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Richard

I decided in late 2002 to attend a place called "FullSail University" in Winter Park (outside Orlando) FL. BIG MISTAKE!! In order to attend I had to take out loans, as this is an expensive school AND a full 24hr facility. They also recommend "cost of living" loans to be included with the loan you take out. Unless you want to work after having a 12 hr day at FullSail. Anyways, I was a little leary about taking out such a big loan, but I was assured I'd have plenty of time to pay them back and the interest will always remain low. At this time they showed me interest rates of 3-5% as examples. So, to start out with I had an original loan of roughly $28,000. As time passed I learned the equipment and software was NOT industry standard for the field of study I was in.
So I decided to withdraw from the school 6 months after enrolling. I did put off paying back my loans while I tried searching for a job. I did try to see about possibly having the loans dischaged since the school itself failed to live up to it's promise of having up-to date technology and a small student/teacher ratio (amongst other things). They claimed something like 15 to 1 and it was more like 40 to 1.
So I was told to contact the State Attorney General regarding the matter and they in turn told me that the school had done nothing wrong by misleading me....surprise surprise.
Basically I was told "you're screwed". So I had a hard time getting work and making my payments and the loans just got bigger and bigger.

Fast foward to today and what started out as a loan of something like $28,000 is now $32,685.62. On top of that, if I'm having a hard time making payments and I try explaining this to the Sallie Mae "customer reps" I get comments like "well no one put a gun to your head!". Which is true, but no one also told me "well, this school really has junk computers, old software, a larger student to teacher ratio than you originally were told...Oh and those low interest rates that look appealing will jump up to 7 and 8%". If I had know even ONE of those things before signing the line..I would have threw the loan application in the trash.

How am I supposed to ever start a family now with my wife?? I make $12hr which may sound good, but when you think of how much it costs to just get by today, it's not so good. All I can BARELY afford for the loans ,here and there, is a payment of $250 or so. With those payments I'm told it will take over 15 years to pay off my loan and by the end a $28,000 loan will have totalled $53,000!!!!!! They tell me the largest ammount on my loan, which is a private loan, can't be consolidated, can't be discharged in a bankruptcy..nothing! It's the untouchable loan!!! So I'm in real trouble here! I even had to file for bankruptcy to try getting back on my feet from other debts and thanks to Sallie Mae..I STILL CAN'T!!

But still...I have no clue how to handle or rationalize that a person of such meager means as myself is going to end up paying over $50,000 to some massive corporation for ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!! As I said earlier, I left the school, so I have no degree and no job related to my field of study. I'm paying debt for nothing.

Sorry for such a long story...to anyone who actually reads it.

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Vlasis

Regarding my son, the total amount borrowed was $37,729 disbursed to school on 2/17/04 (although the school shows 2 payments equal to that amount, one posted on 2/18/04 and the other on 9/24/04) has been charging interest for that total amount since 2/17/04....interest is now up to 16.25%, was 16% just last month. It seems to be going up each month. The school said the payment would be arount $300/mo, what a crock of crap. If we had known this, we would never have agreed. The loan (alternative) was at first private, but then Sallie bought it and the interest rates are outrageous, must be criminal. How do they expect an unemployed 22 y.o., without a car, to begin to pay a monthly bill of over $700!!!!! This is a real hardship, unacceptable. The school lures you with indications that your payments will be really reasonable and then....BAMMMM, the crap hits the fan. If someone doesn't do anything, this so called country of education will soon be in a very very bad situation. I have restless nights unable to sleep just bewildered at which these people are getting away with. Perhaps everyone in this situation should just stop paying them and let's see what would happen.

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JD

I have two outstanding student loans with Sallie Mae that have account numbers that are no problem. Unfortunately I have two closed accounts through SM Servicing that use my ssn for my account number on my credit report, thereby revealing it to anyone who requests a copy of my credit report. It wouldn't be too hard for anyone with just a piece of the ssn to figure the rest out.

For the last six months or so, I have contacted Sallie Mae numerous times with several more recent promises of letters to the bureaus and myself. NO follow through on changing the account number or delivery of the letters has occurred. This has continued for at least 6 months.

I know I'm not the only person with this problem and I also know this problem is widespread. I would imagine fixing all of the mistakes could get costly for them, hence the probable source of their lack of motivation. Here's an article I found from 3 years ago, but I haven't been able to find anything more recent. Any ideas? I would be happy to participate in any class action lawsuits that are in progress or initiated!

