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Let me loan you some advice!Apr 02 '01 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line Student loans have helped many and will do so for years to come but at what cost. Review all your options first before you decide and read the fine print! Although it's been awhile since I've been in college, the thoughts of what happened to me still send chills up and down my spine! It's not that getting a student loan is necessarily a bad thing but I strongly urge everyone that is considering getting this type of loan to read the fine print! It should be noted that although this review does not directly deal with paying off your student loans, it will help you to understand why I think doing so is of major importance. As with some of my reviews, rather that hammer you with facts, I'd prefer to use my true life experiences as a way of getting my point across. Before I begin, I must first stress that I'm not an expert in this field and am not saying that what happened to me, will happen to you but it could! Back in 1980, when I was living in the beautiful state of North Carolina, I decided that my job had little to no future and thought it best if I go to college to better my education in hopes of getting a better job. Craven Community College was the place where I enrolled for classes and was also, the place where I filled out the paperwork for a $700.00 student loan. What I'm about to tell you is in no way meant to discredit the college as I personally think that what happened to me, could've happened anywhere and I don't hold them responsible in any way for the actions of one employee. After my loan was approved and I received my check, I went directly to the bank to deposit it. Since there was still some time before my classes started, I figured I'd use the money when the time came to purchase my books and other necessary school supplies. About a week or two before my classes were to begin, the girl that I was living with, got an offer for a great job in South Carolina; too great to pass up! Figuring that I could just as easily enroll down there after we got settled, I went to the bank to withdraw the $700.00 that was loaned to me so I could return the money that I borrowed. Everything went fine and the gentleman that accepted my money, gave me a receipt so we were off to South Carolina. Once we got settled, I, too, was offered a great job that I couldn't pass up so I put my education on the back burner for the time being. I'm sure that most of you have heard the expression all good things must come to an end and my relationship was one of them. Although we parted as friends, I felt that being in the same city or even the same state, would be too much for either one of us to handle. I decided to make the trip back home to Massachusetts and it was agreed upon that once I got settled, she'd send me my things and that would be the end of it. Everything went rather smoothly as I had hoped because I got a good job less than a week after I arrived home and a new relationship wasn't too far behind. Once again, I was settled in but with one big problem! Instead of her sending my things up to me by normal mail, she decided that it would be quicker to send them airmail...and threw them in the trash dumpster! Life went along as well as can be expected and the thought of returning to college didn't even cross my mind until about nine years after I got back home. I once again found myself wanting for more than I had and since I was now married, I wanted to do it while I could still fit behind a desk...lol. I applied for another student loan and this is where my troubles began. The loan went through as I expected it would and I started college classes within weeks of receiving my check. Problem was, between working and the kids, I found that I couldn't keep up with my studies and so decided to quit college and just pay back the loan as previously planned. What I didn't know was that the loan is due right after you stop going to college, whether you quit or otherwise. I was notified that the payments would be $50.00 monthly and figuring I could handle that small amount, I sent the first payment out immediately. When I received confirmation from them that payment was received, I noticed something that I didn't like at all! Out of the $50.00 that I paid, only $20.00 came off what I owed and the other $30.00 was the interest on the loan. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that this was not where I wanted to be. I filed a letter of protest and was sent a copy of what I signed with certain parts highlighted that stated that they had every right to do this. What started out as a $1,200.00 loan would wind up being a total of about $3,000.00 with interest added on. I thought to myself that it couldn't possibly get any worse but, as usual, open mouth and insert foot because within a week of each other, my wife and I both lost our jobs. Not being able to meet the payments left them with no alternative but to try and collect by other means and in doing so, cost us an extra $1,000.00 in collection fees. Will the black cloud that is hanging over our heads, please go away, I was quoted as saying but it wasn't over yet. Remember that student loan that I got while in North Carolina, the one that I paid back? Well, they had no record of me returning the money and the person that took my money quit shortly thereafter...for no apparent reason! No apparent reason, my foot! Well, I plead my case and they said that if I could show them the receipt then all would be forgotten! As I knew that everything that I owned while down there was tossed in the trash, finding a receipt was impossible! You won't probably believe me but that $700.00 loan from long ago, with interest, had grown to about $3,500.00! Allow me to recap if I may! Out of a total of $1,900.00 that I borrowed between the two loans, I now would be paying close to $9,000.00 by the time I paid it off, of which close to half of that was for a loan that was never used. The debt took a total of seven years to pay with a portion taken out of our tax refund checks as well each year. I guess that's the price you pay for higher education...lol! My Opinion Although, some of you may say that this will never happen to you (and it probably won't), the points that I'm trying to make here are the following: 1. Make sure you know what you getting into before you sign by reading everything! 2. If you must consider the possibility of having to take out a student loan, plan on it by putting some money away for when you do have to pay it! Although, it's not due until you leave college, I'm reasonably sure they'd take your money ahead of time if you wanted to do it that way. 3. Be sure that you intend to see it through to the end and, if not, make sure you can pay it in full if you do drop out! The penalties for defaulting on a student loan is very steep as I've outlined in this review and can make you old and gray before your time...like me. 4. Before deciding on taking out a student loan, first review all your other options to make sure this is the best way to go. True life experiences are part of life with some of them being good and some of them being bad but all with a purpose...to make you a better person. Student loans have been helping people for many years and I've rarely seen anyone get turned down for one so it is something to think about! I'm sure what happened to me is rare but trust me when I tell you, the interest on a student loan can put you in the hole for a long time without proper planning!  |
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