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Wiggy Marie posted:You can make any amount of payment at any time during a forb/deferment without going into repayment. They'll satisfy any outstanding interest accrued and then hit your principal. Excellent. I'm planning on trying to repay some of it once I get working again.
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Oct 10, 2009 03:56
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Safe and Secure!, no reason not to try. You're not being irresponsible either! The only problem is that by now you may not be able to get anything through FAFSA, and will be stuck in private loan territory. Call financial aid, tell them your situation and ask if you can still submit the FAFSA for aid. cnmns, excellent! I always recommend putting any amount you can towards your loans. It only helps!
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Oct 12, 2009 02:51
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My financial aid office said that they want me to submit the FAFSA and that they don't certify outside, loans but that if after submitting the FAFSA they find that I am not eligible for federal loans, they can set up loans themselves. Is it possible to find a private loan that does not go through my school or require me to fill out the FAFSA? I want to avoid filling out the FAFSA and I really don't care if it means I have to find some more expensive private loan.
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Oct 15, 2009 20:02
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Well you can always look into a personal loan of your own, but it won't be deferred and will have a way higher interest rate. You'd need to go to a local bank to see if you qualify.
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Oct 17, 2009 12:03
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Wiggy - Please check your PMs!
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Oct 17, 2009 18:25
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I have a quick question about loans being deferred while being at least a half time student or more. I was just wondering if the deferment begins once you are registered for classes or on the actual date that the semester begins. I am currently not taking classes this semester but will be next semester. My grace period will end in November, so I'm just trying to figure out how much I can expect to have to pay back before the deferment kicks in. Also, will this apply to the private student loans I've taken out? Hopefully this hasn't been obviously answered somewhere else in the thread. I looked around for a bit but didn't see anything. Thanks.
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Oct 17, 2009 19:07
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Hey man. I was wondering if you could help my cousin with his situation. He is going to art school and FAFSA is pretty much going to pay the whole thing (50,000, pell grant and subsidized Stafford loans). That 50k is all going towards tuition so he still has to pay for materials, which are very expensive btw, out of his own pocket. He has a crappy job, getting payed a bit more than minimum wage and his mother filed for bankruptcy not long ago. He can't count on his father to get a PLUS loan so that's out of the question. Basically we want to know if there is any way he can get a loan. He really needs a way of transportation and just money for other living expenses/materials. He is 22, a U.S. Citizen, full time student, doesn't know his credit score but he says it can't be good. He asked his school's financial aid department for help but they don't seem to know much more than either one of us. Which isn't much I'm afraid. Thanks. Mr Crossing fucked around with this message at 19:29 on Oct 17, 2009 |
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Oct 17, 2009 19:09
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econ, it begins the actual date that the semester does. Most likely your payments would start in December and end again in January, February at the latest - assuming you're in school in the Spring! Mr Crossing, if he's an undergraduate then beyond Stafford and PLUS loans, the only other loans he'd have available to consider are private loans. Private loans have gotten very strict with their criteria so there's no guarantee he could qualify. The school should be able to at least tell him what private loan programs they participate in.
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Oct 17, 2009 21:24
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Alright just talked to him, said he'll ask about it. Thanks man.
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Oct 17, 2009 22:27
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Okay. My situation's kind of complicated, but I will do my best. I have two big chunks of loans. Both from Fed. How about Loan A and Loan B. Loan A: undergraduate Stafford, subsidized and a few unsubsidized +/- $20,000 consolidated a looooong time ago. original loans were from 97-02 Loan B: graduate Stafford? I think? +/- $45,000 never consolidated original loans from 2005-2009. These are scheduled to come out of their glorious grace period in January 2010. Here's the complicated part. Loan A has been in a hardship deferment/forbearance and/or school deferment for years. I keep re-upping because I had not been making enough. My current deferment is up next summer. Loan B is going to be a killer. But, I got a job recently, as a teacher for a public school so I should, to the best of my knowledge, be eligible both for the income-based repayment and for the service program that will forgive my loans after 10 years. My job is as a teacher...an interim teacher...until December. It will most likely continue for the full year, but if it doesn't, I'm back to having no job, and thus no way to pay the loans come January. So, let's make this clear - if I have the means, I WANT TO PAY! GOD DO I WANT TO GET IT OVER WITH! But I don't want to pull the loans into repayment and then find out I don't have a job in January. Also, does that automatically pull Loan A out of deferment? Should I keep it in deferment? What would be the best to do as far as the income-based...I'm just so confused now, and I don't like waiting until the last minute to set this stuff up, but I don't have a choice in it. Ugh.