Thanks for any advice you might have.

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William

I grew up in a very poor family in a low income area in Pennsylvania. As soon as I hit 14 years old I got a job and since then I've always had my own income. My family lived paycheck-to-paycheck my whole life and didn't have any money to help me go to college. In fact, they had debts of their own. Their credit wasn't the greatest and so I had to get my grandfather who was retired to cosign for me.

Thinking back now, I should have handled it a little bit better but I was fresh out of high school and I was determined to get my "dream job" as a programmer in the games industry. I picked my school, and signed whatever paperwork I needed to sign and went off to school. I guess I felt like I had no other choice but to accept their nasty interest rates. I had little to no credit since I was so young.

When I graduated school, I was lucky enough to have a great resume and I landed my "dream job" at a huge gaming company, and the pay is very good at 50,000 a year. Even with this high pay, I'm still living paycheck-to-paycheck and I feel I'm going to be stuck with this for a long time to come. I have just over 100k in debt and most of the loans have an interest rate of 16.25 percent! I pay $1150 a month and thats just interest-only! I don't understand how this is legal!

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William

I consolidatd student loans and these story's that I read here are HORRIBLE!
I feel so bad, I am not a college student but when these students call in for help it is so sad-we can do nothing for them because they have all these debts with "#1 Student Loan Giver" which would be (Sallie Mae) and all of their umbrellas...This is ridiculous! We should do something about it!
I think the Government should give the D.O.E the authority to do something about these SCAMMERS!!!

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Daniel

I went to school at Le Cordon Bleu in Miami, where I met three students who had begun their schooling and were given the "ok" by the financial aid and planning department, only to be told halfway through their schooling that their highschool educations did not meet the requirements of the school, so they would have to take care of that and start all over again. Quite an oversight, don't you think? Maybe they weren't. So, the two who wanted to continue earning their education there had to start over again, losing months of their lives and having to pay double for whatever classes they had already taken. I, personally, started with $41,000 or so and now I owe $53,000 only a year later. Since I could not begin payments, I put the loans in forbearance; when I did, the interest was "capitalized". I cringe thinking of the mountain of debt I face - and the petty amount of cash I am earning. Day and night I will be having to work from now until who knows when to!
pay this off.

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Nicholas

Hello, folks. Thank you for the opportunity for me to tell my
story and to tell you that I may "have an accident"soon because
I am tired of having my life ruined.

Here is an approximate timeline of events pertaining to my
Student Loan:

I started at a junior college around 1980 and continued on and off til
1986. I had to work two jobs,one at a Pizza restaurant and another
doing miscellaneous contruction work. In the interim, in 1984 I
joined the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve.I thought that if it was
the career choice for me I would sign up full time.

When I got out of boot camp I went back to school and my civilian jobs.
I do not know how I managed to get a loan for $10000 with such bad credit.

In December of 1986 I went on a school trip to the mountains in Colorado.
I started getting very sick and in a lot of pain. I ended up at a hospital
in Denver and had surgery to have my spleen removed. I also had a
collapsed lung. I could barely walk or talk after the operation.I spent
about three weeks in the hospital but I managed to get home in time to
start the next semester at school. One night in January I started feeling
sick in class and went home. It turned out to be pneumonia so I was taken
to the hospital in Ft. Lauderdale. I stayed for a week and went home.

Then the bills started coming in. I only had Travellers Insurance at the
time and was covered up to $2000. The 80 mile ambulance ride was $600, the
different bills from radiology, the anesthetist, the hospital, etc.was in
the thousands.The one week stay for pneumonia was about $6000. I was still
recovering and I did not have a job. Collectors were calling around the
clock including the student loan people who said my loan was in repayment,
for want of a better word. I could not pay. I managed to borrow $600 from
my parents to send to the ambulance company. I was about to get the check
when I got another bill in the mail stating that I now owe $720. This happened
only weeks after my surgery.Ten months later I had pneumonia again and
remembering my debt decided to not stay in the hospital. I went to the
hardware store and set up a do-it-yourself IV. By then I was quite the little
expert. Later on I was told I could have died from either the pneumonia,
my IV invention, or both. Too bad I didn't.

I called the lady at the student loan company to explain to her what happened.
She said I could apply for a deferral. I did that but didn't know it had
to be renewed every month or semester. I don't remember which.

Throughout the '90s I went from job to job and the collectors kept calling. One
of them actually went to my parents house and got into an altercation with them
because he thought I still lived there.

