Consolidation Loan Interest Rates
Consolidating student loans is the right move for some folks, especially if you need to get your loans into Federal Direct to earn Public Service Loan Forgiveness. But how do you know what the interest rate will be on the consolidation loan? The interest rate on a Direct Consolidation loan is the weighted average of the interest rates on the loans being consolidated, rounded up to the nearest 1/8 of a percent and capped at 8.25%. More about consolidation loans and their interest rates is on Mark Kantrowitz's fabulous FinAid.org website. Click…
What the Debt Ceiling Deal Means for Your Student Loans
Originally posted on Idealist.org The House and Senate passed the Budget Control Act of 2011 just ahead of the deadline, and President Obama has signed the act into law. Key student aid programs are largely intact, and I am relieved to report that the new law avoids some of the proposed cuts that would have hurt students the most. There are three main provisions in the debt ceiling deal related to higher education: Funding is provided for the Pell Grant program. The in-school loan interest subsidy for graduate and professional students is eliminated…
Relief for Student Debtors Editorial
Three cheers for the New York Times and its recognition that there is no reason to extend special protections to private lenders of student loans! The Times recently published an insightful editorial calling attention to problems associated with expensive private student loans and the "undeserved advantage" private student loan lenders currently enjoy over other issuers of unsecured credit. I support the pending bills sponsored by Senator Dick Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, and Representative Steve Cohen, Democrat of Tennessee, that would…
What Every College Student and Grad Should Know About the Debt Ceiling Agreement
At long last, the folks in Washington have made a deal and student financial aid is hanging in there. The agreement reached yesterday between the White House and Congress avoids some of the cuts that would have hurt students the most. Yesterday’s agreement shores up the Pell Grant program by providing $17-billion in funding, and the White House indicates there will be sufficient funding to keep Pell Grants at their current level of $5,500. If Pell Grants had been cut, students may well have had to increase their reliance…
10 Ways Student Loan Lenders and Collections Agencies Violate the Law by Adam Minsky
Adam S. Minsky, Esq. is a Boston lawyer who concentrates his practice in student loan law. Thanks for this Guest Post, Adam! When student borrowers fail to pay their student loan bills for any reason, lenders will try to get them to pay. The longer the borrower doesn’t pay, the harder the lender will try. Sometimes, the lender will hire a collections agency to pursue a student borrower who is in delinquency or default, and often these agencies will use aggressive, intimidating, deceptive, or irritating tactics. The federal Fair Debt…
