Sunday, October 21, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
new blog- coolest guy on the planet!
just wanted to let everyone know about my latest blog. i am going for the title of "coolest guy on the planet". there are a bunch of guys showing off their seo techniques in this contest, and i am one of them. hopefully i can at least make page one in the search results for the keyword, which is the title i spoke of earlier.
my new blog is located at http://coolestguyontheplanet.blogrox.com
there you can monitor my progress and see just how well i am doing. as of this post, i am ranking #14 in gword- not bad seeing as i started the blog only a couple of days ago!
so wish me the best!
my new blog is located at http://coolestguyontheplanet.blogrox.com
there you can monitor my progress and see just how well i am doing. as of this post, i am ranking #14 in gword- not bad seeing as i started the blog only a couple of days ago!
so wish me the best!
Friday, March 10, 2006
US Dept. Of Educations "Katrina Specific" Help Website
The Dept. Of Education has set up a website specifically for those affected Hurricane Katrina.
Some of the topics are:
How to Get Help
Donate and Volunteer
Finding Friends and Information
Health and Safety
Hurricane Contracting Information Center
White House Hurricane Relief
Additional Resources
Some of the topics are:
How to Get Help
Donate and Volunteer
Finding Friends and Information
Health and Safety
Hurricane Contracting Information Center
White House Hurricane Relief
Additional Resources
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Interest Rate Increase Closing In
Thinking about consolidating your student loan debt? You have until June 30, 2006, before new interest rates kick in. However, if you are a new graduate, you'll want to weigh the pros and cons of consolidation loans fairly quickly. After graduation, you have a six-month grace period before the loan payments begin. By consolidating during the grace period, you save about one-half a percentage point. A summer 2005 graduate could lock in a 4.7 percent rate on Stafford loans, rather than the 5.3 percent rate that kicks in at the start of the repayment period.
The only drawback to consolidating during your grace period is you'll need to start making payments immediately. Not ready to give up those blissful, payment-free months? You could keep much of your grace period by waiting to consolidate until the last month of the grace period..
With a federal consolidation loan, your lender pays off the balances of all the loans you choose to consolidate and then issues you a new loan. Keep in mind though that once you consolidate your loans, there's no going back.
"Once you consolidate there is no way to un-consolidate," says Patricia Scherschel, vice president of loan consolidation at Sallie Mae. "Consolidation is a one-way street."
The interest rate on a consolidation loan is determined by taking the weighted average of interest rates on the federal education loans the student has and rounding up to the nearest one-eighth of a percentage point, capped at 8.25 percent. The final rate will differ from student to student.
Many borrowers sign on for a consolidation loan because they need more breathing room in their monthly budgets. A consolidation loan can lower a borrower's monthly loan payment by as much as 40 percent while stretching out the repayment period.
If your student loan payments add up to more than 8 percent of your gross monthly salary, you're a good candidate for a consolidation loan.
And you don't need multiple loans to enjoy the benefits of a consolidation loan. If your loan amount is high enough, typically $7,500 or more, you may be able to consolidate a single loan. Even though the initial interest rate on that loan won't change much, it will lock in these lower rates for the life of the loan.
The only drawback to consolidating during your grace period is you'll need to start making payments immediately. Not ready to give up those blissful, payment-free months? You could keep much of your grace period by waiting to consolidate until the last month of the grace period..
With a federal consolidation loan, your lender pays off the balances of all the loans you choose to consolidate and then issues you a new loan. Keep in mind though that once you consolidate your loans, there's no going back.
"Once you consolidate there is no way to un-consolidate," says Patricia Scherschel, vice president of loan consolidation at Sallie Mae. "Consolidation is a one-way street."
The interest rate on a consolidation loan is determined by taking the weighted average of interest rates on the federal education loans the student has and rounding up to the nearest one-eighth of a percentage point, capped at 8.25 percent. The final rate will differ from student to student.
Many borrowers sign on for a consolidation loan because they need more breathing room in their monthly budgets. A consolidation loan can lower a borrower's monthly loan payment by as much as 40 percent while stretching out the repayment period.
If your student loan payments add up to more than 8 percent of your gross monthly salary, you're a good candidate for a consolidation loan.
And you don't need multiple loans to enjoy the benefits of a consolidation loan. If your loan amount is high enough, typically $7,500 or more, you may be able to consolidate a single loan. Even though the initial interest rate on that loan won't change much, it will lock in these lower rates for the life of the loan.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Forbearance Issues
I received this email from Cody of Houston, TX recently regarding his student loan:
"Manny - found your blog. I want to know if others are having the same problems with the Direct Loan Servicing Federal Student Aid program.
I live in Houston where I had a few leaves blown off my tree by Rita. The government automatically deferred my student loan payments without my consent. I accrued two months of interest on my balance amounting to about $200. Upon the restart of my payments, my monthly payment went up by $7/month with 72 months to go. Cumulatively, this would amount to roughly $510 of payments on $200 of accrued interest though my interest rate had not changed from the 4 5/8% it was previously. When I raised this red flag to the DLS, they stated that my loan had been miscalculated from the get-go and this was the new payment.
I called B.S. and have requested paperwork on the loan recalculation be sent to me in writing.
Please let me know if you hear of other cases."
Thanks for sharing your experience Cody. Mandatory forbearance (automatically granting forbearance) is not unheard of in times of disaster. But I was under the impression that one still had to request it, or at least sign some kind of written agreement. The whole thing sounds like a big mistake to me, but I think you did the right thing by requesting proof of their claims.
Please keep me updated, I would like to know how everything turns out.
Manny
"Manny - found your blog. I want to know if others are having the same problems with the Direct Loan Servicing Federal Student Aid program.
I live in Houston where I had a few leaves blown off my tree by Rita. The government automatically deferred my student loan payments without my consent. I accrued two months of interest on my balance amounting to about $200. Upon the restart of my payments, my monthly payment went up by $7/month with 72 months to go. Cumulatively, this would amount to roughly $510 of payments on $200 of accrued interest though my interest rate had not changed from the 4 5/8% it was previously. When I raised this red flag to the DLS, they stated that my loan had been miscalculated from the get-go and this was the new payment.
I called B.S. and have requested paperwork on the loan recalculation be sent to me in writing.
Please let me know if you hear of other cases."
Thanks for sharing your experience Cody. Mandatory forbearance (automatically granting forbearance) is not unheard of in times of disaster. But I was under the impression that one still had to request it, or at least sign some kind of written agreement. The whole thing sounds like a big mistake to me, but I think you did the right thing by requesting proof of their claims.
Please keep me updated, I would like to know how everything turns out.
Manny
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