I arranged a payment schedule with a
collector in the late '90s for the student loan, and boom, another layoff.

When 9/11 happened and for a long time after, there were no jobs. I could not
get any kind of job. I applied for a job as a dishwasher but was turned down.
I applied for a job in construction for which I am highly qualified.My
unemployment benefits ran out.

Now, in January 2007, things are starting to look up, although layoffs are once
again looming. Then I get a phone call at work. A nasty
individual, from Alliance, calls me and starts yelling at me. He tells me
he is going to garnish my wages. I told him to not
call me at work. He left another voice message and another guy left a message
in a Sgt. Joe Friday voice, "I am Agent Scumbag. You need to call us at 800-xxxx
immediately." This guy destroyed my reputation and any chance for advancement at work.
I might get fired. I recorded both messages and sent them to my HR.

A couple of days ago I received a letter and forms from the U.S. Department of Education.
They are going to garnish my wages up to %15, which I cannot afford. I can't afford %5 much less
%15. We are barely making ends meet as it is. I want to pay the original amount. Not
$30000 with interest. If I even still have this job, this debt will never be paid off.
And I'll bet the pigs at Alliance and in Congress create more laws in their benefit, such as
indentured service, slavery, making everyone in the family pay (which is what they are
doing now, in reality), and probably raping your wife and kids. People, I am NOT kidding.

Thanks for hearing me out.

a friend

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Rick

I went to Phillips Junior college ( Melbourne , fla.)back in the early nineties, while I was in the Air Force. Well I got called to serve in Desert storm and had to quit my school. well after the air force my loans went into default ( was real hard to find work) . A few years later my taxes were held back a few years. ( Fair enough). Well 14 years later I start getting calls about how I am in default of my student loans. I told the customer service rep for the company i will not name, ( Pioneer Credit recoery) that My loan was paid because my taxes were withheld those years. Well she pretty much told me to prove it. So i called the IRS, HA! HA!... What a joke , they said there records dont go back that far. So what happens , a few months later big chunks start coming out of my paycheck every week. I am screwed. They use the Dept of education to bully my payroll dept to start the deductions. ( they meaning Pioneer )As if that wasnt a big enough slap in the face my original loan amount ( if it wouldnt have been paid by my taxes being withheld) was $5103.78. well after they tacked on their fees and so called interest it came to $9949.37. And what can i do about it? Nothing ! Lay down and take it. As if ends arent hard enough to meet already. Crooks !!! And they are getting away with it. Every two weeks I am reminded as i look at my paycheck. When it all said and done I will be paying over $15000.00 for a $5000.00 loan for scool that I didnt get to finish because I had to go fight for our freedom so companies like Pioneer And the US Dept of Education can rip people off and live like kings...........

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Rick

I don't even know where to start.....I guess the name SallieMae says it all.
My son and I signed for a "federal student loan" for his education at Full Sail in Orlando Fl.in 2003. Originally we were going to use a different company but after our interview with the Full Sail representative we were "convinced" that going through SallieMae would yield lower interests and the school totally supported that company. (Little did we know at the time that the school received compensation for signing students with SallieMae.)So we signed with SallieMae without really checking it out and that is entirely our fault. However, we do feel deceived as we were told this was a "federal student loan" when in fact it was a "private loan". This loan was granted in 2003 AFTER SallieMae's transition to become a private lender but we were not informed of that fact.
Original Loan: $28,975.00

Current Amount Due: $38,475.13
$18,380.00 $22,269.77
We also have two FFELP loans that total almost $6,000.00. SallieMae said, quote, "We don't really care what you do with the FFELP loans - we are not concerned about whether you pay those."
These are the problems we have had: receipt of a statement every two weeks;
each statement is different from the next noting different payment amounts,different due dates, different interest rates, (my son receives a statement that says one thing and I receive one that says something else); the company calls us 2-3 times a day; we tried to call and negotiate or get some help and it has been refused; when we have called we generally get a foreign person with a heavy dialect and we can't understand them and they only keep repeating the same answer over and over no matter what question you ask; we have spoken with "supervisors" who are disrespectful, rude and demeaning; one "supervisor" told us not to bother sending a lesser amount than owed because it wouldn't "affect the loan" - when asked if he was suggesting that we not send ANY payment he stopped short and blabbered about something else; we also requested consolidation which was denied; we have considered re-financing with another institution but no one will touch the SallieMae loans; we went through the forbearance process twice which did not help our cause and only added more interest but staved off default.

