Tag: Student

Categories
Budgeting

Omaha Insurance Agent Says This Is a Money Talk You Should Have With Your College Age Student

OMAHA, Neb.-College students are packing their bags and getting ready to return home for the summer. For many, this past year was the first time they managed their own laundry, classes and curfew-and their own bank accounts-without their parents.

This continues as a time of transition for many young adults and their parents. They will need some help from you while they continue to grow into their new financial responsibilities and learn how to enjoy a lifetime of good money management.

Here are a few tips from Manley to help talk to your college-age students before they head back to campus next fall:

Help your student work on a budget. Budgeting goals and priorities change over time. If your child had a part-time job while he or she was in high school, the priority was probably to build a savings. A college student’s main priority is not likely to be savings, but rather to figure out how to make saved money last all semester or until summer. Parents can help a student itemize and prioritize all the things the student will have to purchase such as clothing and sundries, textbooks, the expenses of a car or cell phone.

Plan for mistakes, and let your student correct them. No matter how good the student’s budget is, mistakes are going to happen. Some of them are minor, such as when a student simply forgets to budget for working fewer hours at a part-time job during a week of exams or having to take an unpaid sick day. If that happens, a little help from mom or dad may be appropriate. But sometimes mistakes are major, the result of overspending and under-earning, and the student runs out of money before the end of first semester. In this case, as difficult as it may be, do not bail out your student. Help him find a way to fix the problem. If the student lives on campus and you paid for a meal plan, he is not going to starve. He might have to find a way to work a few more hours, or be sure to earn a few bucks during summer break.

Have THE TALK. More specifically, the talk about credit cards, and how many credit card companies entice students to open accounts. Show your student how long it will take to pay off even a small amount of debt (here’s a handy calculator ). Even a small balance of $3,000 can take as long as 10 years to pay off, and during that time the borrower would have paid more than $2,200 in interest alone. Student loans, car loans and eventually mortgages are often considered good debt. But credit cards in the hands of inexperienced users can be disastrous.

Let the student know you will be checking up. From time to time, check your student’s bank balance. Look at the expenditures and deposits, and make sure she is on-track to making his money over the summer. As time passes and the student gets better at handling money, you will be able to let her handle it without your help at all.

College is such an exciting time, and a time when young adults learn not just academic lessons, but also life lessons. They still need you to show them how to avoid making money mistakes, and how to fix the mistakes they make along the way.

###

About the author: Through hard work, dedication and attending both passionately and professionally to the needs of clients, Manley and his small team at his Farmers Insurance agency in Omaha, Nebraska have grown the agency into the largest Farmers Insurance agency in the state. His agency also is the second largest for the entire Farmers Insurance region. Manley’s service to the community includes support of the Siena/Francis house, Restoration Exchange, Homeward Bound animal rescue, the Ronald McDonald House, and The Stephen Center.

Categories
Taxes

How Government Student Loan Debt Forgiveness Programs Create Huge Tax Debt

Those breathing a sigh of relief that their student loan debt is now in line with their income may want to re-evaluate the guidelines that set the income based payment in the first place. There could be a tax time bomb looming, slowly ticking away. And with America’s focus on student loan debt and job security, defusing it is not a big part of the policy discussion in Washington at the moment… but we have been keeping a watchful eye and our projections might shock you…

Should You Have to Pay Taxes on Forgiven Student Loan Debt?

If you’re enrolled in the income-based repayment program, should you have to pay income taxes on the loan balance that the government dismisses?

This potential tax bill is a byproduct of federal efforts, including the newly expanded income-based repayment program, that allow you to limit the monthly payments on most federal loans to what you can afford to pay. There’s a formula that uses your income to determine your payment. Then, the federal government forgives any remaining balance, usually after 10 to 25 years.

The catch comes with the forgiveness, since you generally have to pay income taxes on any forgiven debt (unless you were in a program for teachers or worked in a public service job, in which case the taxes go away). For many people, especially those who finished graduate or professional school with six figures of debt, the tax bill could be well into the five figures. And when it comes, you are supposed to pay in full, immediately.

Figuring out just how many people will be in this situation – and just how high the tax bill could be – is a tough task, and not many experts have tried it.

Sorting it all out begins with the repayment programs themselves. Some people signed up for income-contingent payments back in the 1990s. The income-based program came along more recently, and the Obama administration then tweaked it to make it more generous by shortening repayment periods and adjusting the formula used in figuring out the monthly bill.

