SLM Loan fees

[surreal1221]

Anyone have a figure of how much / how they calculate their fee's for the loan?

Is it 1% of the requested loan amount, or something else?

Thanks

[JaceTheAce]

It's based on your credit score. If you have good credit you may not have to pay an "origination fee". Interest rate is determined by your credit too.

[surreal1221]

Okay, thanks Jace. We (wife and I) both have upper 700 credit scores - 760+ from all three credit agencies.

I knew the loan interest rate is based off of our credit score, but wasn't sure if SLM used a standard 1% for the origination fee.

[GaTechKid]

Key Bank was ~4% with a cosigner

[surreal1221]

Gotcha. . . I wonder if Key Bank has any plans to get back into the career training loan market. . .

[kellwolf]

Based on recent experience with SLM, I'd say avoid them like the plague. The right hand has no clue what the left hand is doing over there.....

[surreal1221]

May not have an option thanks to my choosen location for 141 va approved training only uses SLM. Trust me, I'd rather get a personal loan for 40k from a bank. . . BUT. . .those do not exist (from my research).

[joel_MQY]

Originally Posted by kellwolf

Based on recent experience with SLM, I'd say avoid them like the plague. The right hand has no clue what the left hand is doing over there.....

Agreed. Do WHATEVER you can to stay away. Much frustration abound...

[surreal1221]

How do you guys pay your SLM payments? Do they allow you online access to your account? Or must you mail in a check each month?

[pilotty]

I pay mine online at salliemae.com.

Question: Do you guys know how your credit score will affect your chances at getting hired? What about people that have a bankruptcy? Thanks

[DenverPilot8]

SLM completely killed me on interest. I had 10k from them for training and I paid it off in 6 months and by that time I had already accumulated $980 in interest. That's after a few $100 payments. ONLY 6 MONTHS!!!!

I know that from my own research there is not a lot of financial options out there if you want to borrow the money. For being a government backed loan the interest rates at SLM are astronomical. It's a price that a lot of us pay though to make the dream a reality. I would consider other financial options such as cash savings or home equity loan. It would at least have lower interest. I mean it doesn't really matter how much you borrow...what matters is how much the money you are borrowing costs.

[killbilly]

Just learned this today...

SLM (and others) get subsidies from the government for financing student loans - it is unclear whether any of this goes to the career-training loans that most folks here use.

They're about to take a severe beating. Congress is considering eliminating the subsidies in favor of doing direct lending to students - in the words of the reporter - Private lending institutions are too rich and have been for too long.

Been trying to find the story on NPR's website, but the only one they have at the moment is from the weekend edition. I'll keep looking...interesting stuff though, and could have some ramifications for people who want to use SLM in the future.

Here it is....

http://marketplace.publicradio.org/s...200704094.html

[kellwolf]

Originally Posted by pilotty

I pay mine online at salliemae.com.

Question: Do you guys know how your credit score will affect your chances at getting hired? What about people that have a bankruptcy? Thanks

Same here. Either that, or just do it through the online banking at my bank.

I doubt anyone cares if you have a bankrutpcy, or if they even run a credit check on you. I know some airlines SAY they do, but those things do cost $$$. I know for a fact PCL doesn't care about a bankruptcy. I got hired.