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Great lakes has been good to me since I got my loans in 09, but never had to use them for any emergancie stuff so grain of salt and all. Don't touch navient or wellsfargo for anything loan related EVER
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Nov 4, 2018 04:34
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I believe all consolidations are handled by Direct Loans these days, who will then disperse your consolidated loans to whichever of the five major servicers. For combining the consolidations, are the subsidized loans the greater balance? If they are, then you would be increasing the interest on them, but if you plan to pay them off early that might not make as much of a difference as you think. Check out an amortization calculator online and do the calculations to figure out how much you will lose versus save on the other loans. You can also call one of your servicers, they should be willing to do the math for you. Or they might send you to Direct's website.
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Nov 4, 2018 12:58
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The Direct loans have the highest principal. It looks like if I can pay the consolidation off in slightly under 5 years, then I'll pay the same interest for those two in the end. The interest on the others will balance out in slightly over 4 years; both were due in slightly under 4 years so it's almost like getting an extension. The extra interest is about equal to one monthly payment at the consolidation rate. That actually sounds quite reasonable. Thanks!
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Nov 4, 2018 16:19
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Awesome, and good luck on quick repayment!
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Nov 4, 2018 23:59
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i had a quick question, as i was trying to look through the thread but wasn't able to find any answers quickly. if applying for pslf, am i able to choose a service provider (i.e. nelnet or mohela)? if so, which loan servicer is best? some quick googling on pheaa (fedloan servicing) seems to indicate that i should move away from them asap, and i did find a "hit list" from investopedia: https://www.investopedia.com/personal-finance/worst-student-loan-servicers-going-2018/ but i can't tell if that's legit or not. there appears to be a lot of disinformation floating around, regarding who could actually handle pslf amongst providers. any help would be much appreciated! :edit: i just got off the phone with someone from studentloans.gov who stated that regardless of what i find, pheaa (fedloan servicing) is the one that handles most of the pslf paperwork, and that they are the best qualified. even if another servicer is selected (i.e. great lakes), i'll need to end up dealing with pheaa (fedloan servicing) anyways because directly or indirectly, they are the only ones who can actually determine if payments through another servicer qualify as pslf payments? and if there are any disputes regarding pslf, pheaa (fedloan servicing) will make the final decision? Last King fucked around with this message at 05:27 on Nov 6, 2018 |
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Nov 6, 2018 04:34
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I made most of my IBR through Great Lakes (great company, honestly) but as soon as I was approved for PSLF, my loans were transferred to FedLoans. They're not a great servicer, it's unfortunate, but they're the servicer that was selected to apply PSLF. Sorry. My understanding is that they're the SOLE provider for PSLF.
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Nov 6, 2018 14:31
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EAT FASTER!!!!!! posted:I made most of my IBR through Great Lakes (great company, honestly) but as soon as I was approved for PSLF, my loans were transferred to FedLoans. They're not a great servicer, it's unfortunate, but they're the servicer that was selected to apply PSLF. This is correct. They aren't the best but if you stay on top of your stuff and call them to talk about any issues they are okay. I think with most student loan issues people have it's mostly that people don't pay attention or take care of the things they need to, and it causes issues.
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Nov 6, 2018 14:50
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The Slack Lagoon posted:I think with most student loan issues people have it's mostly that people don't pay attention or take care of the things they need to, and it causes issues.
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Nov 7, 2018 01:57
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UCS Hellmaker posted:Don't touch navient or wellsfargo for anything loan related EVER Why is this? A consolidated loan that I have was sold/transferred to them (i.e it wasn't my choice). I don't have much left to pay off on it.
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Nov 16, 2018 22:51
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Hoping to get some advice on the best way to start paying down my student loans. TLDR version is that I've been in deferment for a while but am now making decent money and want to try to get this train wreck in order. I've managed to pay off all other debt (no credit card debt or anything), and living in NYC means [expensive] rent and no mortgage. The short of it is I currently have about $200,000 in student loans through Great Lakes - about 100k each in Stafford and Grad Plus loans. I'm guessing any old interest has been tacked onto the principal, because according to my account I've only accrued about $500 of interest on each which is weird but whatever. Interest rate on both are around 7% from what I gather. I don't know if this is relevant but currently my annual salary is $120,000, but I do also freelance when I can so can occasionally pick up an extra $1k/mo on average. Living expenses are about 3k (including rent, travel, utilities, food, etc) which may seem high but again NYC. Is the answer here to just switch over to a 25 year plan and pay extra whenever I can? I have no idea where to start and the OP was helpful but I just need somebody to say "look do this and this and this and then hope it works out". Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.