As of Oct. 31, about two million people had applied for income-based repayment, according to Education Department figures. About 1.3 million had low enough income and high enough debt payments under standard repayment plans to qualify for reduced payment under the terms of the program. Another 440,000 applications were still pending.

In the 2011-12 school year alone, more than 10 million people took out the popular federal Stafford student loans, according to the College Board’s Trends in Student Aid report. Cooper Howes, a Barclays analyst, estimated in a report earlier this month that more than half of all borrowers would be eligible for payment reductions because of their incomes.

If you or your children are borrowers and the income-based repayment program is new to you, you should consult the Project on Student Debt’s ibrinfo.org site, which is about as clear as this complicated topic can get. The Education Department’s site is worth a thorough look, too, as is the New America Foundation’s income-based repayment calculator. I’ve stuffed the Web version of this column with links to these and other pertinent information sources.

Trying to pinpoint the scope of the looming tax issue starts to get more complicated pretty quickly. Not all eligible students will sign up for income-based repayment, since some will not hear about it, will ignore it when they do, will assume or be told (incorrectly) that they can’t qualify or will worry that there is some kind of catch. For those who sign up, it’s awfully hard to predict how many will eventually have some debt forgiven a couple of decades from now.

But Jason Delisle, who has written extensively about the income-linked repayment programs as director of the federal education budget project at the New America Foundation, points to an Office of Management and Budget effort that took a stab at it. The O.M.B. assumed that 400,000 borrowers from 2012 through 2021, each with a beginning average loan balance of about $39,500, would each eventually receive loan forgiveness of about $41,000. Yes, you read that right. The forgiven debt will be more than the original balance, albeit many years later.

At $41,000 of loan forgiveness, the federal tax bill could easily be over $10,000 depending on your tax bracket. There are also state income taxes to contend with, depending on where you live.

But the numbers can go much higher. Stephanie Day earned her bachelor’s degree in her 40s after a divorce, intending to enter the field of social work. She finished in the depths of the recession and could not find work, so she returned to school to get a master’s in psychology to bolster her credentials.

Even then, the jobs available near her home in Seattle were slim, so she moved to a town on the border of New Mexico and Texas for a position there. One home invasion and 12 months of misery at being apart from her children later, she’s now back in Seattle and paying just $30 each month on her $80,000 or so in debt via the income-based repayment plan.

Ms. Day has run the numbers and can foresee a situation where the government will forgive more than $100,000 of her debt, given that her unpaid balance keeps growing thanks to the low payments. And while she expressed dismay that so few people were aware of the tax bill in their future, she does not necessarily mind paying it. “I think it’s perfectly fair,” she said. “I guess I’m old school.”

I do wish to mention that worries about a tax bill a couple of decades from now shouldn’t scare you away from signing up for the income-based repayment plan if you need it. But however the numbers turn out, anyone enrolled in the plan ought to be thinking hard about salting away some money, somewhere, for the eventual tax bill.

After all, no matter how high the bill, there are severe penalties for not paying it right away. The Internal Revenue Service, alas, has programs available to settle tax debts if you are facing a financial hardship (e.g your expenses outweigh your income). Additionally, if you are insolvent (which most people are) you may be able to write off a large portion of the forgiven debt on your tax return! Yet another reason why consulting a Tax Practitioner at Advocate Tax Solutions is paramount to avoiding a hefty future tax burden! Call us toll free at 888-737-0200 today for a free and confidential tax consultation.

Categories
Student Loans

Paying for College: Student Loans or Credit Cards?

Research conducted by student loan company Sallie Mae shows that in 2010, about 5 percent of college students paid an average of more than $2,000 in tuition and other educational expenses using a credit card to avoid taking out student loans. The same study showed that 6 percent of parents used credit cards to pay an average of nearly $5,000 in educational expenses for their college children.

Is using credit cards a smart way to avoid college loan debt? Financial advisors are in near-universal agreement that the answer is no, but that isn’t stopping thousands of families from using credit cards in place of parent and student loans.

Some families might think that all debt is equal; others might think that they won’t qualify for college loans. So what advantages exactly do education loans offer over credit cards?

