Donna asks…
Problems with direct loan.?
I have been unemployed since 2007. I tried online college, they told it would not cost me anything since I was out of work. The school did not work out. I could not afford text books which average 150.00 a class. Now I have received a statement from direct loan stating I owe $9,633.48. My payment is 133.48. I still do not have a job. What the blazes do these people expect. It is odd because I in the process of getting disability and the first year lump sum will be about 9000 thousand something? Am I being done over by Ashford or am I just a big sucker?
Considering I was unemployed at the time I enrolled and I am still unemployed, does this have any bearing on the circumstances of having to pay the loan back? Also, with disability coming into the picture, will this have an impact on anything as well?
Nagesh answers:
Call Direct Loans and ask for the income contigent repayment plan. I have it and since my income is only about 12,000 a year and I have 3 kids, my payments are $0 a month, but I am not considered in default. Your interest will still add up, but at least they won’t be hounding you and you won’t go into default.
Thomas asks…
usda 502 direct loan from the goverment?
who gives out usda502 direct loans a lender or goverment
Nagesh answers:
Quote from their website: “Rural Housing Direct Loans are loans that are directly funded by the Government. These loans are available for low and very low-income households to obtain homeownership. Applicants may obtain 100% financing to purchase an existing dwelling, purchase a site and construct a dwelling, or purchase a newly constructed dwelling in communities outside of metropolitan areas. The purpose of this loan is to provide financing at reasonable rates and terms with no down payment. Mortgage payments are based on the household’s adjusted income. These loans are commonly referred to as Section 502 Direct Loans. Application is made at the USDA Rural Development office serving the county in which the home you plan to buy is located.”
To qualify you need to purchase in one of these rurally designated areas. Normally, that means a town that has less than 25,000 people.
Helen asks…
Is a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan a Stafford Loan?
Nagesh answers:
Yes, a Federal Direct Student Loan (also known as Direct Stafford Loan) is borrowed directly from the US Dept of Education and you either qualify for subsidized and/or unsubsidized (for a subsidized loan the US Dept of Education pays the interest on your loan while your in school and up to six months after to you leave school). You should check out www.studentaid.ed.gov, all the info is there plus free help, and fill out the FAFSA. If you’re going to college this Fall, you had from Jan 08 to June 2009 to complete your FAFSA and see if you get free money or qualify for a loan, subsidized or unsubsidized. Good luck with everything.
Lizzie asks…
Student Direct Loans?
I have my disclosure statement for my student refund and i am a little confused…
it says “Your school plans to disburse the Net Loan Amount as follows:
Date 02/12/2013 $—.–
and another date 03/08/2013 $—.– (same amount as above)
its like that on both sections for Direct Subsidized Loan and the Direct Unsubsidized loan sections.
How do i read this? Is it a mistake? Will they change the form? When will i get my refund?
-confused college student.
Nagesh answers:
Federal financial aid generally has to be paid out in at least two disbursements. Your school is simply telling you the amounts they plan to disburse and on what dates. Since you have two different loans (Subsidized and Unsubsidized), they have to inform you about each one separately, even though they may be disbursing them both on the same date. The Net Loan Amount is the amount of the loan minus the origination fee (1%).
Each school sets its own policy about when to disburse. If this is you first loan, they may be required to wait 30 days after you start classes before disbursing. Other than that, they may disburse up to 10 days before classes start, or they could wait until after you post attendance, or they could disburse after the add/drop period. In your case, it looks like they plan to do one disbursement on Feb. 12, and then another one on March 8.
Generally speaking, when the school disburses, charges such as tuition and fees will be deducted at that time. Once the disbursement is posted to your account and the charges are paid, the school has 14 days to refund any money that is left to you (unless you signed a form that authorizes them to retain it–this is a common practice at for-profit schools that don’t have regular semesters).
Ken asks…
FAFSA question… Pell grant and Direct Stafford Loan?
after i submit my FAFSA… it said i may be eligible for Pell grant and Direct Stafford Loan. So Do i sign up myself or FAFSA will determine that and send me info??
thank you!
also, anything else I needed to do for my FAFSA after I submitted it?
Nagesh answers:
FAFSA. Free application for federal student aid.http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/
What is federal student aid: It includes grants, work study and loans. Filling out the FAFSA you are applying for all the federal aid listed on this page, plus others certain states and colleges have individually: click federal aid programs on the right: http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/grants.jsp
When FAFSA? Jan 1 of the year you will need it.You have the option on the FAFSA to do an estimate FAFSA using the previous years taxes and send it through. Then ASAP when you can you do the taxes for that year and go on the FAFSA home page under #3 where it says make corrections and put in the actual tax information. For example, my daughter was attending Fall 2010. On Jan 1 we did the FAFSA as an estimate using our 2008 taxes, then as soon as we got or W2s and did our taxes for 2009 we made the corrections on the FAFSA. Why file an estimate: Because colleges are all given so much grant/work study money and its given to students first come, first serve, even if you qualify if you file later, it may be gone. So file early!
How much do you get: Federal aid is offered given to students based on their financial need. Your financial need is determined based on the questions you are asked on the FAFSA which will be about income, amount in banks, property owned, stocks and the like, as well as questions about your current home situation, how many, how many in college at the same time etc. These questions will determine your financial need. They use all the info to determine your EFC, estimated family contribution which is the amount of money your family is expected to pay for your college because they can afford that based on your financial picture. This EFC amount is subtracted from the cost of the attendance (also called school budget) and the result of this is your financial need. COA/student budget is tuition, books, travel personal expenses, housing, fees. You can get an estimate here: http://www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov/F4CApp/index/index.jsf Even if you do not qualify for federal grants or work study you may qualify for federal loans which most all students have. This EFC and recap of your FAFSA will be put in a report called SAR, student aid report. You get an email this is ready in a week or two if you did it online and it can be viewed on the FAFSA home page #3.
The only way you will know what federal aid you qualify for is the colleges you listed on the FAFSA will be sent your SAR and a financial aid award created for you based on your financial need. Each college award will be different, as the cost of attendance is different, colleges have their own aid to offer, and when you apply makes a difference in what aid they have available to offer. You need to look at all the offers. If your federal aid grants, work study and federal loans do not cover your cost of attendance you will need to get a private loan to cover the rest like from a bank, so it may be smarter to pick a cheaper college where you need the least loans
How do you get your aid once you accept it: It gets deposited into your college account, usually by semester not all at once on certain disbursement dates your school has where everyone will get their money disbursed on a certain day. We applied Jan 1 2010, school started 9-1, our semester federal aid was disbursed 8-25. The colleges takes out their charges for housing, meals, tuition, and fees. We did have money left over and if you do you get a refund either a check or card system depending on the school, and we got that a week after school started by card system. Use that refund if any for books, materials etc.
Helpful sites:
All questions FAFSA, financial aid: http://www.finaid.org/
http://www.gocollege.com/financial-aid/student-loans/benefits-of-loans.html
Click BEGIN THE PRESENTATION: http://www.nextstudent.com/financial-aid-tutorial/financial-aid-tutorial.asp#
http://www.knowhow2go.org/
Does your state/program participate in out of state tuition for instate cost: http://www.sreb.org/page/1304/academic_common_market.html
http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/timeline.jsp?tab=applying
http://studentaid.ed.gov/students/publications/student_guide/2009-2010/english/typesofFSA_grants.htm
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