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Nov 27, 2018 14:14
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Is your job with a private company, non profit, or government? Keep in mind if you do the 25 year payment you will have to pay taxes on the forgiven amount, and may end up paying significantly more on the the loan than working to pay it off, considering your income level. You'd have to run some numbers on that to see how it might come out in your favor
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Nov 27, 2018 14:47
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You also want to check with a tax advisor and see about claiming interest on taxes. This is not an option in the higher tax brackets, I'm just not sure what the cutoff is and a tax expert would know better than me! If you're not gaining anything from claiming interest then I would suggest putting as much as you can to pay it off ASAP within reason. It doesn't hurt to put them onto a 25 year repayment plan, and you can still pay as much as you like per month but have the option to drop payment amounts down if needed. Basically pay them off ASAP but don't put yourself in a financial bind to do it. It sounds like you have a good bit of leeway in your financial situation. Check out an online amortization calculator, plug in all your bills etc., and play with the numbers to see what's reasonable and get an idea of how long you'll be paying for each amount you can afford. I use this one but there are a bunch out there: http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx
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Nov 27, 2018 19:08
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Wiggy Marie posted:You also want to check with a tax advisor and see about claiming interest on taxes. This is not an option in the higher tax brackets, I'm just not sure what the cutoff is and a tax expert would know better than me! If you're not gaining anything from claiming interest then I would suggest putting as much as you can to pay it off ASAP within reason. It doesn't hurt to put them onto a 25 year repayment plan, and you can still pay as much as you like per month but have the option to drop payment amounts down if needed. Basically pay them off ASAP but don't put yourself in a financial bind to do it. It sounds like you have a good bit of leeway in your financial situation.
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Nov 28, 2018 02:50
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It didn't change but it wouldn't do him any good as it phases out well before 120k. It was a max 2500 so it was never very helpful for people with large amounts of debt.
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Nov 28, 2018 02:59
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The Slack Lagoon posted:Is your job with a private company, non profit, or government? Private company, but honestly if there was a solid plan with another entity to get this taken care of then I wouldn't mind exploring that option. Thanks for the advice everybody. It sounds like it may be a good idea to explore the 25 year option to lower the payment, and then just overpay the principal every month as if it were a 10 year or less plan. I do worry that my financial situation could change and then all of a sudden I'm stuck with a fixed high monthly payment that I can't afford. Having a smaller commitment and overpaying makes me feel more secure about it I guess. Another option would be the income-based payment plan, but I'm not sure how I would approach that since my income can fluctuate quite a bit due to additional freelance and contract gigs. I'm worried that they'll think I consistently make more than I actually do, when really it's just sporadic spikes of additional income. I plan on contacting my accountant tomorrow to see if he has any bright ideas, but I suspect he's going to also say that I don't qualify for the interest deduction, though it seems like the limit was low on it anyways.
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Nov 28, 2018 04:55
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In general, the income based plan goes off your tax return. If your current income has changed since your previous year's return, you can file an "Alternative Documentation of Income" form. You generally have to submit some form of proof of income with the form, but they are usually flexible about what that proof is and you can even file a sworn affidavit if no other proof is available.
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Nov 28, 2018 09:26
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Dik Hz posted:Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought the Republicans in congress killed the student loan interest tax deduction. The initial version of the tax bill did include a phase out, but there was enough of an outcry that they removed it, so the student loan interest deduction remains (for now). That was removed along with making grad student tuition taxable income, which would have murdered the graduate student population of current and future academia. Sources: https://www.thebalance.com/student-loan-interest-deduction-3193022 https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc456
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Nov 28, 2018 14:17
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Do I have any options for emergency money if my school meets their "estimated cost of attendance" with grants and federal loans? They won't certify a private loan over that amount. I just talked to a guy at a credit union about personal loans and he basically said not to bother unless I had a job and documented income. I was told by friends and always kind of assumed that sweet sweet private loan money flowed like wine, now it's looking like I'm SOL with various bills here between semesters.