1) Availability

Particularly in the last few years, as credit card companies have tightened their credit requirements in a retraction of the lax lending that led to the foreclosure crisis, credit cards have become harder to qualify for, available mostly only to consumers with strong credit. Many consumers with weaker credit have had their credit lines reduced or eliminated altogether.

Federal college loans, on the other hand, are available with minimal to no credit requirements. Government-funded Perkins loans and Stafford loans are issued to students in their own name without a credit check and with no income, employment, or co-signer required.

Federal parent loans, known as PLUS loans, have no income requirements and require only that you be free of major adverse credit items – a recent bankruptcy or foreclosure, defaulted federal education loans, and delinquencies of 90 days or more.

In other words, don’t turn to credit cards simply because you think you won’t qualify for school loans. Chances are, these days, you’re more likely to qualify for a federal college loan than for a credit card.

2) Fixed Interest Rates

While most credit cards carry variable interest rates, federal student and parent loans are fixed-rate loans. With a fixed interest rate, you have the security of knowing that your student loan rate and monthly payments won’t go up even when general interest rates do.

Many credit cards will also penalize you for late or missed payments by raising your interest rate. Federal school loans keep the same rate regardless of your payment history.

3) Deferred Repayment

Repayment on both federal student loans and federal parent loans can be postponed until six months after the student leaves school (nine months for Perkins undergraduate loans).

With credit cards, however, the bill is due right away, and the interest rate on a credit card balance is generally much higher than the interest rate charged on federal school loans.

If you’re experiencing financial hardship, federal loans also offer additional payment deferment and forbearance options that can allow you to postpone making payments until you’re back on your feet.

Even most private student loans – non-federal education loans offered by banks, credit unions, and other private lenders – offer you the option to defer making payments until after graduation.

Keep in mind, however, that even while your payments are deferred, the interest on these private student loans, as well as on federal parent loans and on unsubsidized federal student loans, will continue to accrue.

If the prospect makes you nervous of having deferred college loan debt that’s slowly growing from accumulating interest charges, talk to your lender about in-school prepayment options that can allow you to pay off at least the interest each month on your school loans so your balances don’t get any larger while you’re still in school.

4) Income-Based Repayment Options

Once you do begin repaying your college loans, federal loans offer extended and income-based repayment options.

Extended repayment plans give you more time to repay, reducing the amount you have to pay each month. An income-based repayment plan scales down your monthly payments to a certain allowable percentage of your income so that your student loan payments aren’t eating up more of your budget than you can live on.

Credit cards don’t offer this kind of repayment flexibility, regardless of your employment, income, or financial situation. Your credit card will require a minimum monthly payment, and if you don’t have the resources to pay it, your credit card company can begin collection activities to try to recover the money you owe them.

5) Tax Benefits

Any interest you pay on your parent or student loan debt may be tax-deductible. (You’ll need to file a 1040A or 1040 instead of a 1040EZ in order to take the student loan interest deduction.)

In contrast, the interest on credit card purchases, even when a credit card is used for otherwise deductible educational expenses, can’t be deducted.

To verify your eligibility for any tax benefits on your college loans, consult with a tax advisor or refer to Publication 970 of the IRS, “Tax Benefits for Education,” available on the IRS website.

6) Student Loan Forgiveness Programs

Whereas the only way to escape your current credit card debt is to have it written off in a bankruptcy, several loan forgiveness programs exist that provide partial or total student loan debt relief for eligible borrowers.

Typically, these loan forgiveness programs will pay off some or all of your undergraduate and graduate school loan debt in exchange for a commitment from you to work for a certain number of years in a high-demand or underserved area.

The federal government sponsors the Public Loan Forgiveness Program, which will write off any remaining federal education loan debt you have after you’ve worked for 10 years in a public-service job.

Other federal, state, and private loan forgiveness programs will pay off federal and private student loans for a variety of professionals – veterinarians, nurses, rural doctors, and public attorneys, among others.

Ask your employer and do a Web search for student loan forgiveness programs in your area of specialty.

Categories
Student Loans

Are Pell Grants And Student Loans Really Constitutional?

The Pell grants is a type of post-secondary educational federal grant which is sponsored by the US Department of Education. The Pell grants are constitutional as they are covered by the legislation titled the Higher Education Act of 1965. Pell grants originally known as the Basic Educational opportunity Grant Program are awarded on formula based on financial need. This formula is determined by the congress using criteria submitted the Free Application for Federal Student (FAFSA).