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Oct 18, 2009 06:30
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Okay, I'm going to be sending out in-school deferments this week to all of my loan companies, along with proof of enrollment from my school. My questions is, when I do send in these forms, should I also include a cover letter with my account numbers and such, or is the Dept. of Education form (OMB 1845-0005) satisfactory for their side?
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Oct 20, 2009 00:42
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Skywriter, what do you teach? Also, you may want to look into the teacher loan forbearance. That's available to any teachers who are waiting for their forgiveness criteria, depending on what subject you teach in. For all of your loans, I would suggest consolidation. What you should do is call Direct and tell them about your situation, ask about consolidation, and then ask about their forgiveness programs. Chances are you will be able to consolidate and still receive forgiveness. You don't lose any of the other deferment/forbearance time you have available, so it can't hurt. Mein Eyes!, I would include the cover letter etc. because it makes things much easier when processing deferments/forbearances. I also want to encourage you to call your loan companies and ask about a deferment - some of them can apply one right over the phone, taking away the need for a paper form. It could save you time and postage!
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Oct 20, 2009 02:00
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Zertuk fucked around with this message at 23:09 on Dec 1, 2018 |
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Oct 22, 2009 17:22
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Awesome! Yes, if she happens to get denied for a PLUS loan, it does make you, the student, eligible for additional Stafford funding you might not have been awarded in the first place. Since PLUS loans are federally regulated there's not a particular benefit of one company over another. In addition, most (if not all) lenders now participate in the PUT program - meaning that once the loan is disbursed to the school, the Department of Education buys it. So while it pains me to say it, you might be best going with Direct from the get-go. If you have a list of other lenders you've looked into I'd be happy to check them out, though!
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Oct 23, 2009 11:42
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Hey Wiggy, I may be starting a grad program in January that will cost over thirty grand in the first year. I’ve already set up my FAFSA and now I’m trying to figure out the best way to set up my MPN. Should I fill out the subsidized/unsubsidized MPN first and then fill out a Graduate PLUS to cover what isn’t covered by the subsidized/unsubsidized loans or should I just utilize the Graduate PLUS for all of my financial needs? Obviously it would cost me less to do the former, but I don’t know if they allow that. Also, since the program is for speech-language pathology, do you know of any special loans or grants that I may have access to? Thanks.
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Oct 24, 2009 19:38
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Hey Kinkajou! Yes, you would need to fill out both MPNs. The Stafford MPN will let you take out the full Stafford amount you've been determined eligible for, and then you may use the GradPLUS loan to cover any remaining cost. I'm not personally aware of any grants for your major, but you could try searching http://www.fastweb.com and see if anything comes up for you. Also contact the college you're enrolled with at the university and ask about department grants/scholarships you could apply for.
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Oct 27, 2009 02:46
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I'm planning on returning to school for a BoS after getting a BoA. I still have a very small amount left to pay on my initial undergrad loans, and I'd like to know what my options are for financial aid given that I already received four years of pell grants and stafford loans. I have a feeling I'm out of luck, but any info you can provide would be fantastic. I'm going back for engineering, if that has any significance.
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Oct 28, 2009 19:10
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So the gov bought some of my loans and some other assholes bought the rest. Now I have 2 sallie mae accounts and 2 different payments to make. This is a loving hassle I don't want to deal with. I want to consolidate the loans and get a better interest rate(and only one place to make a payment!), I can make the min payments just fine so I don't care about lowering those one iota. Should I just go to my bank and see what they can do for me? Or does it have to be a specific bank? Can I do it through Sallie Mae?
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Oct 28, 2009 20:04
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After dropping out of college ~6 years ago and working poo poo jobs ever since, I've decided to go back to school. Yay me. The reason I'm here is that I don't want to drop out again, and the reason I dropped out last time was because I had to choose between my job and going to school. Nobody (including my financial aid counselor) ever told me about cost of living loans. I'm guessing they're not the greatest idea of all time financially, but since I treat student loans as something like arthritis, I'm not too worried about it. What I want to do is to be able to focus on school and school only; not work. I have a modest amount of student loan debt at the moment (~$8k between Sallie Mae and Iowa Student Loan). If I want to go back to school in, say, the spring of 2010, and want to obtain cost of living loans, how would I go about doing this? Would it be possible also to get my loan money out of Sallie Mae and ISL and consolidate it into one loan?