My son was affected by Hurricane Katrina. He was living in New Orleans and lost his apartment, his vehicle and a new job. He had to move back to Florida and try to get re-established. SallieMae did not care. They had no concern for my son or anyone else affected by the storm. He finally was able to get back on his feet by working as a server and a with little help from FEMA. He is working now in the field he went to school for and trying to do what he can just to "live". The payments are more than his rent agreement and higher than my mortgage. I have taken a second job and have started making payments to Sallie Mae, however, the confusing billing system leaves me stymied and I don't know what I'm sending payment for or how it will be applied to the loan. We tried to secure a home equity loan recently and although not entirely denied we were unable to secure the amount we were seeking due to the SallieMae loans. Of course, now they are calling and telling us we will be refer!
red to a collection agency which, no doubt, is THEIR collection agency!
Well, I feel better about sharing my story and at this point will follow your advise about "doing something". I'm not sure what I will do, contact my representative, write a letter to SallieMae but at any rate I am glad there is someone out there who does understand and care.....
Thank you!

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Tracey

I started going to school in Overland Park, KS at a Corintian College. I was so stupid to the workings of the student loans. Sallie Mae offers up the loans to this school that doesn't transfer their credits anywhere that would do you any good. You obtain Diplomas. Then you have to fight and actually pay the school for your grades that were obtained while attending their school. Well once again I started back when I moved to Florida with my worthless Diplomas from Wright Business School. I should say that the diplomas were worthless to me not Sallie Mae over ($25,000.00) in debt for worthless diplomas, credits that do not transfer to other schools. Now my saga continues at Florida Metropolitan University (Lakeland Campus) I began working on my degree in criminal justice (ha what a joke, you can not get a job in this field when your credit is bad, which Sallie Mae make sure happens)I was to the point that I only needed 2 classes to obtain my BA in Criminal Justice, now I year later I try to return to finish what I thought to be my last 2 classes to find out that I need 14 more classes to finish now. So I guess I will have to attend school until I die and never be able to work in the field of my choice due to my very poor credit all thanks to SALLIE MAE.

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Denis

I graduated from Florida Technical College in 1997. I started to pay back my loan as much as I could but in 1999 I fell ill with kidney failure and fell behind on all my bills. I had two vehicles reposessed and just about lost my home. After a couple of years trying to pay and catch up on past bills myself it came down to having to claim chapter 13 bankruptcy. In 2006 I was able to pay off my bankruptcy early and and clear up alot of my bad debt. The only major debt I have now is my student loan which was with Sallie Mae but is now with the state of Florida. It is in collections and I have gotten a phone call from the collection agency and what they are offering me now is to pay the loan off in full or make $900.00 per month payments for 1 year to clear this debt. I can't afford that in any way shape or form. Like alot of other people I have a family to support and a mortgage to pay. For the first time in 10 years we are almost back on our feet, dispite having kidney failure again and being on dialysis for the past two years for the second time. (My wife gave me this kidney in 2001 and it rejected in 2005.) I have contacted other lenders about consolidating the defaulted student loan at the request of the collection agency but the lenders are telling me because it is in default they could not help me. I don't understand, I'm trying to do what I'm told and the collection agency tells me to get it consolidated to clear up the debt with them but no one will consolidate because it's in default. I'm still trying to find another lender because the last thing I want is the embarrassment of a wage garnishment.

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Harold

Where does one begin? Am I like the thousands of others the worked for 25 years in an industry such as the Apparel Industry? During the late 1980 went the leading Major Dept. stores all went Bankrupt do to the Canadian Developer using Junk bonds, and he bought Allied, Federated, May Company, and others that let them down the road to Bankrupty; leaving the industry in shambles? So many people in sales, managment, and other positions were sent looking for new careers; what happened?

Am I like the thousands of others that our Federal Goverment said
" Change careers and go back to college, and retrain yourselfs"; of course they meant at your own expense, and Fifty Thousand Dollars later in debt.

Am I like so many other family members that went through the pain of going back to school part time, and working full time, and having no life for 2-3 years while studing, and accumlating dept with student loans, and credit cards to meet the bills?

Yes, I guess so. I went back to College to retrain myself as a Middle or High School History Teacher. Only, to my surprise I did not know that my previous AA Degree earned 20 years earlier would not be accepted by the new college, and they wanted me to retake courses over again. (Wasnt't that swell of them?)

