student loan argh

[pylduck]

Damn you Mr. President! So I just received my student loan bill today for this past month since the increased rates set to offset the tax breaks to the rich. And the interest accrued this past month is 50% more than it's been in past months.

Comments

[lightningfro.livejournal.com]

Holy shit, that really sucks. That's why I'm trying really hard to avoid student loans.

[pylduck.livejournal.com]

I know. Sucky. Totally look for grants and fellowships. They're out there, and if you look hard enough, you can probably avoid taking out loans. I was just lazy and never really went to my school's Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid except to process paperwork for loans.

[slanderous.livejournal.com]

But how else will we keep Paris Hilton and the Olsen twins in Balenciaga bags and Marni?

[pylduck.livejournal.com]

You make a good point. I will learn the art of sacrifice.

incentives for celebrities!

[kristy-chan.livejournal.com]

HAHA, oh no you didn't.

YIKES

[kristy-chan.livejournal.com]

EEEEE, did you consolidate?

I think the hike is generally directed as "reducing the deficit". I assumed it was all about the war, but is it also for tax breaks for the rich? I bet it's both because both contribute to the deficit.

Re: YIKES

[pylduck.livejournal.com]

I was thinking about consolidating, but it would've meant starting to pay back my loans immediately. As it is, if I graduate at the end of December, I won't have to pay back loans until next June or something. And at this point, with very little in my bank account, it seemed more do-able not to consolidate. I didn't crunch the numbers, but I did think not consolidating would mean more money paid in interest in the long run. :(

And yeah, I think the reasoning behind the student loan interest rate increase was to reduce the government's budget and deficit. But when it all comes along with tax incentives for businesses and people with plenty of money, it's hard not to think of it as shifting the tax burden more to people without money.

Re: YIKES

[kristy-chan.livejournal.com]

I won't instruct you on your finances. I just consolidated before the hike (I should have consolidated my undergrad loans BACK THEN, when the interest was practically nothing, though). Then, I got a waiver since I'm broke. I read that if you decide to not considate, it should be if the interest is silly like 8% (maximum amount legally possible is 8%), and it would probably drop again.

I totally am offended by the hike because I definitely think of it as "taxing the lower middle class". I mean, some students do make a lot of money after they graduate, like if they are in engineering. The rest of us usually suffer though, so it all seems punitive to me. Like, punishing the liberals in arts & sciences (who won't get lucrative jobs anyway).

Re: YIKES

[kristy-chan.livejournal.com]

Oops, I meant "deferment" instead of "waiver".