/calculators/ Just glancing over your list, ALL Student seems to be the best choice. But I admit I am VERY partial to interest rate reductions before principle balance rebates. Interest is there forever and ever, always accruing until the loan is paid off. Reducing that generally saves more money than you expect. Syphon5, do you have credit in your own name? It sounds like you'll be hitting up private loans one way or another, and if that's the case a state-sponsored program may very well be your best bet. The loans you see being advertized are just other private loan programs - and since they're not state-sponsored they likely have a higher interest rate to hit you with. Ignore the ads and go for the program that you feel is best for you. Myself, I have no one company I personally recommend because I don't know the program well enough. I did mention https://www.myrichuncle.com earlier because a few goons have mentioned it, so they might be worth a gander. Yes, a gander. I'm Southern, ok?! Baelfael, if that is a fixed interest rate then yeah, it would be lower. If not, don't believe their lies. Privates loan DO fluctuate, and I've never seen one not end up in the double digits. Never not once. Federally guaranteed loans are better, safer, cheaper and have more deferment/forbearance time that you'll hopefully never need (which means if you ever have an emergency and can't pay on your loans for a while, your student loan servicing agent would have the ability to pause payments anywhere from 1 month to a year). Plus you can consolidate them with any other federal loans you have (Staffords), which you could never do with a private loan. I will never try to sell a private loan over a federal loan, unless the interest rate was fixed at 4% or something. Which they never are, as you might have guessed...anyway, I'm totally biased against private loans and for federal loans. So take that as you will Lackadaisical, I honestly hadn't noticed how long this thread had gotten. Wowzah! Glad I'm still helping you guys out What you're looking for is a personal loan. Education-related private loans require the school to certify the amount - which means proof of physical attendance is required. So you can't take those out while you're not in classes. I would suggest going to local credit unions, explaining your situation, and seeing what they can do for you.
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Jul 1, 2008 23:36
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Thanks a lot for the reply. I'm currently 17 and have no credit to my name that I know of. I'm going to finish that texas loan program and hope I can get that. Otherwise I'll be back trying to find a good private loan lender. Thanks for the link. According to their calculator if I borrow 13K, do defferred payments at the average rate, I get this: Capitalized Interest $6,923.90 Repayment Period Interest and Principal Payments of 240 Months $194.48 Annual Percentage Rate (APR) 10.062% Total Interest Payments $32,844.55 Total Payments $46,674.34 In the end $13,000 will turn into almost $47,000 dollars? That is insane.
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Jul 2, 2008 02:00
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Syphon5 posted:In the end $13,000 will turn into almost $47,000 dollars? That is insane. Well if you are dumb enough to defer payments until the loan grows to $20000 then make a minimum payment at 10% over 20 years...yes $13000 does become $47000. If you have no choice but to defer, make a larger payment each month during repayment. If you pay back $300 instead of $194 a month it will only take 8 years to pay back the loan and you'll save $25,000 in interest!
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Jul 2, 2008 03:29
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Wiggy Marie posted:Lackadaisical, I honestly hadn't noticed how long this thread had gotten. Wowzah! Glad I'm still helping you guys out I'm not sure I explained myself well enough. And if I did and your answer is still the same, sorry!! I am going to school. I finished my at the local JC beginning of June and I'm starting UCD in September. So I am going to be in classes and have been for a few years. My problem is that I racked up some CC debt trying to pay for the three years I've spent at the community college. I have no problem with a loan checking with UCD or my JC for proof I'm a student, I just don't want the money disbursed to the school since the school thinks that my living expenses are 100% covered. Does that make sense?
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Jul 2, 2008 07:16
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Education-related private loans are more often than not sent to the school, and the school ALWAYS certifies the amount needed. So if the school doesn't think you need any money, they won't certify anything else and you won't get the loan. Hence, a personal loan through a local bank is what you need. Realjones raises a good point that I feel the need to stress: repayment periods will reflect a huge amount of pay-back. Why? Because they're showing you everything you accrue in interest. Which is why I'm all over interest rate reductions rather than anything else, incentives-wise. If you overpay your loan, not only will you pay it off sooner but you will be saving thousands in the long run.
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Jul 2, 2008 12:50
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Baelfael posted:So, now that it's July 1st, will Stafford rates change for the coming term? EDIT: I randomly clicked on page 15 - it will, but not for me. Oh well. Do you plan on working in public interest or government work?