Too make a very long story a bit shorter, I passed all my courses, and retook Alegebra twice (failed the first course), and then they expected me to take Intermediate Alegebra too, which I did, and took it again, and took it over again because I could not understand, and pass the course. Oh yes, I was excellent in History; which is what I wanted to teach.

All the while when in College, I took a job as a Substitute Teach too, so I could work for a living and go back to school. The Principles at various schools wanted to hire at a History teacher; however, I could not pass INTERMEDIATE ALEGEBRA, AND COULD NOT EARN MY DEGREE!! FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS DOWN THE DRAIN.

I had meetings with the Dean of Nova University, and practically begged them to pass me in INTERMEDIATE ALEGEBRA; let me write a term paper; please, and just pass me. NO, ITS UP TO THE PROFESSOR. These Professors in Math Dept; they are BLACK AND WHITE IN THEIR THINKING; either you pass the tests or fail.....I failed.

I am sorry, this subject is a very sore one for me; brings back bad memories. I found out about this web site speaking to a gentleman today who wanted to me to consolidate my student loans, and the subject itself; just bring out the worst. I explained what happened,and he suggested I go to this site.

I OWE VIRTUALLY NO MONEY TO ANYONE; EXCEPT THIS OUTRAGOUS STUDENT LOAN THAT KEEPS GROWING. ITS A DAMN SHAME THE UNITED STATES IS SPENDING (WASTeING) SO MUCH MONEY ON THE WAR, AND CANNOT HELP ITS OWN WORK FORCE.

Yes, I am one of thousands of others who had good jobs, paid taxes, raising a family, and whose industry went down. And our goverment says, and still says "Go back to College and reeducate yourselves". Well I did to the tune of 50,000.000

I do not know if anyone will read this or give a damn. But they should. People who lost their jobs and went back to school, only to be in big dept to this Universities who really do not give a damn. I mean if the United States really believes in educating their work force, then they should help in a major way with for students wanting to go to College. This country needs to declare a WAR not on IRAQ, but on Education, because if we lose our population to less education, and less standard of living, then we will lose our standing as a world power too. What has happened to our NATION?

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Latia

Well, First i would like to say that I am totally shocked at all the different horror stories about Sallie Mae. I can't believe that in the United States of America, people are made to feel less than nothing for making the choice to receive a Higher education.

My horror story basically starts the very moment i decided to go to AIU. My fiance at the time (Darren)decided to go to AIU. He was working, but wanted to further his education due to pressure from his parents, and a need to at least try for a higher paying job. I was receiving Food Stamps, and doing people's hair on the side as a way to make money.

Due to car problems, and no childcare, i stopped going to Aiu in 2002. November 2002 to be exact. I was disbursed a loan in Oct 02-1 for $1667, and another for $3,667. I would have assumed that these would have been sent back to the lender, or at least part of it because i stopped going the very next month. I was in an accident a totaled our only transportation.

Last year, I was contacted bu American Education Service, or AES about student loans that i had and may be going into default. I explained i was unemployed but agreed to the forebearance. AES was really nice, and i am currently on forebearance until september this year.

NOW>>Apparently there was another loan allocated to me in June of 02...4 months before the other loans. these loans however are now (so they say) in default and Pioneer Credit recovery is handeling them. These loans are with Sallie Mae.

my husband already is in a repayment agreement with them for his loans, because they called his job, neighbors, anyone they could to get in touch with him. (we had no phone at the time) when they reached him last year, they threatened to garnish his check, and we couldn't afford it, so he agreed to payment arrangements. Supposedly for 6 months..then he will be back in good standing..(NOT TRUE) 6mos became 9mos, then that became 12. And God forbid he miss one payment, he had to start over again.

Being that he was in a contract with Pioneer, they are not supposed to garnish his paycheck, or Income Tax refund. But then when we filed this year(06) the much needed check was put on hold. Only to find out that it was for MY loans. Loans I had no idea I had with them. I called. This woman Sherri, a supervisor, talked to me like i was nothing. I mean she talked to me saying things like, you made the choice not to work, you got the loans, i don't give a damn about this and that. Now people who know me, know that usually i would have cursed this b**** out...lol..or at least fired off at her with my own quick temper..but i was upset that my $$ was being held, so i just hung up.

My easy going, non argumentative husband called, and she went off on him as well. he tried to explain that i am not working. We filed married filing joint because we have to to get earned income credit. There is no W-2 in my name or employment records. and He is under a contract with them already, so how can they take the refund..they are trying to stik it to me, while breaching the contract with him. The woman also lied, she told me the loans went into default in Oct 06, and told my husband Oct 05. But In september i called the other agency (AES) and filed for forebearance. Don't you think if i would have known about another loan, i would have did the same thing? I mean rather than be harassed only a few months later.

