Student Loan: Finally Some Good News

Bank error in your favour... collect $200. Oh wait this isn't Monopoly. So I got a call from my caseworker about my student loan. I really do need to call him back. Looks like the bank did make a mistake and miscalculated how many months of interest relief I had really used. Those must have been good drugs to lose 6 months. So my interest relief has been approved. The appeal only took 3 months this time instead of 5. That means that I will not have to make any payments until August. It also means that I should be able to get back the money I paid to the bank. That means $657 coming back to me.... money I can definitely use right about now although it will take 3 weeks. And that's not all. The negative scores that were put on my credit report due to non-payment are all being removed. FINALLY!!! And in July if I am still not making enough money to pay my loan I can look at applying for extended interest relief and then I would have up to 24 months where I do not have to make payments and the government pays for the interest. Hopefully I can actually find a job where I can make the payments since I really want to get it paid off... but at least now I don't have to worry about it for a few months. YAY!!!!!!!!!!

Maybe the Student Loan Center Should Just Hire Me

After talking to the case worker about my student loan I am beginning to think they should just hire me. Now the first comment to be made is that I now have my own case worker in Ottawa. He is looking into the appeal that I made and even made reference to the letter I wrote to the minister of Human Resources and Social Development. Apparently it got notice. He believes the Royal Bank made a mistake and has short changed me for the 5 months of interest relief. But was not sure that there was much he could do. His advice was to reapply for interest relief since I am not unemployed. I had already done that. At most I would have to either pay for February or pay the capitalized interest. I may be able to qualify for extended interest relief which extends it for up to 24 months or until you have been out of school for 5 years, whichever comes first. He is still looking into it and will get back to me next week. So maybe, just maybe, there will be some good news on the horizon. Might even get some of that money back from the bank.

Why Do I Know More Then the People Dealing with My Student Loan

I finally got around to calling the National Student Loan Centre. I really didn't want to default on my student loan and they were calling me on a daily basis. The advice I was given was to give up on the appeal and start over. I was told that my loan payments would still be in arrears and I might have to pay the interest... or at most one month's payment. But then would qualify for interest relief and could breathe easy for 5 months... at which point I will have used up all 30 months of interest relief. I don't even want to think about that though.

At one point I mentioned the loan with the Royal Bank. His response was that I should contact them to see what they can do for me... Is there anyone that works there that really knows how this works? I can't apply for interest relief through the Royal Bank because the government stepped in and determined that it would all be handled by the National Student Loans Center. Unfortunately they don't seem to know this. This has been my ongoing fight for the last year. They seem to forget that loans that were negotiated before 2000 are added to the loans with the National Student Loans Center and the two combined are used to determine the maximum allowable income. How difficult is this concept? I am also concerned that I will be approved for interest relief and it won't end up applying to the Royal Bank loan. My question is... why didn't they consolidate the loans so that I only owed one source and it was easier to work with? I guess that would be too easy now wouldn't it?

So there is some good news in there... but also some news that is a little more unsettling. I really don't have the energy to keep fighting them. It seems to take up so much time and energy each time they make a mistake. But hopefully I will at least get the 5 months with no payments. That would at least make my life a little easier at the moment. Then I could breathe a sigh of relief.

No News Isn't Good News

Still no word yet on my appeal for interest relief. They did call me today but I didn't answer the phone. I figure I'll give them a call on Monday. I was planning on it any ways. I just don't understand how it can be this much of an issue on an ongoing basis. I also don't understand how an appeal can take so long. They made a mistake and now I am paying for it. I'm just not sure what I am going to do if they tell me I need to bring it up to date. I am unemployed so I definitely don't have $1200 to bring it up to date. I'm struggling enough as it is. *Sigh* Why can't it be easy?

Student Loan Nightmare

Why does interest relief have to be such a nightmare? You call and they "pre-qualify" you for interest relief. I gave them the same information that I filled out on the forms. They approved it then but when I apply I get denied because I make too much money. I know how much money I am allowed to make and was below that amount. When I called I wasn't allowed to discuss it with them and was told I had to appeal the decision. The last time I appealed it took five months and I didn't get the $1200 back. But I appealed the decision and over a month later have not heard anything.

Here's the problem... My loan is now behind. I was hoping they would be able to rectify the situation quickly but I guess that was asking for a bit much. So they are now destroying my credit rating. I just got a notice today that I owe them $1200 and am 3 months behind. Now in January I was on interest relief. Since the payments come out at the end of the month I should only be 2 months behind. Even being 2 months behind stresses me out.

Obviously since I am unemployed I can't afford to bring it up to date. Once again I am caught in a catch-22 situation. Right now I would qualify for interest relief but I would need to bring the loan up to date. If it goes to collections then I really won't qualify for interest relief. It's extremely frustrating because I know I should qualify for interest relief. So I am being penalized for their mistakes.

Why does it have to be such a nightmare to get the interest relief? I go through the same fight every single time I apply. And when I first apply it takes a month for them to make a decision. Last time it only took a week (maybe two) before the denial was reversed because when I called in they contacted the appeals department on my behalf. Too bad the interest relief only went through for a month since, for some reason, the bank is ahead of the national student loan center and I had used up my interest relief there. I was told the next time I applied I would be on extended interest relief with the bank. So I reapplied with basically the exact same information as was approved the month before and was denied again. This time it has been over a month and still no word at all, just 2 notices that I am behind. We're now halfway through the third month that I should be on interest relief so at this rate by the time they have it sorted out the interest relief will have run out and I'll be back to fighting them all over again.

I have no idea what to do at this point... I can't afford to pay it, and even if I could would not get the money back. I just want it resolved. Is that really so much to ask? Anyone got any recommendations?

F'ing Student Loans

So I finally call the National Student Loans Center to see what they wanted. Surprise, surprise... I was denied my request for interest relief because they seem to think I make too much money. When I ask how much I am allowed to make I was told $2201 a month. I know from their income charts that I am allowed to make $2378. This tells me that once again they are not taking into account my Royal Bank loan. Then they told me I had to appeal it... They gave me no other options and refused to even look into it for me. So it looks like I will be calling them back tomorrow. As if that wasn't bad enough the rep then asked me if I was going to bring my loan up to date by making the payment. They won't give me the money back if I do... And it's like a kick in the teeth when I know I make less then the maximum allowable to qualify for interest relief. Hell I even sent in the paper work for the Royal Bank loan in the hopes I wouldn't have to go through this again. Not to mention all the time and energy I have to spend getting them to correct their own mistakes. This is a never ending war.... Granted I only have 5 months left of interest relief but still. I would like to get the most out of it... especially if I ever want to try and qualify for debt reduction. Aaaagghhhh!!! Make it stop.

The Ongoing Saga of the Student Loan

In case you are wondering I still have no idea what they wanted. It took all my energy just to get out of bed this morning.... Needless to say calling them was just not a priority. I'll call them on Tuesday when I have a day off and a little more time to fight with them. I don't imagine that it will be a short conversation or have good news... But we'll see.

National Student Loan Centre

Yesterday I got a call from the National Student Loans Centre telling me they had important information about my student loan. It is never a good thing when they call, especially since I am still waiting for word on my interest relief. I didn't get around to calling them yesterday. I called today and the office was closed due to inclement weather. Now... we never close for weather... which was the first thing that came to mind. Hell we have massive flooding and the city is considered to be in a national state of emergency and they still call to ask you to come into work. So now I have to call them back to find out what they want... I'm a little concerned about it since I have had nothing but hassles with them. Nothing ever goes smoothly and it's like a mini war.

Student Loan Drama

I had to reapply for interest relief and somehow they take forever to make a decision. So next week I'll have to call the bank and get them to hold off on my payment in the meantime. Plus I am still waiting for the money from the Royal Bank but that will likely be another week or two. I do have a glimmer of hope though. I got the cheque in the mail from the National Student Loan Center. Now all I have to do is get to the bank to deposit it. Easier said then done though. Just like I have to figure out how I am going to get to the grocery store... We're in the middle of a cold streak and I can't handle being outside for more then 5 minutes. But any ways.... I have money again so that's a good thing :o)

Why???

Am I cursed? I am beginning to think so. I just paid $20 to put a stop payment on my loan with the Royal Bank so that they wouldn't take the payment. I check my bank balance this morning and the payment had been taken out. So I have just had $500 taken out of my account to pay for my student loans... and was already told that my interest relief had gone through. Now I'm going to have to call the bank to get that reversed and hope that it can be done quickly... since right now I have no money to live on. I have enough to cover rent... and maybe buy some groceries and that's it. But I don't want to not be paying my bills either since that adds up rather quickly and you start getting some nasty phone calls. *Sigh* I hate it when it's pay day and you realize that you're still behind the 8-ball. Do I have a sign that says kick me?

Good News/Bad News

So the good news is that I got the insurance money from my nightguard today. They covered the entire thing. That means I can pay rent tomorrow. So that was good news. I was really getting concerned about that.

