student loans Archives - Page 3 of 4

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Delinquencies on Timeshare Rentals Reveal Another Sign of Consumer Debt Weakness

Posted on March 10, 2017by Admin

Americans are getting more behind on their timeshare rental payments, according to Fitch Ratings. Approximately 3.75 percent of timeshare borrowers were behind on their bills in the fourth quarter, up from 3.37 percent in the same period a year earlier, and the highest level since the end of 2011, according to the report.

According to Fitch, the defaults are evidence that loan companies are becoming less strict when financing to customers. These companies are also writing off more loans. The default rate rose to 0.70 percent in the fourth quarter from 0.61 percent in the same period a year earlier.

Other pockets of weakness include online consumer loans and subprime auto loans, which we have touched on in previous blogs. These rising delinquencies come as Americans have increased their debt at the fastest pace in three years.

U.S. household debt increased by $226 billion in the last three months of 2016, bringing total consumer debt to $12.58 trillion. The numbers, which include mortgages, student loans, auto loans and credit card debt, are dangerously close to the $12.68 trillion high-water mark in 2008.

Click here to read more on this story.

If you are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Government Sues America’s Largest Student Loan Company

Posted on January 20, 2017by Admin

The Washington state Attorney General filed a lawsuit against student loan company, Navient on Wednesday. Navient is formerly part of the private student loan company, Sallie Mae. In a separate lawsuit, Illinois Attorneys General named both Navient and Sallie Mae.

According to Richard Cordray, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), “At every stage of repayment, Navient chose to shortcut and deceive consumers to save on operating costs.”

Navient separated from Sallie Mae in 2014 and is currently the largest student loan servicer in the country. The company reportedly handles more than 12 million student loan accounts. Approximately half of the borrowers have federal loans and the other half are private. According to the CFPB, one in four student loan borrowers have Navient as their servicer.

The CFPB’s allegations claim that Navient steered struggling borrowers toward paying more than they had to, and misallocated borrowers’ payments when they were made across multiple loans. It also alleges that in some cases, Navient erroneously reported borrowers had defaulted on their loans, damaging their credit score.

In the lawsuit, the government claims that Navient also made it more difficult for borrowers to enroll in an income-driven repayment plan, which can be used to lower their monthly payment if they’re struggling to make payments.

Click here to read more on this story.

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

The U.S. Government is Collecting Student Loans it Promised to Forgive

Posted on December 27, 2016by Admin

In recent years, the U.S. Department of Education has taken on two different roles in the lives of indebted former college students. The same bureaucracy must collect on the $1.1 trillion in student loans in an attempt to protect taxpayer dollars and it also oversees the nation’s largest-ever effort to forgive student loan debt.

The government’s dual roles have since caused problems for former Corinthian Colleges Inc. students. Tens of thousands of these former students had their student loans cancelled and according to the Obama administration they were supposed to be reimbursed in full. However, the Department of Education has been actively collecting on federal student debt owed by the former students.

Corinthian Colleges Inc. filed for bankruptcy in 2015 under a cloud of fraud investigations. As a result, government officials had reason to believe that some of these students’ debts should be forgiven. However, former students have come forward saying that they are still being approached for payment on their loans. When companies have made similar attempts at collecting on debt that is not actually owed in the past, they have been charged by federal and state regulators with violating the law.

According to the former director of the Federal Trade Commission’s consumer protection division, David Vladeck, “There’s no clear-cut reason why there shouldn’t be automatic loan forgiveness for people who otherwise would have a legal claim for deceptive conduct against this now-bankrupt company.” He went on to say, “These kids by and large have been scammed, and the Department of Education in some sense is continuing that harm by making them jump through hoops to get the relief to which they are entitled.”

Click here to read more on this story.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Corinthian College Students Still Waiting for Financial Aid Help

Posted on October 14, 2016by Admin

Eighteen months after Corinthian Colleges Inc. closed the doors of its remaining locations, Heald College, Wyotech and Everest University, tens of thousands of former students are still waiting to receive some form of relief from the student loan debt they incurred to attend the defunct college.

Nearly 80,000 CCI students are facing debt collection related to the loans they took out to attend the schools. Although the Department of Education’s has the ability to provide defense of repayment discharges, which is a process that would eliminate debt based on the college’s alleged fraudulent actions.

The former student’s attempts to obtain discharges have been filled with issues, most stemming from the fact that the process has seldom ever been used and never to the extent it is needed for CCI students.