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Oct 28, 2009 21:41
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El Kabong, there is a total aggregate amount any student is eligible for in their lifetime, for undergraduate and graduate levels. You will need to contact your financial aid office and ask how much you might have left/be eligible for. Most likely it's not much, but it's worth a try to check. Gentle Marmot, if all of your loans are federal (Staffords and GradPLUS loans) you will need to consolidate them with Direct (the government). You can't consolidate federal student loans with a non-federal student loan lender. And the only one consistently consolidating right now is Direct. You could try and give Sallie Mae a call and see if they're offering anything, but as far as I know no one but Direct is right now. scuz, good luck on your second go  Cost of living loans aren't the worst thing ever, if it's any consolation. When you go back to school what you'll need to do is first submit your FAFSA and find out what you might be able to get in regular student loans. Once you know, you can use a private loan to cover the remaining expenses. There *are* credit based and will have higher interest rates than federal loans. If you know you don't have good credit, start arranging a co-signer now. Also, take out a credit card with a small balance and start charging small amounts that you can pay off at the end of the month. This will help you build more of your own credit!As for consolidation, Direct is the only company I know of currently offering the program. It's worth it to call and ask what they can offer you.
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Oct 30, 2009 01:48
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Wiggy Marie posted:scuz, good luck on your second go My credit is okay I guess, in the mid 600s last time I checked. I was nearing default status a few years ago before getting my rear end in gear, though, so that's not going to help. Thanks for the tip for Direct; I'll use the google and get going on this stuff. Can I do the Direct thing now before I even get in to college and add those loans when I get them?
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Nov 2, 2009 16:19
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Holy crap do I hate Sallie Mae, people really should stay away from them. I haven't been able to get my loans consolidated with someone else yet and even though I'm paying more than minimum ($1100 recently) I'm getting 3-7 calls a day from one of their automated numbers harassing me. Talking to real people on the phone they almost make it sound like its my fault and they just want to encourage me to pay MORE money!
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Nov 2, 2009 23:42
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scuz, you can indeed! What you'll end up doing is consolidating your current loans now and then reconsolidating later when you have additional loans to add. However, when you call be sure to ask them what they recommend, because it might be best to wait. When you go back at least half-time or more your loans will get put back into deferment, so they might recommend you waiting. Patchfoot, do you have federal or private loans? If they're federal you can contact Direct to try and consolidate; if they're private loans, Wells Fargo still has a program for consolidation as far as I know.
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Nov 3, 2009 23:59
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Wiggy Marie posted:El Kabong, there is a total aggregate amount any student is eligible for in their lifetime, for undergraduate and graduate levels. You will need to contact your financial aid office and ask how much you might have left/be eligible for. Most likely it's not much, but it's worth a try to check. I hoped that wasn't the case. It makes sense and I kinda of figured it would be that way. Oh well, that's what community college is for: keeping it cheap! Thanks for the info.
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Nov 5, 2009 01:00
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I'm transferring colleges over the summer and will need extra money to move. Luckily, I still have some federal loan money left over. There's about 1600 left, or 800 per semester. If I take out the loan next semester, will I get 800, or 1600?
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Nov 5, 2009 01:35
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That's actually determined by the school. Do you know if you already have any certified amount that will be disbursed next semester? Or would these be brand new loans?
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Nov 5, 2009 03:08
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Wiggly, I am currently enrolled as a graduate student in the United States, I am a U.S. citizen. However, when I move forward after this final year I head to Scotland to start my studies for an LLB in Scotland (and maybe an LLM afterwards who knows). I am at $71,000 limit of the supposed grad lifetime limit. I am curious how the next few years will work? Can I move backwards and use the undergraduate limits that I never tapped into (I was lucky and could afford undergrad without loans), or will it strictly be graduate from here on out. I believe my school qualifies as a Title IV school (University of Aberdeen), but I am mostly curious about what you would recommend for someone who is in my position? cheers!