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Jul 2, 2008 18:15
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At the risk of repeating questions: I am starting a Masters program in Arab Studies (2 years) this fall. I will hopefully be receiving Stafford loans to cover the max of 20,500$ of the 35k tuition. For the remaining roughly 15k of loans, is it better to get a Grad PLUS loan, fixed at 8.5%, or seek out a private lender like myrichuncle that might offer lower interest rates, but whose rates are variable and could wind up going much higher? On that note, is there any way to get interest rates discounts out of Sallie Mae? I use them for my current Stafford loans remaining from undergraduate, but I only owe about 8k so hope to repay a lot of it soon. I don't intend to use them again, so are there any companies you do recommend for Grad PLUS/other loans (preferably that do interest rate discounts?) BTW thanks so much for help getting my loans deferred while I was in Egypt. I followed your links, got the signatures, and it worked. Really saved my butt!
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Jul 2, 2008 18:43
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I have a rather unique question(except I didn't read the thread) My Sister is getting a loan for a condo. Her credit is not so good, so my Mother is going to be the non-residential cosigner for this loan. My mother wants to know if my sister's condo will count as her(my mother's) asset when I file my FAFSA. So, will it?
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Jul 3, 2008 00:17
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ScottMaximus posted:My Sister is getting a loan for a condo. Her credit is not so good, so my Mother is going to be the non-residential cosigner for this loan. My mother wants to know if my sister's condo will count as her(my mother's) asset when I file my FAFSA.
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Jul 3, 2008 01:00
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I'm entering my junior year in college and and, although I was able to get my first two years paid in full, my mom quit her job recently and my parents are getting divorced within a couple of years. This changes our financial situation, of course, so my scholarships and Stafford loans still leave me with about $40,000 of tuition to pay for the next two years. From what I understand this leaves me with nothing but a private loan to go to, but my credit rating's too new to get something that size. I've read enough horror stories about co-signing over the last three hours to be extremely anxious about taking a co-signed private loan in the first place, but right now my primary concern is: if my dad should co-sign a private loan with me, will it adversely affect his credit rating to the point where he'll have difficulty finding a new house when my parents split up? If so, are there any other options I have that'll be easier on either of us (preferably him)? He's already declined the PLUS loan. I'd also appreciate it if you could offer some experiences of your own concerning co-signed private loans. I've tried to catch up on a half-century of financial development over one afternoon and all it's given me is a migraine and several dozen anecdotes about people who are $60,000 in debt and getting worse because their lenders won't halt the interest/principal payments regardless of any misfortunes that cripple them financially.
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Jul 3, 2008 01:05
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GamingHyena posted:Do you plan on working in public interest or government work? I was aware of the potential benefits there, but no, I'm going for biglaw (such as it is in St. Louis).
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Jul 3, 2008 03:54
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loanconsolidation.ed.gov offered to consolidate my salliemae loans that total $37,000 at a locked in interest rate of 3.61 because the new interest rates set beginning July 1, 2008 . Thats is a steal, thank you for the recommendation!
stewdiny fucked around with this message at 19:14 on Jul 3, 2008 |
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Jul 3, 2008 17:21
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kaishek, I'm just copy/pasting from a previous answer because it's the same as I'd say to you: Privates loan DO fluctuate, and I've never seen one not end up in the double digits. Never not once. Federally guaranteed loans are better, safer, cheaper and have more deferment/forbearance time that you'll hopefully never need (which means if you ever have an emergency and can't pay on your loans for a while, your student loan servicing agent would have the ability to pause payments anywhere from 1 month to a year). Plus you can consolidate them with any other federal loans you have (Staffords), which you could never do with a private loan. I will never try to sell a private loan over a federal loan, unless the interest rate was fixed at 4% or something. Which they never are, as you might have guessed...anyway, I'm totally biased against private loans and for federal loans. So take that as you will As for forcing Sallie Mae into giving you discounts, I have no freakin' clue. Unfortunately I don't work with them at all so I'm not familiar with what they might have available. I would highly suggest you call them and ask about payment plans that might be available to you. If you get me a list of companies you've considered for the GradPLUS (or companies the school recommends), I'll be happy to look them over. I don't recommend unless other goons have already plugged the company because, well...I like my own company best, hehe. I'm glad you got that deferment worked out! ScottMaximus, wolffenstein gotcha. I don't handle tax information or the FAFSA at all, so I hope that helps. Oxxidation, I don't have any personal experience with private loans beyond seeing the ones we service. I honestly couldn't begin to tell you how it would affect your father's credit - that would be a good question for either one of the three credit bureaus or a mortgage company. I do know that having student loans affects a mortgage since we send out about a gazillion mortgage letters a month, but I couldn't say how. If anyone else knows how or has experience with this, please let our buddy here know!!! Also, one thing to mention: did you dad decline the PLUS loan or was declined for one? Because I would beg him to take a 2nd look. The private loan would be in his name anyway, and would end up with a higher interest rate! Plus, as of July 1st there is an In-School Deferment available to parents of students in classes. This doesn't change the interest accrual, but it does make pausing the payments on a PLUS loan about a hundred times easier. stewdiny, thank you for your info! That was through Direct, as in Uncle Sam's own lender I'm glad it worked out for you.