Federal Pell grants are awarded to the undergraduate students who don’t have a bachelor or professional degree. The amount of money that you can receive under the federal Pell grant is based on your need, the cost of Attendance at your school for both part time and full time students. The US Department of Education has a standard formula to determine if one is eligible or not to get approved for Pell grants.

In the United States, the federal loans are authorized under the title IV of the Higher Education Act. They can be subsidized by the US government depending on the student’s financial need. Both subsidized and unsubsidized loans are guaranteed by the US Department of Education. Almost all the students are eligible to receive them. Subsidized federal loans are offered to the ones who come with a demonstrated financial need. Federal government makes interest payments for these students while the students remain in the college. Unsubsidized federal loans, on the other hand, are also guaranteed by the US government but on these loans the government does not pay interest for the students, rather interest accrues on the loans. Interest begins accruing on $12, 000. There are basically two distribution channels for federal student loans i.e. Federal Direct Student Loans and Federal Family Education Loans.

Federal Direct Student Loans are funded from public capital originating with the US Treasury. FDLP are distributed through a channel beginning with the US Treasury Department, goes to the U.S Department of Education and passing through the college or university goes to the students.

Federal Family Education Loan programs are funded with private capitals which come from banking institutions. Through these loans, students are able to take payment options like allowing a discount for automatic payments or a series of on time payments.

Private student loans are not funded or guaranteed by government agencies but advocates of private student loans suggest that they combine the best elements of different government loans into one.

Categories
Student Loans

How to Consolidate Federal Student Loans – FDLP, FFELP, Etc

The cost of higher education continues to rise. Many students are unable to afford to finish college. Because of this, Student Loan Consolidation has been made available to students. Student Loan Consolidation is multiple loans combined into one loan. The US Government and the Department of Education has developed Federal Loans to help students pay for their higher education. These loans allow the student to combine their federal loans into one loan. By paying one loan they're paying one creditor.

Federal student loans are provided by the US Government and the US Department of Education. The Federal Direct Student Loan Program (FDLP) and Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) have been developed to help students and parents consolidate their loans. These two programs allow students to consolidate PLUS Loans, Federal Perkins Loans and Stafford Loans. Students get lower monthly repayments and a longer payment period. These loans usually provide lower interest rates and fees. For these programs, the fixed interest is usually the weighted average of the interest rates of the loans that were consolidated. Congress set the formula for the federal interest rate. Federal programs give graduates longer repayment periods. A student can have a repayment period from 10 to 30 years.

There are two Programs for Federal Loan Consolidation:
o The Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFEL) was a result of the Higher Education Act of 1965. The program is funded by private and public partners. FFEL also makes use of government funds and private companies. The private companies that fund this program receive subsidies from the government.

o The William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (FDLP), commonly known as Direct Loans. With this particular program, instead of the Government or a private company, the US Department of Education acts as the creditor, handling the student's loans.

Federal Loans have three types:
o The Perkins Loan is a consolidated loan provided by the US Department of Education for college students. It has a fixed interest rate of 5% for a 10 year repayment period. With usual consolidation companies you are required to start repayment after six months of graduation. With the Perkins Loan you have a nine month period after graduation. The loan limits for undergraduates are $ 5,500 per year with a lifetime maximum loan of $ 27,500. For graduate students, the limit is $ 8,000 per year with a lifetime limit of $ 60,000.

o Stafford Loan offers a lower interest rate but has strict eligibility requirements and limits. There are subsidized and unsubsidized loans. With Subsidized loans the interest is paid by the Federal Government. For Unsubsidized loans, the students pay the interest. Examples of Stafford loan companies are Sallie Mae, JP Morgan Chase, Citibank, Bank of America, and Wachovia Education.

o A PLUS Loan is for parents and graduate students. To be eligible for this loan, the parent or graduate student has to pass the credit check. Usually interest rates are higher. This loan allows the parent to make use of the total cost of the college fees such as tuition, room and board.

Categories
Student Loans

What To Do When A Student Loan Telemarketer Calls

We've all gotten those calls from telemarketers. Yes, those pesky people who famously call during the wee minutes of our scrumptious dinner to try and sell everything but the kitchen sink. Futilely, I may add, since the only thing most of them draw from us is an expletive and maybe a "not interested" followed by a dramatic hang-up.

