Carmen of Oregon City OR (11/09/08) This is an on-going issue. I have two loans - one private, one federal. For months, Sallie Mae has been incorrectly applying my payments to the incorrect loan. Therefore, I receive delinquency notices from them. I have contacted them numerous times about there problems with not applying my payments correctly, and each time I am assured that the problem has been resolved.
They are ruining my credit by saying I am delinquent. My frustration has hit its maximum level and I just don't know what to do anymore. Can you PLEASE help?
Julie of Manchester, NH November 8, 2008
Julie of Manchester NH (11/08/08) I too took out loans with sallie mae...federal and private. I went to cosmetology school all last year. I went full time during the day, so i needed to cover my cost of tuition as well as my cost of living (i.e. food, rent, LIFE) etc. The total I took for the year was about 39k. THROUGHOUT my year in school i was constantly in contact with sallie mae, asking questions about repayment, grace periods, etc.
They had told me that my loans could be consolidated and put on a 25 year payment plan as my private loan debt was over 30k. Extend the payments out to be able to make resonable monthly payments. A representative told me taht i'd be looking about about 360 a month after my grace period. Though that is high, i couild do it. SO now my grace period ended on 10/31/08. I deceide to sign up for the 2 year interest only payments extending for 25 years. I figure that would give my boyfriend and I some leeway with our monthly bills and allow me to get into a hair salon and build a client base. WRONG!
Sallie mae doesn't do private loan consolidation anymore. So that means that I am stuck paying off 46K (prinicpal and interest) over a 10 year span of time with no option what so ever to extend through sallie mae. My interest only payments for the enxt 2 years is 367, after taht it goes up to 740 a month. I'm not too sure as to what i am going to do in 2 years, b/c i can say right now we can't afford that. And i can't afford to get a job in a salon, which is what i went to school to do.
When I spoke with sallie mae (crying) i asked what if in 2 years my boyfriend and i are married and we want to have children. i'll be our of work for a few months...you're telling me my private loans are not deferable and thats it? the rep replied yes. So i am now working at an office, the entire reason i went to school for hair is b/c i hate office work...and now i have no choice but to do it b/c we need the moeny to pay my student loans.
Chris of Parker, CO November 7, 2008
Chris of Parker CO (11/07/08) I opened a loan in November of 2003 for my daughter to attend Sylvan Learning. The loan term was supposed to be for 6 years. I was given a Sallie Mae loan with those terms with a loan amount of 13,034. I called Sallie Mae on November 7, 2008 to find out loan balances and my outstanding balance was 11,134. after 5 years of payment, Sallie Mae made changes in my loan terms and has only applied 2000 towards my principle amount, and applied 6000 towards daily interest. they also changed my terms to have final pay off for my loan to be 2018. I was not notified that this change had occurred.
the economic impact in the terms of the loan is 16,000 in addition to the 8,000 already paid. that would mean 24,000 for a 13,000 student loan. I would like an attorney to contact me regarding my loan.
Eric of San Mateo, CA November 4, 2008
Eric of San Mateo CA (11/04/08) so after many years of wondering i decided to be a chef and go to culinary school. like many people my only choice was to go for student loans with a cosigner. i was giving an impression that many people go this route with sallie mae and perhaps in ingorance i thought this would be a very laid back process, little do i know of the horrors sallie mae. throughout the school year my depression finnaly caught up with me after my battle with it for 6 years and almost killed myself and was hospitalized for 5 days. this happened about a month or so before graduation. it was not difficult at all to get a doctors note stating i was unable to attend school OR work. and i was also able to obtain and a leave of absence of 6 months from my school on the condition of sending in a doctors note every month. on the last (6th) month of my leave of absence, i was in the process of changing doctors with my regular on maternity leave and was unable to turn in a doctors note. when i told my school this they said theyd have no choice but to kick me out.
needless to say i was devastated to be removed from school so close to completion though what happened next was the big problem. days later i got a letter from sallie mae saying i needed to begin payments that month of 700+ along with a bill for kicking me out of school, also 700+ . i asked what happened to the 6 month grace period i was promised and was told that because i was technically not in school for 6 months, that that was my 6th month grace period. and talking with my school, sallie mae and various other resources i was told there was nothing they could do. no one cared about my problem, only my money. i knew much of the world was heartless but for some reason i didnt expect student loans to be so cut throat.
i had no choice but to get a 6th month defferment and battle through my depression/medication/and suicidal thoughts and look for a job. and needless to say the job market is very thin right now and now i have bills do in a month with no money. im terrified not only for myself but for my cosigner who with medical bills for her husband is completely broke. are 3 lives going to be destroyed from this? i dont know what to do anymore. im living with my family right now and it seems ill be living with them for a long time.
Hannah of Milpitas, CA October 31, 2008
Hannah of Milpitas CA (10/31/08) I received a forbearance for my account because I attended school for more than half-time and I was supposed to be on hold until October 8th. September comes around and they haven't emailed, called, mailed me a reminder regarding my account. It's as if they expect me to know when to pay. The only letters I've received were dated October 9th which detailed my payment plan to be due on the 9th of November. On the 24th of October, Sallie Mae sent me another letter telling me that I have a past due account for October, by which they never made me aware of such required payment. Had I been aware of this before-hand, I would have made my payment sooner. I feel exploited by a loan company that I am supposed to trust.
This is not the first time this has happened as well, I know of several Sallie Mae debtors in my immediate family that have been blind-sided by Sallie Mae as well. We are not running away from our payments but what they do is an abusive practice that should be stopped. If the company itself is honest with its billing I would not complain but because they are shady, even though they may appear to not break any laws, it's bad treatment of their customers.
The economic damage here is my credit score which they have affected by not telling me when my first payment was due. I am incensed at their non-chalance on the phone and unsavory practices. I am assuming, this is how they make their money by lending it out and placing phantom late fees which should not exist because the customer themselves are not aware that they are being billed.
Their customer service representatives are nothing but buffoons handed a telephone who know nothing about the situation and refuse to rectify what they have done. I am not someone who is running away from my debts but the fact that they considered something as not making people aware of their practices is nothing short of shady.
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