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Jul 3, 2008 20:22
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Wiggy Marie posted:kaishek, I'm just copy/pasting from a previous answer because it's the same as I'd say to you: Hey Wiggy, I could definitely use some help before August 1st comes up. Basically, my school wants a balance of about $2500 this August 1st for my first housing payment. Tuition is roughly $33k/year, which is subtracting the Stafford loan I have available and full Pell Grant that I got. So I'll need about $11k a semester to pay for this, just for tuition and housing. I don't have any parents to guide me into getting loans, and they're also not providing any kind of financial support, so I'm trying to do this on my own. Is there a limit to federal loans? And where do I go to apply for them? Could I just take out a federal loan to cover the $11k/semester costs along with other expenses? Or would I have to take out another private loan to pay for things like books, art supplies, etc? Any help is definitely appreciated. Thanks!
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Jul 5, 2008 17:26
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Ummm... I just found out that I have not met SAP standards to receive federal aid because I dropped and swapped too often over my two years in college and I'm not sure what to do. I'm going to appeal, though I doubt I'll win, and whenever I have to break the news to my rents I will probably be on my own to pay for school. I go to Big State U (In-state), and I'd like to stay but I'm not sure how I'll be able to get a loan or make the money or... I think I'll have to come clean by the beginning of the week and frankly I am every sort of terrified that you can be.
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Jul 5, 2008 18:15
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My wife and I are going to be going to school in Springfield MO at MSU. We were unable to get a university apartment, so we want to rent off-campus. We want to pay for this with a loan, but (I assume) we need a private loan that's disbursed to us. Is this correct? Also, who's the best lender so we can get a low interest rate? We were going to go with Astrive (her brother uses that) but they havn't been accepting applications for awhile.
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Jul 6, 2008 21:32
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Akaikami, unless I'm misunderstanding you've already gone the federal loan route. Stafford loans *are* the federal loans, which are based off of the FAFSA it sounds like you've already submitted. After that point it's into private loan territory. I suggest visiting https://www.simpletuition.com to shop different companies. https://www.myrichuncle.com has been recommended by a goon or two as well, if you want to check them out. Fisticuffs, if your parents won't help, it's on to private loan searching. And hitting up https://www.fastweb.com to see if anything at all is available in scholarships/grants. Nerve, pretty much the same as above, but with the added stipulation that to get an education-related private loan you have to have it certified through the school. If they won't certify the loan, the lender can't send it, so you might be hitting up personal loans.
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Jul 7, 2008 02:48
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Wiggy Marie posted:
Is this for the whole time or every year? Thanks for all your help. I was able to understand what the letter the school sent to me meant - obviously, they don't understand that I have a job and they want to give me a lot of money to live on. I was able to say no to all but the subsidized loans to cover tuition/books. 
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Jul 7, 2008 19:25
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Wiggy Marie posted:Akaikami, unless I'm misunderstanding you've already gone the federal loan route. Stafford loans *are* the federal loans, which are based off of the FAFSA it sounds like you've already submitted. After that point it's into private loan territory. So from what I understand here's the summary of what I'll be paying: Main Cost: $33,000 (Pell included, I think the Stafford loan might be calculated in this cost as well) Stafford is about $8,000 and a loan so I have to pay it back, The Pell Grant is about $4.5K per year. So roughly $41,000 (33K private, 8K Stafford) x 4 = $164,000...from what simpletuition told me the lowest/best is I'd be paying (JUST for the 33K/year private loan) about $700/month and the total cost of it would be about $200,000 once paid off. I'm still waiting for my admissions councelor to get back to me about financial aid, aparently it was incomplete but I got those rewards so far. Not sure if they're going to give me more financial aid. I also recently submitted my scholarship appeal so hopefully I get something from that ($3000-$15000) if they decide I'm worth it. Jesus christ this is a ton of money for an art school education.