We called the tax advocacy dept, because the actual money is not in their hands as of yet. we are filing an injured spouse claim. This whole thing is confusing, but i am not one to be bullied. They sit behind their desks on the phone, they belittle good people, hard working people, and make you feel like crap for seeking a Higher education. Then once you have that education, you still can't find high paying employment, so you are basically back at the point you were before you put yourself in debt. To make matters worse, their repayment plans put you in debt in other ways. You will always be robbing peter to pay paul.

I really think that something needs to be done. It is time. These people are vultures. They called neighbors leaving messages for me to call them. They didn't know if i knew these people or not. My one neighbor ssaid she got a call asking her did she know Latia who lives at such and such address. She said I don't know her, but that is right up the street. They gave her the message anyway. HOW CRAZY IS THAT!!! I understand that student loans are debts, and nee to be repayed. I agree. I don't agree that they are so cruel, and so heartless, that they totally disregard anything going on in your life in order to get payment. I mean this has got to be stopped.

Now I am a stay at home mom, 1 kid in college and pregnant..the baby is coming to stay with us so my daughter can finish school, we have 2 teens in high school(one close to graduation) 1 in Middle school, and No income tax return, to take the edge off the bills. A friend of mine told me when she was at her lowest, layed off, no family alive to help her, single, living off of unemployment, and had school loans, Pioneer credit recovery breathing down her neck. She told them, crying on the phone thay were gonna make her kill herself, cause they were making it hard for her to keep a roof over her head. She was told, Well If you try and don't succeed, Please make sure the funds are in the bank for your payment!!!!!
THAT SAYS IT ALL

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Gordon

Right out of high school, I went to the local community college in my area under a "merit scholarship," because of my grades (top 10% in high school), but, since I was a kid, I lost the scholarship after 3 semesters due to low grades. I was too young to know what I wanted. Then, I went to electronic college here in the Tampa Bay (Florida) area, to study a hobby I enjoyed, and the college indicated it might help me get a good job, but no job was forthcoming, even though I was one of three students who tied for my class valedictorian, that is, the number one spot. Even though I was unable to get a good job, I made regular payments on my loan.

However, a few years later, figuring my 2-year vocational degree was not enough, I went back to college, and I graduated with honors and a double major from The Florida State University, hoping to pursue genetics -another subject of which I am fond.

I achieved higher grades at Florida State than I had even during the 2 semesters I retained my "Merit Scholarship" at Hillsborough Community College, but the State of Florida did not give me back my academic scholarship.

In plain English, what I am trying to say here is that even when I got my grades HIGHER than those who had academic scholarships, I was not given my scholarship back -the money went to students, many of whom had LOWER grades than me, which I think was unfair, and, from a "constitutional" standpoint, a Federal Violation of Equal Protection (I was not "Equally" protected here, since those with lower grades continued to receive academic grants.)

My total debt grew to 46 Thousand dollars, 23 Thousand of subsidized loans and 23 Thousand of unsubsidized loans. (That is, the government pays the interest on subsidized loans under some circumstances.) I tried getting a good job in my field, but since few companies in Florida deal in genetics, any serious move I have attempted to make to obtain a job in my field would take major money for rent (I live with my father currently), and I can afford either rent OR paying back my college loan, BUT not both -unless I want to pay only on the interest and pay on it forever!

Help!

I did not go to college to be a burger flipper, hello. I call upon My God to help me -I believe in Heaven and all, but I don't want to be a martyr simply because greedy persons in authority charge me interest.

In all fairness to Sallie Mae, they let me consolidate my loan and have -up to this point -continued to grant me forbearances and unemployment deferments, but the interest continues to grow, and I don't know, from a mathematical standpoint, how I will ever be able to pay back my loan.

When a student jumps through all the "right" hoops and yet something like this happens (and my case is not even a "horror story" -many are apparently much worse, reading these other letters) .uh.oh! Yes, as I was saying: When a student jumps through all the "right" hoops and yet something like this happens, something is just not right, folks.

If the "Interest" charged on my loans were no more than the rate of inflation, I could pay on the loan until it is paid off, as my pay-raises would increase in strength at the same pace as the interest, but we know that this is not true. For this reason, it doth appear to me that "The System Is Broke." Help.