Slick-monotone-hard-to-understand-robot: This is picture that is commonly painted of our rarely American telemarketer friend. Not surprisingly, the once tolerate job of a telephone sales representative has almost become a stigma in American culture.

Telemarketers love student loan consolidation and for good reason.

True, Telemarketers can call at the absolute worst times selling anything from credit cards, to vacation plans and time shares. Now, if you are one of those lucky ducks with student loans, then you probably have had your fair share of calls about consolidating your loans, as well. But, let me say, don't let the thought of telemarketer on the phone leave a bad taste in your mouth about consolidation. Consolidating your student loans is thought by many to be one of the best ways to manage your student loans after college.

In fact, consolidating your loans can give you many money-saving benefits including a lower interest rate, lower monthly payments, and borrower incentives. So speaking to the right person on the phone can really be worth the time. And what I mean by right person is speak with a Student Loan Consultant, someone who is specifically trained to be an expert on the subject of student loans and whose sole purpose is to help student loan borrowers in need of better loan management.

A Student Loan Telemarketer is not the same as a Student Loan Consultant

Though both may call you, it's important to know the difference between a telemarketer and a student loan consultant. A telemarketer says and does what they're told to, while a student loan consultant's main role is customer service and satisfaction. Many times, if you get a great student loan consultant on the phone, they'll be happy to inform you of everything you ever wanted to know about student loan consolidation and the options available to manage your loans after college better. A good student loan consultant is happy to answer your questions because they genuinely want to help.

So choosing to consolidate your loans should not be the biggest issue, it's with WHOM you should consolidate that should be your concern. After all, consolidation puts you into a relationship with your lender for years to come and the student loan consultant you speak to can be a good indicator of the type of company they represent, and who you will be dealing with.

As mentioned, student loan consolidation is a great financial tool, but pay close attention to these tell-tale signs to make sure the person you're speaking to is not more interested in filling their own pockets then filling yours.

Tips on How to Handle Consolidation Calls

1) Don't be bullied or rushed into making a decision. It's important to feel comfortable and not rushed by the person you're speaking with.

Make sure you're treated with respect: Work with a company who makes it a point to listen to their clients needs. Find a company that doesn't take one single call they make or receive for granted. Real customer service oriented Student Loan companies want to know that each of their borrowers is happy with their consolidation solution. This is why companies like OneSimpleLoan thrive on testimonials from their customers, daily. Check out [http://www.onesimpleloan.com/testimonials.asp] for real testimonials from OneSimpleLoan's happy customers to see exactly what I'm talking about.

2) Make sure you're talking with a student loan professional and not a telemarketer (some people are trained to make calls, not to help you consolidate your student loans properly and efficiently). You can tell right away if someone is reading from a script or going through the motions. Consolidation involves your personal finances and it's nothing for someone to play around with.

Work with a company who has an excellent Training program: Few student loan companies invest enough into the training of their student loan consultants. It's important to work with a company that does. OneSimpleLoan for example puts their Student Loan Consultants through a tiered training program, which each include an entire week of in-house training letting them excel into three levels of service.

3) Do some research on the company you're speaking with before you decide to consolidate your loans. Visit their website, check out to see if they've had any Better Business Bureau complaints issued against them. Ask questions … if the answers don't sound right, hang up!

Make sure the company is credible: Find out what kind of credentials the company you're speaking with has, such as membership in their local or state chamber of commerce and Better Business Bureau. Companies, like OneSimpleLoan, pride themselves because of these prestigious memberships and for having superb understanding and implementation of student loan laws and regulations.

Look for Consistency and valuable resources: The worst thing is having to go through a detailed process with one person and then having to explain it to someone else. Is the consultant willing to give you their full name? Can you call them back with questions? Borrowers who consolidate with OneSimpleLoan appreciate the fact that they are assigned to one consultant to help them through the entire consolidation process.

4) Listen to the person on the phone. Do they mention grace rates, borrower benefits, deferment, or forbearance? If no, they may be holding back on giving you a full range of options to help you manage your student loan debt.

Make sure they're easy to understand: Sure, the person on the phone may sound like they know what they're talking about, but do you? It's important that the Student Loan Consultant tries to make the process of consolidation as easy to understand as possible by using simple to understand terms and treating each borrower like a personal friend whom they're helping.