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Jul 7, 2008 22:09
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Wiggy Marie posted:Fisticuffs, if your parents won't help, it's on to private loan searching. And hitting up https://www.fastweb.com to see if anything at all is available in scholarships/grants. First of all, thank you for helping me out. I am pretty stressed out about this and I really appreciate that you're taking the time to help me and everyone else here. I just want to clarify that I'm not sure if I'll be able to find a co-sign for a loan of any sort. This is why I'm so worried because I feel like I'm 100% out of luck right now. My dad is a maybe, but he's not at all wealthy and I think his credit is shot anyway. My family isn't particularly close, so I doubt that an aunt/uncle would be willing to step in. Does this change anything or should I still hit the links from the OP and look into those private loans you mentioned? Is there any company that is more/less willing to work with students like me?
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Jul 7, 2008 23:28
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Akaikami posted:Jesus christ this is a ton of money for an art school education. If you don't mind me asking what art school are you planning on attending? What focus/degree? Just that it does seem an awful lot for that type of degree. (I have a Bachelor of Fine Art, focus on graphic design, but heading back to school this fall for an Associates Degree in Multimedia)
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Jul 7, 2008 23:37
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Akaikami posted:So roughly $41,000 (33K private, 8K Stafford) x 4 = $164,000...from what simpletuition told me the lowest/best is I'd be paying (JUST for the 33K/year private loan) about $700/month and the total cost of it would be about $200,000 once paid off. Look, I don't know your whole situation here, but take it from someone who has a decent amount of loans that I am now paying off: I'm assuming here that you are 18ish and going to college - You DO NOT want to borrow $160,000 for an undergraduate degree. What kind of salary do you plan on making when you graduate? It better be at least $75,000+ right off the bat. Here are some repayment numbers: Monthly payment for $164,000 @ 6%, 15 year payoff: $1400 a month ($1550 if loans are 8%) Monthly payment for $164,000 @ 6%, 30 year payoff: $1000 a month ($1200 if loans are 8% and $275,000 in total interest) And these above numbers are assuming you are repaying while in school - if you defer for a couple years while in school those monthly payments are going to be a lot higher. Again, I would seriously reconsider paying this much for school. No undergraduate degree is worth $160,000.
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Jul 8, 2008 00:14
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Realjones posted:Look, I don't know your whole situation here, but take it from someone who has a decent amount of loans that I am now paying off: I'm 21 actually, I haven't really been able to save up too much for college considering other bills and stuff that I've had to pay since getting out of high school. I'm planning on going to Savannah College of Art & Design to major in Visual FX. Depending on where I get a job will depend on the salary, but usually it starts around 40-50K for 3D jobs if I can land one upon graduation. I just got home so I can check the accurate numbers on the paper, it says: -Your estimated cost of attendance for full-time attendance for one academic year: $41,601 -Federal Pell Grant $4,731 -Direct Loan Sub Stafford Loan: $3,500 Total Awards: $8,231 Remaining Balance: $33,370 Do I take out loans for the whole of the 4 years or just each year if I'm going for private loans? I might be getting more federal aid/scholarship money once everything is complete (I had a bunch of information missing like tax forms and independence form stating my independence) I got this letter as it says an "early award letter which includes budget and award information" I really have no idea how abouts to go towards this. But I know that I have a $2600 housing balance coming up this August 1st and I don't know if I'll have enough money in my bank account for it.
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Jul 8, 2008 00:54
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Akaikami posted:I'm planning on going to Savannah College of Art & Design to major in Visual FX. Depending on where I get a job will depend on the salary, but usually it starts around 40-50K for 3D jobs if I can land one upon graduation. I don't know that much about art schools, but do you honestly believe that spending over $200K for an education that is only going to start you off at $50K is worth it? And what is this "if I can land one?" You better be drat sure you can get a job at graduation - you cannot pay off $200K in student loans waiting tables. My advice to you is to go to a cheaper school. Surely there must be another school that offers the same program for less money. For most degrees it doesn't even matter where you went to school once you have that first job; I can't imagine art school would be any different. Save yourself A LOT of money and go somewhere cheaper, your future self will thank you for it. Just think about it for a minute. It might seem not like a big deal now to just sign off on however many loans you need, but when your first month's take home is $3000 and you owe $1400 that month in loans, perhaps you will wish you can gone somewhere cheaper. quote:Do I take out loans for the whole of the 4 years or just each year if I'm going for private loans? You take out private loans every year once you determine how much you still need to get through the year (after you know all your other aid).
