Results 1 to 14 of 14

Thread: student loan payments

  1. #1
    Peanut_Butter
    Guest

    Default student loan payments

    My student loans are in grace cause I'm in school. A few of them are in forebarance.

    I have a massive amount of student loans, and I'm starting to get concerned for when I graduate college, I won't be able to make the payments.

    So my question is although they are currently being put off, could I send in a payment every month just to help offset the cost later? I can't afford a full payment, but something is betetr than nothing, and those small payments will add up by the tie I graduate and have to start paying them back for real.

    So would Sallie Mae accept a small monthly payment now? They would just apply it to the interest I assume, but that will help anyway, from the total amount accumulating while I put them off.

  2. #2
    God/dess
    Joined
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Your imagination
    Posts
    2,875
    Thanks
    19
    Thanked 174 Times in 119 Posts

    Default Re: student loan payments

    it is actually a swell idea to pay student loans when the interest clock is off, because even 20/month is going straight to principal, thus reducing your overall interest later when the clock comes back on after leaving school.

    pay most of your debt service budget towards high-interest loans, but also put whatever you can reasonably set aside towards whittling down those student loans. sallie mae will happily credit your loan that money even if it's 10-20-50/month. if you're not sure you can set a specific dollar amount aside, something like 10 percent of your debt-service money can be mailed off to sallie mae monthly.

  3. #3
    Senior Member
    Joined
    Dec 2007
    Posts
    132
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 13 Times in 9 Posts

    Default Re: student loan payments

    I know a lot of people who used a huge amount of student loans, yet aren't earning enough to make much of a dent. The good news, as long as you pay what is required (it is related to how much you earn), you'll be fine. Bad news, you will have the debt until you pay it off. It does work into your debt-to-income ratio, which is a major factor when you apply for loans.

    Don't feel bad, though, cause I think a lot of people are in college thinking that they are going to make huge salaries just because they have a degree (even graduating law students are sometimes shocked to find they're offered $50K or so after investing all the time and money in school). It's kind of sad, but in the bigger picture it's worth it (hopefully!).

  4. #4
    Peanut_Butter
    Guest

    Default Re: student loan payments

    the loans are still accruing interest. The interest clock is not off. That's what gave me the idea to pay a little bit every month ( abotu $20) to help offset the accruing interest. Currently, I choose to forebare all interest and principal payments until after graduation, because I don't think I could afford any set payment am,ount, but I would like to send in somethign to help out.

    Another thign worrying me is that I got a letter in the mail yesterday saying that my loans must be paid off by a certain year, and that in order to have them paid off by that year, payments will have to be made starting soonm or else I will break the law by not having them paid off in time. According to the letter, one loan must be paid in full by 2018, and the other by 2028. But I have about 50 grand in loans...so to have them all paid off by that time frame, the payments are probably going to be high...and the last thing I want when I graduate from school is to be crushed by student loan debt..just when I'm starting a new life, ya know? I doubt the small payments I can send in will help much, but over the years might put a lttle dent in the big pictuer...I wont start repayment for another 2.5 years or so.

  5. #5
    God/dess
    Joined
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Your imagination
    Posts
    2,875
    Thanks
    19
    Thanked 174 Times in 119 Posts

    Default Re: student loan payments

    oh, well, darn. most student loans turn the interest clock off, but not all, unfortunately.

    but there is good news, sortof. they will take any money you send and apply it, and there are also usually 'income contingent' payment schedules, where you start with some tiny amount per month and then it goes up every year.

    the repayment timeline can be renegotiated.

  6. #6
    Peanut_Butter
    Guest

    Default Re: student loan payments

    ^ Thanks Some of my loans may not be gathering interest, but I know some are. But I have many different types of loans, stafford, federal sub and unsub, and 2 private loans.

    It's good to know the repayment timeline can be renegotiated, and good to know they will apply some payments in the meantime.

    I am planning on workign on my other debt as well, but I would definatly like to send them in a couple bucks each month, just to help out a little. Also, since I'm a nurs,e whatever job I take afetr graduation will repay some of those loans for me as well. So I guess I shouldn't worry as much as I am about it.