5) Make sure you're speaking with someone with expertise on the subject. Get the phone number and name and even the lender ID code, if available, of the company that's calling you or that the person represents.

Work with a company that experiences successful growth: They may be few, but there are student loan companies that do hire and train professional staff, have a resourceful website and a dynamic stature that make them successful members within the student loan industry.

Find out how simple and quick the process is : Before you start the consolidation process, ask the company you're on the phone with how long their consolidation process will take. It's better to know and prepare yourself from the beginning than grow impatient later.

It's important to work with a company who's process is hassle-free . A good student loan company can help you complete your consolidation paperwork in less than an hour – some even do most of the written work for you! In fact, many borrowers who have consolidated their loans with OneSimpleLoan comment on how easy and quick the consolidation process is because of the quality of attention and service they received from the Student Loan Consultant who helped them.

Most of all, work with someone who you can tell enjoys their job of helping you.

In addition to their employees, many student loan companies do have your best interests at heart – after all, a job is a choice and many who love customer service choose to help student loan borrowers make the best choices about their loans. In fact, customer service is at the heart of many of the most successful student loan companies, of which OneSimpleLoan is no exception.

Categories
Student Loans

Private Student Loans: 3 Ways to Improve Approval Chances

Financing a college education is not easy, with college fees anything but cheap. While it is possible to get government sponsored financial aid, not everyone is successful because of the quota system reserving funds for those in most need. For many, private student loans are the only option open to them.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with the private loan option, but securing this kind of funding is dependent on the same criteria to getting any other kind of loan. So, an applicant needs to have certain aspects in good order if college loan approval is to be achieved.

There are problems with this since students usually have little income to speak of. But there are student loan options to consider that can help in finding the right loan deal at the best possible terms. Compromises may need to be accepted, but the funds at least can be secured.

1. Find a Cosigner

Since the biggest issue for lenders is the certainty of receiving the monthly repayments, the addition of a cosigner to the application can prove invaluable. A cosigner acts as a guarantor, assuring the lender that payments on the private student loan will be made, even if the student is unable to make them.

The most common cosigner for students is their own parents but extended family members and even friends are acceptable too. However, to stand a chance of getting college loan approval, the cosigner must have an excellent credit history. Ideally, they should have a score of 700 or more, and have a large enough income to cover the repayments if that becomes necessary.

But if a suitable candidate can be found to cosign on the student loan, remember that failure to pay will put pressure on them. So, be clear that the obligation still rests on the shoulders of the applicant.

2. Search the Internet

The Internet has changed many things about how we go about securing financing. The development of comparison sites means that finding the best possible deals, even for private student loans, is fast and easy, with the best of thousands listed clearly before us.

Online lenders are widely recognized as experts in bad credit lending, so those who have very poor credit histories are more likely to get college loan approval from them than they are from traditional lenders. And they charge the lowest interest rates and offer the most flexible repayment schedules.

Still, it is necessary to read the small print on any possible student loan deal to see if there are any hidden charges. And check the reputation of the lender on either the Better Business Bureau or the Verify1st websites before agreeing to anything.

3. Tend To Your Credit Rating

Another valuable move to help in securing a private student loans is to set about improving your own credit score. This improves the terms of the possible loan, making it more affordable. There are several ways to do this, but starts with getting the credit report to identify where the weaknesses lie, and have any errors in the report corrected.

Paying off existing debts is the best way to increase the score. But to do this, a series of small, quickly repaid loans are required. Alternatively a larger consolidation loan can be taken out, significantly reducing the monthly repayments. By freeing up more cash for repayments on the college loan, approval is more likely.

Another option to improving the credit score is to take out a student credit card several months before and make repayments on time. This establishes a good repayment habit and so getting a student loan become that bit easier.

Categories
Student Loans

Student Loans Help College Tuition Costs Rise

College tuition prices are rising every year – faster than almost any other expense including health-care and food. The bad news for students is that post-graduation salaries have been practically flat! In a free market economy, this might lead to students seeking cheaper educational alternatives and driving down the price of learning, but government support of the student loan industry will preserve the ability for students to acquire the debt for the more expensive choices. Thanks to these specific government policies, there is very little chance that tuition costs will be coming back down.

While most debt and credit markets seize up, the student loan industry is mostly guaranteed and insured by the federal government. Even though some companies have been leaving the student loan sector, the government is expanding its own direct loan program to ensure that the system of loans for college stays intact. If students were unable to find loans, schools would be forced to immediately cut costs and offer lower tuition rates to keep enrollment up.