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Jul 8, 2008 04:47
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Realjones posted:I don't know that much about art schools, but do you honestly believe that spending over $200K for an education that is only going to start you off at $50K is worth it? And what is this "if I can land one?" You better be drat sure you can get a job at graduation - you cannot pay off $200K in student loans waiting tables. I don't believe it'll be $200k I might've exaggerated the costs a bit considering how inexperienced I am with this process. I plan on getting scholarships, grants, and other kind of additional funding when I get there. Also, that's including housing which I might not even be paying for 3 years if I just move into an apartment sophomore year. In any case, it's my goal to complete this. And complete a kickass portfolio/reel for potential employers. I am not going to just be wasting my money. I am very picky where I spend my money, and I research the poo poo out of what I spend my money on. I know I'll be knee deep in debt, I never thought this would be an easy task and I'm going into it knowing full well just that.
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Jul 8, 2008 05:49
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My boyfriend just got a job in Tennessee and I am moving there from Texas. I just recently learned about how horrible out of state tuition is going to be and I don't really know what to do. I am 21 and so considered dependant even though I have been independent to the IRS for 2 years. I do not have good credit. My parents make about 100k combined so my FAFSA estimated contribution is extremely high even though my parents are in way too much debt to possibly spare me any money. My mother also says that she doesn't want to co-sign a loan for me because then her debt will technically be even higher. I need to figure out how to get a (good) loan in about a month. Tuition and fees are going to be around 8k a semester. If it is relevant, I have 6k in subsidized stafford loans out from previous years in school.
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Jul 8, 2008 06:47
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Edit: Never mind, I figured it out.
banana allergy fucked around with this message at 02:43 on Jul 12, 2008 |
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Jul 9, 2008 17:59
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OK, two questions My FASFA (which has taken forever for my school to process) has gone through and my school sent me a letter telling me my excpected family contribution is about 2500. Does that mean this is money we'll have to put up or borrow, or is it money we cannot borrow and must put up? also, I'm trying to get my grandparents to cosign for a private loan for my wife and I, so that we can get an off-campus apartment and such. However, they want to just take out a home-equity loan in their name at less than 5% because they feel like we'd have to pay too much with our student rates (up to 9.5%). They would get the money from the loan and pass it on to us, then we would owe them. While this is all well and good and I have no problems accepting the money, what does this do for us? My wife wants to build our credit with these loans, is this a bad reason to potentially overborrow? and are we better off with everything in our name? I trust my grandparents so that's not an issue. Notorious G.O.P. fucked around with this message at 18:00 on Jul 10, 2008 |
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Jul 10, 2008 17:44
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really need an answer on that plz
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Jul 12, 2008 05:34
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Nerve posted:OK, two questions Darn you and your low expected familial contribution?
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Jul 12, 2008 05:54
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Catenoid posted:Darn you and your low expected familial contribution? well we're going to a cheap school
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Jul 12, 2008 05:57
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| # ? May 11, 2024 13:24 |
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Nerve posted:OK, two questions Neither. Think of EFC as a tool to figure out who is in the greatest need of grants or other need-based awards. Someone with an EFC closer to 0 will get more in grants/subsidized loans than someone with a high EFC. A 2500 EFC is on the low end, so you might get lucky and get some need-based awards. Don't sweat it quote:also, I'm trying to get my grandparents to cosign for a private loan for my wife and I, so that we can get an off-campus apartment and such. However, they want to just take out a home-equity loan in their name at less than 5% because they feel like we'd have to pay too much with our student rates (up to 9.5%). They would get the money from the loan and pass it on to us, then we would owe them. While this is all well and good and I have no problems accepting the money, what does this do for us? My wife wants to build our credit with these loans, is this a bad reason to potentially overborrow? and are we better off with everything in our name? I trust my grandparents so that's not an issue. It cannot be repeated enough that you should try to avoid private loans if you can, and if you have to get one, try to keep the amount you borrow as low as possible. Private loans tend to have higher interest rates and do not have the benefits of federal loans (deductible interest, etc). With that said, if you really want a private loan to get an apartment, it is kind of a tough call about your grandparents. I don't know anything about home-equity loans, but if they get a fixed rate under 5%, you'd save a lot of money compared to the higher variable rates private student loans have. As for building credit, you will have federal loans, right? Those will help you build your credit when you start repaying them. If I was in your shoes, I'd let the grandparents get the loan so you save money, and see about having them cosign for a credit card in your name and use it responsibly. That'll help you build credit faster than the private loan being in your name would. (student loans don't really help you build credit until you graduate and start repaying them, so you'd get a several year head start) By the way, can your grandparents afford to make the loan payments if poo poo hits the fan and you can't pay for a while? Also, they would have to start repaying immediately, as opposed to deferring a student loan. Are they going to pay the loan while you are in school or will you have to start repaying immediately? Make sure this is worked out Carlton Banks fucked around with this message at 06:36 on Jul 12, 2008 |
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Jul 12, 2008 06:31
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