  7. #7
    God/dess
    Joined
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Your imagination
    Posts
    2,875
    Thanks
    19
    Thanked 174 Times in 119 Posts

    Default Re: student loan payments

    hmm, actually, you can do a little more targeted paying in your case. the unsubsidized stuff gains interest for sure in school (never had private loans, so i don't know how it works with those). and when you send them money, you can call and tell them you've sent a payment (payment can usually be done online as well as mailed, can't remember if they take money over the phone anymore) and have them apply it specifically to your unsubsidized loans (since your payment-clock is off, it is much easier to have them 'target' your payments). then you can whittle down the parts of your student loans that are accumulating interest if you need to be efficient for the time being about where your debt service goes.

    i had a mix of loans like yours (but without the private loan portion), and i was able to specify which loan or loans payments would go to both on and off the payment-clock. also, every loan provider did have a website where i could make payments online one-time or recurring.

  8. #8
    Peanut_Butter
    Guest

    Default Re: student loan payments

    ^ Thanks so much. I will do that.

    The private loans are accumulating interest while I am in schoool, and they have the highest rate. ( 8.5%) The private loans are also my largest loans, and the ones that concern me the most. So I would prefer to target those. Although they were through regular banks and not government, they were sold to sallie mae( where all loans end up)

  9. #9
    Banned Melonie's Avatar
    Joined
    Jul 2002
    Location
    way south of the border
    Posts
    25,932
    Thanks
    612
    Thanked 10,563 Times in 4,646 Posts
    Blog Entries
    3
    My Mood
    Cynical

    Default Re: student loan payments

    ^^^ well the 'privately financed' student loans DO have a huge advantage ... you CAN go bankrupt on them if you need to. This is of course opposed to gov't backed student loans, which CANNOT be disposed of via bankruptcy. Where Sallie Mae backed but 'private financed' loans are concerned, you'll have to read the fine print.

    As Margo pointed out, there is an increasing level of concern that new college graduates are racking up tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of gov't backed student loans in order to obtain their degree. However, with the downturn in the US economy, with increased outsourcing of professional services, with global labor 'arbitrage' affecting the salaries of those US jobs that are actually available, with rising federal and state 'middle class' income tax rates etc., many of these new graduates are finding that the available after tax incomes for the jobs they can find upon graduation, minus their gov't backed student loan payments, leaves them nearly broke ... and is likely to continue to do so for many years to come !!! For recent graduates in this position, there aren't very many options other than slaving away for the next 10-20 years to pay back the gov't !

    On a 'time value of money' basis, it obviously makes the most sense to make whatever payments you can as soon as you can towards student loans that are accruing interest charges ... starting with the highest interest rate first !

  10. #10
    God/dess LuckyOne's Avatar
    Joined
    Sep 2006
    Location
    LAS
    Posts
    3,118
    Thanks
    28
    Thanked 259 Times in 98 Posts

    Default Re: student loan payments

    Babe, I wish you would just win the lottery or something and get rid of that bad debt once and for all...

    Thats going to be my wish next time I see a shooting star. Good luck is going to come your way soon.

  11. #11
    Peanut_Butter
    Guest

    Default Re: student loan payments


    I luv u

  12. #12
    God/dess LuckyOne's Avatar
    Joined
    Sep 2006
    Location
    LAS
    Posts
    3,118
    Thanks
    28
    Thanked 259 Times in 98 Posts

    Default Re: student loan payments

    ^^^You're in my prayers.

  13. #13
    Newbie
    Joined
    Jun 2008
    Posts
    7
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts

    Post 4Support.

    Very good!!! Support !

  14. #14
    Senior Member Gwennnnnn's Avatar
    Joined
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Brooklyn
    Posts
    114
    Thanks
    2
    Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts

    Default Re: student loan payments

    I pay around 1000 a month on my loans. Ugh.

Similar Threads

  1. Student loan payments showing income?
    By Miss_McKenna in forum Dollar Den
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 03-01-2009, 06:54 PM
  2. Old student loan
    By LadyM in forum Dollar Den
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 07-29-2008, 07:59 AM
  3. Replies: 12
    Last Post: 05-16-2008, 02:59 PM
  4. Replies: 5
    Last Post: 05-01-2008, 08:23 PM
  5. Student Loan people askin too much...
    By LuckiCharm in forum Dollar Den
    Replies: 11
    Last Post: 06-22-2007, 04:55 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •