Loans & scholarships | Focus on Personal Finance, 7e

Posts Tagged With: Loans & scholarships

Paying for College

Posted on July 30, 2016 by Melissa Hart

It’s more important than ever for students and former students to make smart decisions about financing their college education. Whether you are attending college soon, are a current student, or already have student loans, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has put together some tools and resources to help you make the best decisions for you.

If you are considering student loans to help pay for school, you not alone—many students need loans to cover their full cost of attendance. If you have to take out student loans, comparing your options can help you find the student loan best suited for your needs.

Consumer financial Protection Bureau has prepared student financial guides, financial aid shopping sheet adopted by more than 500 colleges and universities, and other helpful information on its website.

For more information, click here.

Teaching Suggestions

You may want to use the information in this blog and the original sources to

Help students appreciate that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau overseas private lenders, debt collectors, and loan services that manage borrowers’ payments and billings.
Describe why one-in-four student loan borrowers are past due or in default on a student loan.

Discussion Questions

When borrowers default on a student loan, what might be some adverse consequences on their credit?
Do you believe the student loan market lacks consistent standards that cover the servicing of all private and federal student loans?
What can the federal and state governments to protect consumers in this market?

Categories: Debt, Wise Shopping, _Appendix A | Tags: college debt, Loans & scholarships, school loans | Leave a comment

What Happens If You Don’t Pay Your Student Loan Bill?

Posted on April 18, 2015 by Melissa Hart

“New data shows that 11.3 percent of student loans were delinquent at the end of 2014–double the rate just 10 years ago.”

Today many students graduate with substantial student loan debt and struggle to make payments–especially when they are just entering the workforce. While tempting to default on students loans, there are serious long-term consequences. For example

Your credit score will tank once your payment is 45-90 days late.
You could wind up in default after 270 days, and the lender can ask for the unpaid balance in full and your account could be given to a collection agency.
If you default on federal loan payments, Uncle Sam can take your tax return.
The federal government can take up to 15 percent of your wages if you default on student loans.
If someone consigned your loan, they also suffer the consequences for late payments or a default.

For someone who has fallen behind on student loan payments, the article also provides suggestions that can help get back on track.

For more information, click here.

Teaching Suggestions

You may want to use the information in this blog post and the original article to

Stress the importance of making student loan payments on time.
Discuss the consequences of missing payments or defaulting on a student loan.

Discussion Questions

Why is it important to make student loan payments on time?
What are the consequences of defaulting on a student loan?
Assume you are behind on your student loan payments. What steps can you take to find the money needed to make student loan payments and eventually pay off a student loan?