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Nov 5, 2009 05:47
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Hey, I hope you can help me with this. It is really probably all very simple and I am just freaking out over nothing. A few years ago when I was in my first school I took a private loan, and had a cosigner. Now this cosigner wants her name removed. I just have to refinance the loan right? Can I do this while still in school? Is there anyone to just switch cosigners? Would this affect my in school deferment? Thanks
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Nov 5, 2009 06:59
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mewpie, that sounds exciting! Good luck to you in Scotland Once you're at graduate level you can't take anymore undergraduate funds. However, you may be able to take advantage of the GradPLUS loan. If the school you'll be attending is considered Title IV then this is the option I would recommend to you. Since it's overseas you'll probably have to do everything (including the approval) over the phone or manually. My biggest suggestion is be prepared with a Master Promissory Note, since this can be the biggest hassle of the entire process. If for some reason the school isn't Title IV, look into the private loans they'll offer to you as an international student. They always have something available! Sadly these loans will have a higher interest rate, so here's hoping you can use the GradPLUS. Zealous Abattoir, this may be tricky. You need to contact the servicer of your private loan and ask if there is a cosigner release option available. If not, she is stuck on that loan permanently. If you were to consolidate your private loan(s) this should pay off the balance of the current loan, which removes her from the loan, but you can't do this process while still showing in school. Or rather, you may be able to, but private loan consolidation has the same if not higher criteria eligibility standards than a regular private loan, so you may not be able to consolidate at all. Private loans are not standard so you would need to ask the servicer how this might affect your deferment.
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Nov 8, 2009 02:13
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I didn't get very much money this semester from the federal student loan, only $5000 or so for the whole academic year, due to having used tax info from when I worked full-time (and I've been laid off since then) long story short I'm trying to get a private student loan to make it through the year, since I'm flat broke right now. I doubt my credit score is very good, I've been late on a few credit card payments and currently have about $4.2k on the card since I used it for tuition/books. The last time I ever checked it, it was around 640 and that was before having this much in outstanding credit. I tried getting a sallie mae private loan, with my father co-signing. We still got turned down, even though my father's household income is over 100k/yr, he owns land and 2 houses, and has a perfect credit score. Did they just not look at it or can my own score actually pull it down to the point where they'll still say no? 'Cuz I got a private loan years ago when I was in even worse shape, using a co-signer with worse credit, and got approved...(economy tightening them up?) We're currently trying another lender (wells fargo) and I'm worried the same thing will happen. I guess I'm just looking for an answer and some advice if this still falls through. Thanks Datsun Honeybee fucked around with this message at 02:58 on Nov 10, 2009 |
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Nov 10, 2009 02:54
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Have you told the financial aid office that you were laid off? It may help, it may not, but they should be aware if your financial situation changes that much. It is possible for your credit score to be too low for a private loan, regardless of having a co-signer or not. Many private loans have tightened their standards. My suggestion is to visit the financial aid office, tell them your situation (including the private loan denial), and ask them if they have another private loan they think you might qualify for. Private loans for "high risk" students exist, they're just harder to find. Also, how old are you? Would it be possible for your father to take out a PLUS loan on your behalf?
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Nov 10, 2009 12:47
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Hi Wiggy, I will be graduating next year with about a $25,000 bill in subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford loans (mostly subsidized). Being this close to graduation is really worrying me, because if I have to pay these loans off in 10 years, my payments will be exceptionally high. I am married, and our household income is average, so I don't think I'll get any income-based breaks. What can I do if I cannot afford $250-$300 per month to pay these off (I have a mortgage, a car, and a child on the way)? Can I take longer than 10 years to pay them off? What should I do?
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Nov 11, 2009 17:16
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Not enough thanks for this thread, I have utilized it so much over the past year(s). Simple question: I am in my second (and last) year of a Masters program, I will be graduating in May 2010. I have already been awarded the full amount in government loans for the school year (20.5k), and I was also awarded an additional $3k in Grad Plus loans. Half of both of these loans have already been disbursed to me, and the other halves will come in early January. Is there any way to apply for additional Grad Plus loan money to be disbursed in January (just for my last semester), along with the $1500 that is already coming? I believe I have under-budgeted, and being able to take out an extra 1-2k would be an immense help.
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Nov 11, 2009 20:42
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BlueLightCycle, you can absolutely look into a couple of options. One is consolidation. With a balance like that I do think that consolidation is your best option. You'll need to contact Direct Loans in order to process an application. Another option is asking your servicer about the payment plans they have available. There's a potential they can lower your monthly payments without a consolidation. If your balance is high enough, they may be able to extend your repayment as well, without consolidation. 68k, thank you! I'm very happy that this is a resource for you guys. Yes, you can apply for more GradPLUS. It will be a separate loan that the ones you already have, but it's possible you won't even need to hit your credit again. If you were approved the first time, you should be approved again!
