Heads up everyone: The new interest rates on federal student loans are here. And fortunately, this year, they’re just a little bit cheaper. The 2015-2016 federal student loan interest rates, which took effect July 1st, are more than 1/3 of a percentage point less expensive than last year’s rates. Granted, these yearly fluctuations in interest rates are not some extraordinarily rare — they’re something that has, and will continue to happen annually, as a natural consequence of market fluctuations. Continue reading
Category Archives: Student Loan News
← Older postsTake note of these 5 student loan debt relief agencies (recently sued by Illinois Attorney General)
This past May, Attorney General Madigan of Illinois filed a hefty lawsuit against the following 5 student loan debt relief agencies: Consumer Financial Resources LLC, operating as Student Loan Resolve (based in Texas) Federal Student Loan Alliance (based in California) Interactiv Education LLC, operating as Direct Student Aid (based in Florida) Student Consulting Group Inc., a.k.a. University of One and Help Assist Me Default Resolution Services (based in Georgia) Nationwide Student Aid LLC (based in Chicago) The Attorney General alleged Continue reading
GL Advisor: where’d they go?
For the past few months, I have been receiving many phone calls from worried student loan borrowers concerning GL Advisor. Apparently, this agency, which was designed to help borrowers manage their student debt, has been unreachable for weeks. Unfortunately, this does not surprise me that much — but it did just a little! While scams of all kinds run rampant throughout the student loan debt relief industry, GL Advisor seemed to be on the up and up. They focused on Continue reading
Washington Attorney General & CFPB sue Student Loan Processing (debt relief agency)
Last Monday (April 6, 2015), Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit against Student Loan Processing. Allegedly, this firm had been exploiting student loan borrowers by tricking them into paying for federal loan benefits that were designed to be 100% free. In other words, Student Loan Processing was positioning the benefits provided by the U.S. Department of Education as though they were “unique” programs that could only be obtained through their agency. Oy vey. Interestingly enough, back in Continue reading
CNBC asks me: How to ease the burden of student debt
This past week, I was asked to contribute to a CNBC article about the topic that seems to be on everyone’s mind these days: the strange and incomprehensible world of student loan debt. The article is titled, “How to ease the burden of student debt,” and in it, I’m quoted saying, “there’s almost always a way to make your situation work.” What a perfect quote to be featured — this statement is at the heart of my work! You can Continue reading
I’m on the Jim Paris radio show. Listen here!
Last night (Sunday the 4th), I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Jim Paris, for his radio show, Jim Paris Live. We had a great time talking about student loan repayment: how complicated it is, common Q & A’s and why my background in both private and federal loans (as well as investment advising) has qualified me to provide this unique – and much-needed – service. As you’ll hear, Jim has a knack for picking my brain. And a Continue reading
The latest in predatory lending news (Corinthian Colleges)
You might remember my blog about ITT Tech’s getting into hot water with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), when the latter sued ITT for using predatory lending practices on its students. That was back in February. Now here we are in September, and a similar story is in the news — only this time, it involves Corinthian Colleges. This past Tuesday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sued Corinthian Colleges for using “strong arm” tactics to collect from its Continue reading
Update on “Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act”
Today, Senator Elizabeth Warren hosted a community call, which discussed her Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act. The bill lets qualified borrowers refinance existing public and private loans to the same lower rates that Congress agreed on last year for new federal loans. If passed, it should give borrowers the ability to refinance at around 4%, depending on the loan type. What Happens Next The Senate is going to have another vote on Bank on Students Continue reading
Quick note about the “Relief for Underwater Student Borrowers Act”
The News In late July of this year, U.S. House Representatives Frederica Wilson (FL-24) and Mark Pocan (WI-02) introduced the “Relief for Underwater Student Borrowers Act, H.R. 5239.” This bill aims to give the borrowers who have been granted debt forgiveness – i.e. the ones who’ve made 20 years of consistent payments through one of the U.S. Department of Education’s Income Based repayment assistance programs – a break from being taxed on the amount forgiven. Why It Matters Presently, Continue reading
Obama’s Executive Order on Student Loans
In June of this year, Obama signed an Executive Order on student loans, aimed to provide some much-needed debt relief to borrowers. Since then, there have been many complex articles written about the topic, but what you need to know is actually quite simple. All things considered, it’s all good news. It’ll either improve your student debt repayment situation, or have no effect for you whatsoever. Read on for my must-know’s on this historic event! 5 Student Debt Must-Know’s If you qualify Continue reading