Sincerely, and I sign with my real name to show that I am not making up this story:

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Cory

In 2001, I attended a secretarial school in Massachusetts. I needed to take out a student loan to help pay for my tuition costs. A mediocre amount of $2,0000. Six weeks before graduation, my school was bought out and the campus that I attended was closed down. They gave us no warning of this action. We where advised that to continue for our last six weeks, we could attend the school that bought ours out a hour away. No problem I thought. I made the long drive to school everyday and graduated.

When it came time to look for employment, however, I was told that they could not verify any of my records from the secretarial school and that it was shut down before I supposedly graduated! That same week of job hunting, my x husband had thrown me out of the house and I was homeless. I knew according to my paperwork that I had up to 6 months from graduation to start payment on my student loans.

The only job that I could find in the area was at a amusement park. I made a mediocre sum of $6.25 and hour. Cost of living in Massachusetts was so high that I decided to leave the state and move to Florida. A year went by and I did not hear anything from Sallie Mae. I finally contacted them, told them my situation and received a deferment. In 2003 I finally got a decent job and notified Sallie Mae that I would like to start paying on my loan there was one problem, they wanted $400 a month! I told them that there was no way I could pay that amount but I could pay $200 a month.

So here I was paying $200 a month even though they said $400 tough for them I am paying something, what I could afford. I noticed that my money I put in wasn't changing my balance but increasing it! I was furious, because I thought that the government regulated the interest and that it was like 1% or something like that. When I called Sallie Mae they said the loan was transferred to this bank and that bank. I told the lady look I am very ignorant person when it comes to loans and credit what is going on? Her explanation was giving me a headache, so I hung up on her.

Since my payments where not making a dent into my loan, I stopped paying them. The calls started. Harassment! I told them "look fools", "why pay when I will owe more? Fuck that!" I have ignored, ignored, ignored them. I have been forced to work under the table for the last 2 years. I will never be able to buy a house. My future is very bleak. Last time I checked, my $2,000 loan is now up to $12,000.

To most of you that might seam like a very small sum. But for someone who can only find work at minimum wage level it is impossible.

I do not have a family or friends that can help me. I am all alone in this world. But you know what, I don't let it get me down. I am willing to volunteer or do whatever needs to be done to stop this atrocity from happening to someone else.

Someone had mentioned "what if every all at once said NO WE ARE NOT GOING TO PAY YOU. Even if it is just for a month, I think that is the only way we are going to catch the governments attention.

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Carl

Like any other high school student I was told that you either go to college or you end up a bum. What suckers are we?

I wanted desperately to go to a private university because it was one of the only schools in the country (and the only in the state) to offer the degree I was looking for. The university was ridiculously expensive and yet it was shoved down my throat. When my father told the school officers that he didn't want me to be in so much debt, they made him feel guilty. I probably didn't help.

These corporations are so quick to sign 17 and 18-year-olds and their parents into this trap without even the slightest moral regard. They don't warn you of the risks. They don't tell you any of the horror stories. They only tell you where to sign and never make the reality of what these jerks to do you known.

In the end I got a degree and $80,000 in student loan debt. $20k is federal and the other $60k is private. I've already defaulted on the private loan after paying back $6,000 that hadn't even touched any bits of principal. Unless I get the world's most spectacular job or win the lottery, I'll never end up paying back these loans without putting myself in hardship. I know this now, and I'm 26. Either that or I'll being paying these loans off until I'm 55, which leaves me 10 whole years to save for retirement. NOT an option.

The only ray of hope I have is the fact I got a job overseas and now live in Australia. I WILL still pay my loans, but only as much as I can currently afford - which is about $250 US a month. At this point I could care less. They can go ahead and garnish my wages (maximum %15), but they'll have to go through an international court system with international layers - all to end up with about $200/month.

Honestly, I think it should be illegal for new students to sign up to so much life altering debt without a full briefing on what can happen. If someone had told me the realities, I'd never have gone the way I did.

 

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Gordon

Long-story-short: My student loan is unfair "usury / interest" -prohibited by many Biblical scriptures enumerated below, and I am drowning in debt... (from the Amplified Bible)

-- This is the end of the "short" version. Below, this email is long, I warn the reader in all fairness. --

Exodus 22:25
If you lend money to any of My people with you who is poor, you shall not be to him as a creditor, neither shall you require interest from him.

Leviticus 25:36
Charge him no interest or [portion of] increase, but fear your God, so your brother may [continue to] live along with you.