Due to the alleged fraud, students may be eligible for loan forgiveness of any federal Direct Loans, according to the Department of Education. The investigation process involving federal prosecutors, attorneys general and other agencies is ongoing. However, they have found evidence of fraud by CCI involving the use of inflated job placement rates and pushing students into high cost loans.

A report compiled by the Department of Education found that there are 79,717 people who are eligible to apply for loan forgiveness, but are instead dealing with debt collectors. Of those former students, 30,000 have had tax refunds, tax credits and other benefits seized, while 4,000 have had their wages garnished.

Click here to read more on this story.

Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Concerned by Student Loan Servicers’ Practices

Posted on October 7, 2016by Admin

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently expressed concerns over a practice that is being used by some student loan servicers known as “redisclosure” of payment terms. Redisclosure causes a borrowers monthly bill to fall when extra payments are made.

Experts believe that student loan servicers are using the redisclosure tactic to make it harder for borrowers to save money on interest. Once the monthly payment amount is reduced, the term of the loan is extended, causing the borrower to pay more in interest over time.

For example, if a borrower starts out owing $25,000 in student loans payable for a 10-year term with $300 monthly payments and decides to pay an extra $100 each month toward the principal, some loan providers will drop the monthly bill to be less than $300 per month to possibly extend the term of the loan.

“When borrowers pay more than they owe, they expect to save money on interest charges and get out of debt faster. But the practice we highlighted can hold these borrowers back, making it harder and more expensive for student loan borrowers to pay back their loan and get out of debt,” CFPB official Mike Pierce said.

The good news is that you can tell your loan servicer to set your monthly payment back to a requested payment amount, if you discover it has been lowered. You can also tell your service provider what to do with your extra money each month. For example, you can ask that a standing instruction be placed on your account so that the extra money you pay each month goes toward the loan with the highest interest rate.

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Bankruptcy Law, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Student Loan Debt Collector

Posted on July 19, 2016by Admin

A class action lawsuit has been filed against Balboa Student Loan Trust for harassing former Everest College students for repayment of their student loans. The harassment came as a shock to former students whose debt had been previously forgiven by the U.S. Department of Education after it was determined that the institution was misleading students. Balboa Student Loan Trust, the company that purchased a portion of Everest College debts, has ignored the findings and has reportedly called students up to five times per day to collect on the student loan debts.

Everest College is owned and operated by Corinthian Colleges. The U.S. Department of Education fined Corinthian Colleges $30 million in April of last year for misrepresenting their job replacement rates. Later that month, Corinthian Colleges filed for bankruptcy and has since lost its accreditation. The colleges were also offering loans through a student loan program called Genesis, which was later found to be a scam by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau when nearly 60 percent of the students defaulted on their loans due to outrageous repayment rates. Balboa Student Loan Trust later purchased these loans and promised to forgive 40 percent of the debt and stop harassing students to repay their loans. However, the consumer class action suit claims the debt collector has violated the terms that were agreed upon with the federal government.

“These private lenders are victimizing these students a second time by continuing to try and collect on debt that was incurred through fraud and deceit,” Anne Richardson said. Richardson is an attorney with Public Counsel, one of the law firms that filed the class action suit.

Click here to read more on the story.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Timothy Kingcade Posts

More Students Refusing to Pay Back Student Loans

Posted on April 8, 2015by Admin

What started as 15 college graduates refusing to repay their federal student loans has turned into 100, according to the Washington Post. This “debt strike” is the students’ way of pressuring the government into forgiving their student loan debt and the government is starting to take notice.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has invited the disgruntled borrowers to Washington to discuss their demand for loan forgiveness. The CFPB does not have the power to forgive a federal loan, but it does prove lawmakers and regulators are taking these students seriously.

The revolt started a month ago when 15 former Corinthian College students publicly announced they would not pay their student loans because their school broke the law. Corinthian Colleges run Everest Institute, Wyotech and Heald College. It is a for-profit education sector known for high loan defaults and dubious degree programs. The colleges allegedly used deceptive marketing practices and lied to the government about graduation rates, resulting in the loss of federal funding and forcing the institution to shut down most of its schools.

Organizers say that anyone who joins the movement must attend a financial literacy workshop to understand the consequences of not repaying their student loan debt. These students are filing a defense to repayment claim. It is an appeal to the Education Department to discharge the federal loans on the grounds that the school broke the law. The Education Department has the authority to discharge federal student loans when a student’s rights and state law have been violated.

Click here to read more about the student loan strike.

