Senator Warren’s bill failed to gain enough support to move on from the Senate. Now that it's dead, let me tell you why I’m glad for that.
This bill is a bad idea. It does little to help already struggling borrowers, and hurts more than most folks realize. Further, with President Obama’s recent . . .
Read More
Obama’s Executive Action Falls Woefully Short
On June 9, 2014, President Obama took action to make college more affordable. Can we call this what it really it is? It’s an act to make student loans more affordable. This act in no way makes college any more affordable than it already isn’t.
What the President did was expand a program he . . .
Read More
Student Loan Debt Crisis Symposium Review
This past Friday I attended the ABI's (American Bankruptcy Institute) Student Loan Debt Crisis Symposium. It was...um...interesting. I say that because I came in with a unique perspective, being in the trenches and all. For me, it was more review and less of an informative or "problem solving" . . .
Read More
Student Loans and Military Personal
Yesterday was Memorial Day, so it is only proper that I discuss protections from student loans for those who serve our country.
SCRA
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act has many provisions that apply to many other debts besides student loans. The important one here is the interest rate cap. All . . .
Read More
Dear ED: Clarify Undue Hardship
On May 16, 2014, seven Congressmen/women sent a letter to Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, asking for clarification of "Undue Hardship" to allow Federal student loans to be discharged in bankruptcy. The signers of the letter were Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jack Reed (D-RI) and Elizabeth . . .
Read More
FDIC v Sallie Mae
On May 13, 2014, two consent orders were issued: FDIC v Sallie Mae Bank and FDIC v Navient Solutions Inc. (formerly known as Sallie Mae, Inc.). These are the results of the FDIC's investigation into Sallie Mae's alleged violations of the Servicemenbers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), Electronic Fund . . .
Read More
Beware the Nightmare of Federal Joint Consolidation Loans
Divorce is messy, but it's even worse if you've got a joint federal student loan consolidation.
The Federal Joint Consolidation Loan was offered from the late '90s to the mid 2000's, and allowed married couples to consolidate their Federal student loans.
It seemed like a good idea to someone . . .
Read More
“Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act” in Plain English
Yesterday, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) introduced legislation aimed to help level the playing field for student loan borrowers. The main goal is to lower interest rates on ALL student loans (Fed and Private) to a fixed amount for the duration of the loan term. The theory being that if interest . . .
Read More
What Happens to your Student Loans when you file Bankruptcy
If you've read anything on the internet about student loans, you know bankruptcy probably can't help you. Discharging student loan debt through bankruptcy is not impossible, but it is difficult, for two reasons:
1) The test is draconian with no objective standard, and
2) It is often cost . . .
Read More
How Bankruptcy May Cause More Student Loan Problems
Beware the trip wire of default when filing for bankruptcy.
When you file for bankruptcy, all collection activities must stop against you. For Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases, that protection from collections extends to co-signers and guarantors on your loans.
This important consumer protection, . . .
Read More