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Nov 13, 2009 03:16
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BlueLightCycle posted:Hi Wiggy, As someone who has dealt with this to some degree: look into the current provisions which allow you to scale your payments to your income or extending repayment. Keep in mind that with both you will be paying far more in interest (more than twice if you doubled the repayment period) so even if you get an extension you want to pay as much as you can to avoid going from paying 7-8k in interest to 16+.
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Nov 13, 2009 08:56
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Thanks for the info, Wiggy and Juriko. Another question: I was reading on the student aid website that, in order to extend payments beyond the 10 year period, you have to have more than $30,000 in Direct Loans. I will have about $25,000, but I have always had to pick a lender, and last month I got a letter saying that about half of that balance has been sold to Fed Loan Servicing. So now I have two different loans with two different people (My state's Higher Education Association, and FedLoan). 1. What is a direct loan and how do I know if that is what I have? 2. Should I consolidate these two balances, and will that allow me to extend the time period?
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Nov 13, 2009 16:07
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Direct loans are federal loans that are lent directly from the government, rather than through a private lender. Their website is here: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/DirectLoan/index.html You can find out where your loans are by trying to call your servicer and ask if that is where they were transferred. You could also register your account at the NSLDS, which has record of every federal loan you ever took out! It's a fabulous website: http://www.nslds.ed.gov/nslds_SA/ Since your balances are split, for convenience alone it may be best to consolidate. The benefits are this lowers your monthly payments and extends repayment the way you want; the drawbacks are a fixed interest rate. There's no prepayment penalty though, so in the future if you happen to get enough to pay a large chunk off (or even the whole thing), you may do so and be done with the whole thing!
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Nov 14, 2009 14:50
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I'm at a foreign school and took student loans (both Staffords) from US Bank for 2007-2008. Problem is, I haven't technically been registered for courses since June (my thesis's work was split between the spring and fall semesters). Furthermore, I'm graduating about two semesters later than planned because of illness. I called up the "servicer" (dunno, is that what the person in charge of repayment was called? It's ACS...), informed them, and got a one-year extension on repayment. (It felt too easy; they didn't ask for any proof.) Question is: Will they find out I've technically been off the school's radar for a while now and start raising hell? I just got a job, so I'll be able to start paying back in a few months, but if I've hurt my credit rating I will be incredibly hosed, since I won't have any credit history in the States other than this loan.
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Nov 14, 2009 15:22
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I am about to graduate with a bachelor's and roughly $20,000 in student loan debt. When I graduate I will have the option of immediately paying off my entire student loan debt if I choose to do so. My question is: Is there any possible benefit to me to paying it off across a longer period of time over just straight eliminating it right after graduation?
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Nov 15, 2009 05:15
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I'll be receiving my Master's soon and will have to start paying back the $50,000 I took out in Federal loans.  I have a few questions:1) My loans are split in half between Stafford and GradPLUS. I know Stafford sub/unsub loans have a 6-month grace period but PLUS loans generally do not (I heard that such is in the works but I don't think it's gone through yet). How likely would I be to receive a forbearance on the PLUS loans long enough to match the grace period on the Stafford? I could really use a some leeway these first few months while I move and start working. 2) I'm currently on the default 10-year repayment plan, which puts my loan payments at about $600/month. For the sake of financial flexibility for the foreseeable future I'm thinking about switching to the 25-year plan which would cut those monthly payments to about $400, but at the end of the repayment period would mean I'dve paid more than double the interest. I'm confident that within a few years my financial situation will be more stable and I'll be able to pay more than the $400 minimum balance of the 25-year plan. Could I change my repayment plan a second time at a later date, or barring that, is it all right to pay off more than the minimum balance per month? I've also looked at the 10-year graduated repayment plan as a possible option to help ease the burden the first few years, but extent to which it ramps up over time might be overbearing. 3) I've looked into loan consolidation but the only option through Direct Loans consolidation is a 25-year plan which lowers my monthly payments by about $50 versus the non-consolidated repayment plans and increases the overall amount repaid by a few hundred dollars. I might be overlooking something, but I don't see how it can lower my monthly payments but increase the overall amount I pay back. Is there another, better method of consolidation I should know about? Should I go with this option? EDIT: Before any consolidation option, though, I'm probably going to wait until the grace period runs out on my Stafford loans. GFBeach fucked around with this message at 16:55 on Nov 15, 2009 |
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Nov 15, 2009 16:22
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