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at http://www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Timothy Kingcade Posts

CFPB Issues Warning about Student Loan Debt Relief Scams

Posted on January 12, 2015by Admin

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has issued an advisory warning to consumers about student loan debt relief companies. While the CFPB warns all student borrowers to stay away from companies with aggressive marketing tactics that promise savings of thousands of dollars on their loans, it is also taking steps toward stopping these companies from engaging in illegal practices.

In a recent lawsuit against Student Loan Processing, the CFPB and Florida’s Attorney General shut down student loan debt relief company College Education Services for its illegal practices. These scams are all too common. The CFPB has provided some useful tips to help student borrowers recognize the red flags associated with student loan debt relief scams.

1.) Upfront fees. No upfront fees should ever be charged by a student loan debt relief company. In addition, you should not be required to sign a contract with the company. The CFPB notes that free assistance is available through your student loan servicer and advises that oftentimes taking upfront payment before debt relief services have been provided is illegal.

2.) Promises. Student loan debt relief companies will often promise borrowers loan forgiveness or even complete cancellation. The false promise of negotiating with your lender under federal student loan programs is a flat out lie.

3.) Signing documents. Student loan debt relief companies should not require that you sign a “third party authorization” or a “power of attorney.”

4.) Requests for your Federal Student Aid PIN: Borrowers should be extremely cautious of any student loan debt relief company that asks for this information. The CFPB states that, “honest companies will work with you to come up with a plan and will never use your PIN to access your student loan information.”

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at http://www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit

Senior Americans Burdened with Student Loan Debt

Posted on September 11, 2014by Admin

The student loan crisis is not just affecting young college graduates, it is reported that a growing number of aging Americans are struggling to pay their student loans. Even a senior’s social security benefits become fair game for lenders when borrowers cannot keep up with their payments.

Among Americans ages 65 to 74, 4 percent in 2010 carried federal student loan debt, up from 1 percent six years earlier, according to a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released. For all seniors, the collective amount of student loan debt grew from about $2.8 billion in 2005 to about $18.2 billion last year.

Student loan debt hits seniors especially hard because many of them are also struggling with other challenges such as health problems, divorce and job loss. Some went back to school in hopes of making a higher salary, or co-signed on loans to help fund their children’s education.

The GAO found that about 80 percent of the student loan debt by seniors was for their own education while the rest was taken out for their children or other dependents. Federal data revealed that seniors were more likely to default on loans for themselves compared with those they took out for their children.

The GAO found that about a quarter of loans held by seniors’ ages 65 to 74 were in default. In addition to docking Social Security benefits, the government can use a variety of collection methods to recoup student loans, such as docking wages or taking tax refund dollars.

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at http://www.miamibankruptcy.com

Bankruptcy Law, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Avoid Making these EXPENSIVE Student Loan Mistakes

Posted on September 5, 2014by Admin

Student loans have become a necessary evil for many students wanting to attend college or graduate school these days. A number of students fall into the gap of being “Too Poor to Afford College, Too Rich for Financial Aid.” There are two detrimental mistakes that many graduates are making when it comes to their student loan debt.

1.) Delaying the Inevitable. There are very few ways to get out of paying your student loans, even with the student loan forgiveness programs available. Waiting to pay back your loans, just allows them to grow. Interest will accrue and the debt will grow over time. Even waiting 1-2 years after graduating could cause your loan balance to increase by 10%. So instead of waiting until you earn more money or find a better job, negotiate with your lender to work out a repayment program that works for you.

Ask your lender if you qualify for any income based repayment plans or pay as you earn programs. In many cases, you could have $0 repayment until you start earning more money. This will help you map out a plan to have your student loan debt forgiven after a set number of years, and also keep your payments manageable until then. It is estimated that roughly 5 million borrowers qualify for these income based repayment plans or pay as you earn programs. However, only about 700,000 borrowers are enrolled in these programs.

2.) Paying for Student Loan Help you do not need. More and more businesses are entering the “Student Loan Forgiveness” and “Student Loan Consolidation” market. It’s a booming business! Unfortunately, many of these can be classified as student loan scams. These companies advertise on TV and radio that they can help struggling borrowers qualify for student loan forgiveness programs or lowering their monthly payments through consolidation.

What many of these companies are doing is charging borrowers anywhere from $200 to $1,500 (or more) a month to fill out paperwork that you can fill out yourself. Instead of paying these companies, call your student loan provider yourself. For Federal student loans, the servicing companies have very specific rules they must follow for offering repayment plans, forgiveness programs, and consolidation. Bottom line, you should NEVER pay for student loan consolidation out of your own pocket. If you have Federal student loans, you can get a consolidation loan for free through StudentLoans.gov.

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at http://www.miamibankruptcy.com