Leviticus 25:37
You shall not give him your money at interest nor lend him food at a profit.

Deuteronomy 23:19
You shall not lend on interest to your brother--interest on money, on victuals, on anything that is lent for interest.

Deuteronomy 23:20
You may lend on interest to a foreigner, but to your brother you shall not lend on interest, that the Lord your God may bless you in all that you undertake in the land to which you go to possess it.

Nehemiah 5:7
I thought it over and then rebuked the nobles and officials. I told them, You are exacting interest from your own kinsmen. And I held a great assembly against them.

Nehemiah 5:10
I, my brethren, and my servants are lending them money and grain. Let us stop this forbidden interest!

Psalm 15:5
[He who] does not put out his money for interest [to one of his own people] and who will not take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.

Proverbs 28:8
He who by charging excessive interest and who by unjust efforts to get gain increases his material possession gathers it for him [to spend] who is kind and generous to the poor.

Ezekiel 18:8
Who does not charge interest or percentage of increase on what he lends [in compassion], who withholds his hand from iniquity, who executes true justice between man and man,

Ezekiel 18:13
And has charged interest or percentage of increase on what he has loaned [in supposed compassion]; shall he then live? He shall not live! He has done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him.

Ezekiel 18:17
Who has withdrawn his hand from [oppressing] the poor, who has not received interest or increase [from the needy] but has executed My ordinances and has walked in My statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father; he shall surely live.

Ezekiel 22:12
In you they have accepted bribes to shed blood; you have taken [forbidden] interest and [percentage of] increase, and you have greedily gained from your neighbors by oppression and extortion and have forgotten Me, says the Lord God.

The Details:



Dear, StudentLoanJustice.org:

Right out of high school, I went to the local community college in my area under a “merit scholarship,” because of my grades (top 10% in high school), but, since I was a kid, I lost the scholarship after 3 semesters due to low grades. I was too young to know what I wanted. Then, I went to electronic college here in the Tampa Bay (Florida) area, to study a hobby I enjoyed, and the college indicated it might help me get a good job, but no job was forthcoming, even though I was one of three students who tied for my class valedictorian, that is, the number one spot. Even though I was unable to get a good job, I made regular payments on my loan.

However, a few years later, figuring my 2-year vocational degree was not enough, I went back to college, and I graduated with honors and a double major from The Florida State University, hoping to pursue genetics -another subject of which I am fond.

I achieved higher grades at Florida State than I had even during the 2 semesters I retained my “Merit Scholarship” at Hillsborough Community College, but the State of Florida did not give me back my academic scholarship.

In plain English, what I am trying to say here is that even when I got my grades HIGHER than those who had academic scholarships, I was not given my scholarship back -the money went to students, many of whom had LOWER grades than me, which I think was unfair, and, from a “constitutional” standpoint, a Federal Violation of Equal Protection (I was not “Equally” protected here, since those with lower grades continued to receive academic grants.)

My total debt grew to 46 Thousand dollars, 23 Thousand of subsidized loans and 23 Thousand of unsubsidized loans. (That is, the government pays the interest on subsidized loans under some circumstances.) I tried getting a good job in my field, but since few companies in Florida deal in genetics, any serious move I have attempted to make to obtain a job in my field would take major money for rent (I live with my father currently), and I can afford either rent OR paying back my college loan, BUT not both -unless I want to pay only on the interest and pay on it forever!

Help!

I did not go to college to be a burger flipper, hello. I call upon My God to help me -I believe in Heaven and all, but I don’t want to be a martyr simply because greedy persons in authority charge me interest.

In all fairness to Sallie Mae, they let me consolidate my loan and have -up to this point -continued to grant me forbearances and unemployment deferments, but the interest continues to grow, and I don’t know, from a mathematical standpoint, how I will ever be able to pay back my loan.

When a student jumps through all the “right” hoops and yet something like this happens (and my case is not even a “horror story” -many are apparently much worse, reading these other letters) …uh…oh! Yes, as I was saying: When a student jumps through all the “right” hoops and yet something like this happens, something is just not right, folks.

If the “Interest” charged on my loans were no more than the rate of inflation, I could pay on the loan until it is paid off, as my pay-raises would increase in strength at the same pace as the interest, but we know that this is not true. For this reason, it doth appear to me that “The System Is Broke.” Help…

Sincerely, and I sign with my real name to show that I am not making up this story:

Mr. Gordon Wayne Watts of Lakeland, Florida, USA, Earth.

 

 

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