Yet for some reason, lower costs seem strange to the American economist or consumer – we often demand the best, we demand the most, and somehow we still act surprised when we can't afford to pay the bill for that dream product we just custom -ordered. That lack of money is never seen as a problem – as long as it is easy for the consumer to acquire loans. Everything that made the housing bubble a nightmare is still playing out in higher educational financial statements …

As long as those easy loans are available, colleges have little incentive to cut costs in outside-the-classroom activities like social programming, semi-competitive sports teams, and lavish furnishings. If there were no government safety nets, students could still find loans if the lender felt that the student would actually be able to pay it back after graduation. This means more students and student lenders would choose local and cost-effective schools. Competition for funding would even ensure that the smartest and hardest working students get enrolled first.

Ideally, everyone who wants to go to college should be able to – and to some extent the student loan programs have helped to provide that opportunity. Unfortunately, it is showing signs of an unintended consequence that would quickly undo that benefit and make college ultimately unaffordable for a large part of the population.

Categories
Student Loans

Be Punctual With Payments on Student Loans

We have all been blessed by the immense rise in the field of personal loans. Now we no longer need to bid farewell to our dreams on account of money problems. There are all kinds of loan providers waiting to take care of our needs. Whether you need to but a car or get a place to live in, there will be a great loan package waiting for you. Cheap personal loans are a dime a dozen these days. If you have not been able to locate a great loan package, maybe you are looking in all the wrong places. So what are the right places? How do you find the ideal loan? There are many ways of doing that. Look up the Internet. Inquire at your local bank. Discuss it with your neighbors and friends. You should soon be inundated by a ton of great deals that meet your needs perfectly.

The student loans is a type of personal loan that is becoming increasingly popular. Education costs can be hideously expensive at times. Sometimes, if you want to go in for higher education you might have to pay through your nose. And that is not something that most of us enjoy doing. When the expenses seem too unaffordable, one can simply start looking for a suitable student loan package. You will probably end up with the responsibility of paying off the loan for quite a few months after you start working. It is an expense. But then, if you want that college degree, you have to pay the price.

While student loans tend to be a burden, especially in the early years of one's career, defaulting is always a bad idea. No matter how bad a cash crunch you are enduring, never let it allow you to default on your student loan. Being a defaulter will land you with a reputation of bad credit. This will affect a great part of your future.

First of all, you have to be prepared to pay higher rates of interest on the amount that you still owe. In addition to that, securing loans later on, whether to buy a car, a house, or simply pay for medical bills, becomes that much more difficult. The bad credit tag costs you much more by way of higher rates of interest. Hence, if you have availed of a loan, make sure to pay it off. Eliminate the chances of defaulting even before you get the loan by looking for the cheapest one.

Categories
Student Loans

Student Loans: Answers To Most Important Queries

Obtaining loans have become pretty inevitable ever since the educational expenses have gone sky-high. While these student loans can help you meet the educational expenses, it is vital to know the pros and cons of these loans. So, following are the answers of a few of the most perturbing queries people normally have about these loans.

Well first and foremost query people have is regarding the choice between Federal student loans and Private student loans. Most people find themselves confused as to which one to go for so, let us help you a little. Well, the federal student loans are pretty effective as they have low interest charges and offer feasible repayment solutions. You can enjoy a grace period up to 6 months after completing your studies which means you don’t have to start making repayments right after you are done with your studies. This consequently can provide you the needed time to find a job and hence a source to pay back the loan easily. On the other hand the private loans usually are a little strict regarding the repayment issues. You need to make payments every month without even dreaming about making a lapse.

Now another thing that troubles many people is; what in case they do not manage to land a job, how are they going to make repayments every month. Well, you have quite a number of choices to select from in such a situation. For instance, you can go for extended repayment, forbearance or deferment etc. The best way is to consult your loan provider and ask about ways suitable for your case rather than avoiding the monthly repayments.

Now aside from this, if you are thinking about ways to somehow discharge your debt, get it straight, it is not possible. You need to pay the loan you took, no matter what. So, better come to terms with the fact and sort out the issue rather than hiding away from it.

This loan itself isn’t something vicious but it’s you who can make it troublesome by shirking off your duties and by not making timely repayments.