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Dec 4, 2018 23:16
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Macasaurus posted:Do I have any options for emergency money if my school meets their "estimated cost of attendance" with grants and federal loans? They won't certify a private loan over that amount. I just talked to a guy at a credit union about personal loans and he basically said not to bother unless I had a job and documented income. The cost of attendance amount is usually overly generous, where did you blow your budget?
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Dec 4, 2018 23:44
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Ancillary Character posted:The cost of attendance amount is usually overly generous, where did you blow your budget? gas, rent, and health insurance comes out to around $1350, a small truck is still pretty fuel inefficient and I drive 60 miles either way to school, so I guess the truck plus food and booze will do it
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Dec 4, 2018 23:54
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The education-related private loans I'm familiar with rely on certification, but there may be other kinds out there. I feel you on the commuter gas pain. I specifically purchased a vehicle with better fuel efficiency because of this and it made a huge difference in my monthly cost, even with a car payment. Maybe this is an option to consider.
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Dec 5, 2018 19:35
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Wiggy Marie posted:The education-related private loans I'm familiar with rely on certification, but there may be other kinds out there. I feel you on the commuter gas pain. I specifically purchased a vehicle with better fuel efficiency because of this and it made a huge difference in my monthly cost, even with a car payment. Maybe this is an option to consider. Yeah I mean, luckily I am not in a complete bind, I just honestly both thought and was told that I could look at private loans in an emergency, and the penalty was the exorbitant interest rates. I guess that still is valid if you do not meet the cost of attendance. Finaid office said they are not raising COA after nov 15 for fall, and do not consider it in the case of rent.
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Dec 7, 2018 18:03
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This is more just weirding me out than anything else, but my minimum payment due on Fedloan Servicing dropped by seven cents this month. What's the deal with that? I've currently got two loans left with minimum payments that dropped from $55.03 and $44.27 from January 2015 to present that changed to $55.00 and $44.23 starting this December. It's been on autopay the entire time and the monthly minimum never changed for either of those or the two that I've paid down entirely at any point, so it's not an adjustment based on that.
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Dec 12, 2018 19:02
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Could be a change in a Variable APR.
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Dec 13, 2018 00:14
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I'm down to my last 1600 bucks on my student loan and I have ample savings (12k) to pay it off now, or I can keep paying it off 400 bucks a month in 4 months. I am pretty drat close to needing to buy a car and was planning on putting 5-6k down. Should I just pay it off now and be done with it and save everything I can going forward or should I just continue for a few months on the off chance I need to get a car immediately?
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Jan 23, 2019 18:08
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Crunkjuice posted:I'm down to my last 1600 bucks on my student loan and I have ample savings (12k) to pay it off now, or I can keep paying it off 400 bucks a month in 4 months. I am pretty drat close to needing to buy a car and was planning on putting 5-6k down. Should I just pay it off now and be done with it and save everything I can going forward or should I just continue for a few months on the off chance I need to get a car immediately? It seems like you have enough to do both regardless. If you pay the loan off now, you'll save back up $400 for the next 4 months and also not have to pay a bit of interest.
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Jan 23, 2019 21:35
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I paid off my student loans in late 2017, and loving Navient sent me an email the other day out of nowhere saying "WE HAVE TAX DOCUMENTS FOR YOUR 2018 TRANSACTIONS - LOG IN" I almost poo poo myself Turns out somehow they hosed up my 2017 interest form and carried over like $0.34 interest as "paid" to 2018 Thanks you motherfuckers
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Jan 24, 2019 02:39
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EugeneJ posted:I paid off my student loans in late 2017, and loving Navient sent me an email the other day out of nowhere saying "WE HAVE TAX DOCUMENTS FOR YOUR 2018 TRANSACTIONS - LOG IN"
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Jan 24, 2019 03:25
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Dik Hz posted:Hey now, that's an above-the-board $0.34 deduction. (assuming you're poor) I knew I was making progress the year that I didn't exceed the $2,500 cap on student loan interest deduction. I mean, yeah I was getting throttled for the years it happened but now I'm finally taking my final deduction of ~$180 on my completely paid off loans. Stay motivated, student loan goons! It feels drat good when it's paid off!
