evh347

Thanks for all the great ideas so far...I appreciate all of them (Led Zep).

I just renewed my CFI/CFII/MEI certificate and I'll consider flight instructing on the side.

I'm trying right now to negotiate with the Collections department to get off my back if I send them the $650/mo until I can refinance this thing. So far, my parents seem willing to help until I can get something refinanced. It's embarrassing to be 34 and crying to your late-50-year-old parents to bail you out. It's also embarrassing as a husband (and a man) to ask your wife to front the living expenses. My wife works and we don't have kids. While we agree that we're in this thing as a "partnership"...I don't want my marriage burdened with such debt. Believe me, I'm already trimming the expense fat. If not for the generosity of my family, I don't know where we'd be....our Xmas funds are all going towards moving to MN.

Let me make something clear...I have no problem paying my other debts. Credit cards are okay...and my $23k Federal loan was consolidated back in July '05 at 3%. I have no intention of consolidating Federal with Private...nor, would I be able to. They are different entities. The only problem is this $53k private alternative student loan. To the contrary of what some of you have said, I was informed by a bankruptcy attorney that you CANNOT declare bankruptcy on Private Alternative Loans. So, I don't know who is right. I don't want to declare bankruptcy, I just want to pay a fair/reasonable monthly rate. Believe me, I don't want my new found employer involved if they don't have to be. I'm just an honest blue-collar American willing to work my way to the top...why should I be penalized when there are so many others who get away with cheating their way to the top and then do only hours in jail while people like me get it up the tailpipe????

Today, I investigated the "Income-Contingent Consolidation" and "William Ford" loans...but, they only apply to Federal loans, not private.

I'm currently investigating the following:
http://www.student-loans.net/consolidation/
http://www.salliemae.com/after_gradu...ns/private.htm
http://www.studentloanconsolidator.com/private/
http://www.freedomdebtrelief.com/

Today, I also looked at refinancing with American Education Services (AES), but they contract to yet another 3rd party (Key Bank) and the best they can offer is 10yr/8.66% variable, 15yr/9.16% variable, and 30yr/9.91% variable rates. Any of those rates is better than the current 11.2% I'm currently at, but I've already found companies (links above) that will do better.

I'm interested in more experiences/input out there. There has to be a way out of this. It's so nuts.....I mean, 5 years of going back to school...sacrifices....our future is right in front of us now....it'd be a shame not to realize the American dream now. It's like my good mother told me the other day...."You've got the brains and certainly the skill to do all of this...you just can't afford it." Mom is so right.

mattisawesome

led zep,
How did you pay for training?

Jetjock65

EVH347

Dont feel as if your alone. There are alot of us out there in the same boat- Im currently 108,000 in debt after paying for Flight Training with a PVT. Loan (Key Bank) sty away from Key and Great Lakes lending wich are one in the same- They have put the screws to me since day one! Your Info out there has really opened my eyes to the fact that maybe there is someone out there willing to help. I believe someone else mentioned it earlier but most companys will defer as long as you are enrolled in school- My Idea was to start working on my degree very sloowly untill the real money starts coming in. Once again thanks for the Info and good Luck! If you find a solution to all of this mess please make sure you share with the rest of us struggling to do what we love.

ImperialxRat

Capital One has a money market account that pays near 5% interest, if your looking for a place to throw your money while you save it until you use it. Its almost like a savings account...I think you can do two withdrawals per month on it.

ImperialxRat

Oh, and just wanted to let you all know that I'm in the same boat =( Also, unfortunately, I've been living off my credit cards through most of college, as well as during my low paying Aerial Photography job, and now as a first year FO. I cannot wait for June to roll around for second year pay... I just hope my credit cards don't hit their limit before June =)

Best of luck to us all. I will make sure to open savings accounts for my kids when they're born, so they don't have to go through this stress and crap. I think I'm starting to gray prematurely.

fosters

With the recent interest rate reduction it's down to 4.0 APY. And it's 6 withdrawals, 3 by check, not that it matters .

JohnnyCochran

Someone earlier brought up a good point in at least going to a community college full time. Its an unfortunate reality of where most of us are relating to school loans and flying airplanes. I'm looking at just over 100 K in loans, with some being federal, most being private.

Here's what I do regarding loans. I could have completed my degree well over a year ago. What I do is take online classes through ERAU (which is actually very affordable). Two classes is enough to be considered full time, effectively keeping my school loans deferred. The classes are every 12 weeks and last the same amount of time.

If you truly want to defer your loans for stress reasons and quality of life, do the following. Take two classes that last 12 weeks. At the end of the 12 weeks your loans are in that "180 grace period". Just before the grace period ends take 2 more classes and keep em deferred. Total cost for the years education 3,000 or somewhere like 250 a month, which is affordable cash by a first year FO.

I don't take it to the extreme and wait 5 months at the end of each class, but if you want to it is an effective way to keep loans deferred. While they are deferred, if you want to take money and pay off the yearly accrued interest you can do it if the money is available; otherwise just accept the interest.

If I was not still taking classes I would not be able to be comfortable on first year pay. I spent a year at Piedmont and took a paycut to come to Republic....if it was not for my decision to delay the degree I could not have left PDT. So take classes somewhere, a CC, ERAU online, or whereever. Keep in mind most places have masters too, so you can really defer loans for a while if your economic need requires (sudden 7 year upgrade due to age 65, everrising fuel, and airline consolodation )

Deferred per Billy Madisons statement "Stay in school as long as you can".

Led Zep

Part cash, part student loans. The loans were a burden for me, and it took me 10 years to finally pay them off. The cash I saved up during the summers when I was out of school and working two jobs. One advantage I had was that the flight training wasn't as expensive then as it is now. It wasn't cheap, but it wasn't as expensive as it is today.

These were the pre-Ramsey years.

evh347

UPDATE...

I was able to refinance with http://educationfinancepartners.com/ at a variable 7.36% over 30 years...a far cry from the 11.2% I was at with Great Lakes. I'm now looking at a monthly payment of $375...again, a far cry from the $642/mo with Great Lakes. Sallie Mae and Citibank's interest rates were higher so I let those options go. I came close to trying www.nelnet.net/private/default.asp as an option...they seemed to have good interest rates too, but at the time that I applied with them I was beyond 30-days current and their online application service immediately denied my application. For anyone not in that situation, I'd recommend checking them out.

All of that came at the price of having my parents co-sign for me and borrowing $2000 from them to get the account 30-days current. All of you people out there waiting for the problem to go away...don't, because it only gets more difficult to refinance this thing if it's not within 30-40 days past due.

There goes my tax return...ah, well...my tax return was gone anyways had I done nothing. Thank god for the Bush $1200 tax rebates coming in May/June. The good thing is that the Feds might be dropping interest rates soon due to the foreclosure chaos sweeping the nation, so that might help me too.

SkyCaptain

What was the variable rate schedule on your repayment. Could potentially be a problem. Looks like it is a good deal for you. If it does become a problem. You can always refi with another company.