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Topic: Help!! Consolidating private loans (sorry to post this here, but
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| Author | Message |
| jessamae22 | Posted – 11/1/2004 11:11:51 PM | show profile Ok..I just graduated in June, and I have private loans from Sallie Mae ($36,000). I just found out from them that I need to begin payment in December, and I cannot consolidate the loans because they are private. So, I am going to have to pay $300 a month (not including the other $100 from my federal loans) with a 15-year pay back!! I've tried to find places to consolidate private loans, and so far, no luck. One company did consolidate private loans, but I didn't qualify because of my income (I'm currently interning with a mag for no pay). I am about ready to get absolutely hysterical, partly because the damn situation is so ironic (i;m not going to be able to take another internship because I'll have to get a job just to pay off my loans, which I got just to get my dream mag job!!)..Does anyone have any advice before I go off the deep end????!!!! Sorry again for having to post here....I wish they would fix both the beginner's board and O/T!! |
| fourfold | Posted – 11/2/2004 8:32:48 AM | show profile | email poster Hey, don't go off the deep end! I'm not sure I understand your question. Are you hoping that by consolidating the loans you can lower your monthly payment? It seems unlikely you'll be able to do this, especially if you have no income. No lender will consider you a good risk. To be blunt, I think the real issue here is that you have to face up to the fact that this debt is real, and you have to start paying it in December. Look at the other side of the equation, your job situation. A post-grad internship is great, but you're going to have to start earning some money. Start looking for a job that pays you a salary, and have a back-up plan in case you don't find your dream job right away. Make lattes at Starbucks or be a sales clerk at Macy's during the holidays until that dream job comes through. Don't panic over not being able to accept another internship. You're out of school and have one intership already. Your next step is an entry-level, paid position. |
| jessamae22 | Posted – 11/2/2004 8:55:29 AM | show profile Thanks for the advice! I'm not so much as worried about the debt ( I knew I'd be starting payments soon), it's just that I never thought monthly payments would be so high. I've been trying like hell to get an entry-level magazine job, and this internship (with a big consumer mag) would be great...I was just concerned that if I take a non-magazine job (to pay the bills), the gap in my resume would make me less likely to get an entry-level job. Basically, if I only have one internship and work in, say retail to make ends meet, will I still have a good chance of landing the coveted mag entry job??? |
| mollybgolly | Posted – 11/2/2004 10:34:00 AM | show profile Why not defer? These are student loans, right? You can defer them for one year due to financial hardship. That's what I did when I graduated college and didn't immediately have a steady income. You can download the deferment form at salliemae.com, click on ''postpone payments.'' |
| JimmyG | Posted – 11/2/2004 12:20:35 PM | show profile You won't really get a better deal on your own for this, no matter where and how you consolidated. Credit cards, even low-interest ones, would require as high, maybe higher, monthly payments. Even if you were to press your parents, assuming they own a home, to take out a home-equity loan to cover the debt, this wouldn't help all that much, as I think the max on a second mortgage is a 20-year term. And trust me, you don't want this debt hanging over your head for the next two decades. If anything, once you're gainfully employed you should eschew that new car, or designer whatever, take a part-time job or freelance to make extra payments to whittle down that nut as soon as you can. You can live on the cheap in your early 20's, but time will come a decade down the line when I'm sure you'd rather be sinking that money into a condo, home or, by then perhaps, family. |
| rita | Posted – 11/2/2004 1:22:34 PM | show profile what kind of payment plan is it? you can opt for a graduated payment plan that starts low and increases every two years. something to consider. |
| jessamae22 | Posted – 11/2/2004 1:59:47 PM | show profile thanks for all of the great advice...I have spent all day talking to Sallie Mae, and they are going to offer me a graduated plan! So now, I will probably try to get this internship and work the rest of the time! |
| emm | Posted – 11/2/2004 2:28:17 PM | show profile well... before you do the graduated payment plan, you should apply for a forbearance. that is what i did for a year, but now i am doing the graduated payment plan. they allow you to do 2 6-month forbearances, which means you don't have to pay each month, but you still accrue interest. you should really put off the graduated payment plan for as long as you can or avoid it all together because your payments are going to be extremely high later on. |
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