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Jan 24, 2019 20:16
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19 o'clock posted:
This feeling is why I just paid off my remaining 1600. I kinda wanted that money in my pocket for the next 4 months, but the feeling of it being done with is pretty drat fantastic. Absolutely worth it.
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Jan 24, 2019 21:13
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Congratulations to both of you!
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Jan 25, 2019 02:55
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So I am stuck with a Sallie Mae loan with an awful interest rate that is somehow in repayment even though I am a full time student (MD-PhD). I really need to minimize my monthly payment while I am still in training because I make garbage money right now. What are some good lenders to look into for private loan refi? Balance is about $30k. Going to let my federal loans stay in deferment as long as possible/until I start making an attending physician salary (may be a while...). Anything else I should be thinking about?
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Feb 11, 2019 23:47
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Sofi is a pretty popular option from what I can tell. It's not hard to beat some of the Sallie Mae loan rates (I had one at 10%. Barf) plus that's not a monster balance, either. Shop around - they are competing for your money, so you are in a position to get the best rate possible.
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Feb 12, 2019 00:44
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19 o'clock posted:Sofi is a pretty popular option from what I can tell. It's not hard to beat some of the Sallie Mae loan rates (I had one at 10%. Barf) plus that's not a monster balance, either. Shop around - they are competing for your money, so you are in a position to get the best rate possible. Yeah my rate is comparable and variable. and I know it isn't a ton - especially by medical student standards - but the amount of interest it accrued in such short period of time was shocking (principal was $19k). In many ways this may be a blessing in disguise. I think I can work out a better, fixed rate loan - especially if I can get a cosigner on my refi.
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Feb 12, 2019 06:40
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We used citizens and it was pretty decent and simple. Refinanced horrid Wells Fargo loans and got a 6.5 interest rate (from a 9.6 and an 11.4!!!!) Which puts it under the Federal loans. Sofi is more stringent on requirements to be approved I've seen is all. They wouldn't accept us even with a solid work history, pay and entry into the medical field this year for my wife.
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Feb 12, 2019 14:13
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UCS Hellmaker posted:Sofi is more stringent on requirements to be approved I've seen is all. They wouldn't accept us even with a solid work history, pay and entry into the medical field this year for my wife. This was my experience, though I had been self-employed at the time and it's not unheard of for lenders to be a bit dumb about "this isn't a W2 - you clearly don't have a job" when approving.
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Feb 12, 2019 17:10
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UCS Hellmaker posted:We used citizens and it was pretty decent and simple. Refinanced horrid Wells Fargo loans and got a 6.5 interest rate (from a 9.6 and an 11.4!!!!) Which puts it under the Federal loans. Sofi is more stringent on requirements to be approved I've seen is all. They wouldn't accept us even with a solid work history, pay and entry into the medical field this year for my wife. We used citizens as well and it was pretty good
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Feb 12, 2019 17:42
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https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/13/a-gop-proposal-would-snatch-your-student-loan-payment-right-from-your-paycheck.html I am not too sure about this. It sounds like it will be a disaster and screw people when they are in need of money. But if you don't have to deal with the likes of navient could be good. Ultimately I don't trust the Republicans and guaranteed payment through this method will probably drive prices even higher.
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Feb 13, 2019 19:38
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I need a lot more information. Do the deferments and forbearances available remain? Is there an income minimum that needs to be satisfied? What about the forgiveness programs? Is this coupled with lowered interest rates on existing balances or new loans? Does it have to be 10%? Taking $100 from my $1000 is pretty excessive. quote:Critics of the proposal say that payments should always be voluntary, and that people need the flexibility to default on their student loans. One in 5 borrowers are in default or delinquency on their student debt. I am not sure how I feel about someone talking about the "flexibility to default." Defaulting on student loans is the worst possible situation in regards to someone's credit, and if this can prevent that from happening because when you're making $0 your loans automatically aren't in repayment, I can't say I'm immediately opposed to the idea. Also I'm pretty sure this is how student loan repayment works in some European countries. The main difference, if I had to guess, is the total balances in question.
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Feb 13, 2019 20:00
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I would agree with your thoughts and that we would need more info to understand. I think it is a long way off from becoming law. People who have loans should be aware of it though.
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Feb 13, 2019 20:55
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