The bad news is that there is still no word on my interest relief application. I had to put a stop payment in with the Royal Bank but that is only temporary. Not to mention, as I have learned before, it is all too easy to get behind in your payments and then you end up in a LOT of trouble. They told me I would hear back in 3 business days. It has now been 5 and still no word. *Sigh* I really didn't want to call them again. I just don't want to deal with it. How about I win the lottery and not worry about it? That would be nice.

Student Loan Payments

Still no word yet on my interest relief status. I should be hearing back tomorrow hopefully. If not then I will be calling in. I had to put a stop payment on my student loan with the bank. Wound up costing me $20 to stop the payment. Even then they weren't 100% sure they would be able to stop the payment but said they should be able to. I also took the automatic withdrawal off my loan with the National Student Loan Center so hopefully they don't take the money out. But can't anything go smoothly? Please tell me it gets resolved soon and doesn't cost as much as the last time around.

Speaking of finances this week is not going so good. I went to the dentist last week and they submitted the claim to the insurance company. Ordinarily I get the money the next day. But still nothing... and I was relying on that money to pay rent from. Now I am not even sure if I am going to be getting that money at all. The dentist will be taking the money out on Friday when we get paid. But if I don't get the money at all I'm really going to be screwed. I don't really have $300 for my nightguard at the moment. again with the can't anything go smoothly thought.

Pure Frustration

The hits just keep on coming.... I get home from work today and not only is it really cold in the apartment... but there is a letter from the National Student Loan Center. At first I thought I was finally getting the notice that my application for interest relief had been approved. That would've been too easy. Nope... once again it had been denied. And once again they seemed to think I made too much money to qualify for interest relief. Immediate stress response and frustration. And then I called the student loan center. First they told me I was under the allowable amount. So I argued with them about that. I know what my loan payments are and therefore what I am allowed to make. Then they came up with a new excuse. They said that my Royal Bank student loan didn't count. Since when? It has always counted as part of the student loan. They tried to tell me it was only a provincial loan and should not count. They told me that other people had made a mistake. I'm not about to let them bully me. So I dug up the paperwork which clearly said that it was a Canada Student Loan and not just Ontario. Then... I went to the canlearn web site which clearly said to call the National Student Loan Center about it.... So after a half hour they were escalating it back to the Interest Relief department and I would have an answer in about 3 business days. Extremely frustrating... Since I don't have an answer. And now I need to call the bank and have them postpone the payment. But I'm not about to get optimistic since the last time it was a dragged out fight the last time around and lasted for months. Hopefully this time it's a little smoother. Time will tell. But right now I am just so frustrated.... I could cry.

"Keep a Stiff Upper Lip"

I was talking to my mom today. Figured I should update her with the latest news on my student loan today. What stuck with me was when she said to "keep a stiff upper lip" about the whole situation. This attitude is reminiscient of the attitudes I was tught when growing up. And you know what? I am frustrated right now. I have a low income job, I'm broke, and they still seem to think I can afford to give them 25% of my income. I have been fighting this since May. I can't afford to pay my bills. I think I have a right to feel something about that. I'm not a robot. I have a right to be upset. I think I have a right to cry if I need to. It sucks and I will freely admit that I have shed a few tears over the whole thing. I don't feel bad about that. You can only take so much after all.

The Hits Just Keep on Coming

I am really wondering what interest relief really means... I mean the last time I checked it was a time when you did not need to make payments and the government paid your interest. At least that was how it worked in the past. And whenever there had been a delay the Royal Bank was always good about refunding the money to me. Not so with the Student Loan Center. I got another voicemail stating that they were not going to be refunding any money after all since I hadn't paid for June the money had gone towards that. It's all BS. I made the payment for June after my application for interest relief was denied.

Let's recap the payments I have made for the record. To the Royal Bank I have made 4 payments of $219. 3 of those should be refunded to me as I have since been approved for interest relief during that time period. The 4th was the payment for June when I did not qualify. Simple enough.

The National Student Loan Center was really slow with the decision on interest relief and as a result I was 2 months behind by the time I even found out that I had been denied. August's payment of $290 was automatically taken out. Then I went and paid June's payment. Then they said that they had put the money towards June and July since I was behind. Then my application for interest relief got screwed up again but since it was being processed I was told that the money would not be taken out. They lied. The money was taken out October 31. So for the 3 payments that I did make I paid $916. Now there is no way that this went towards my June payment... at least not all of it. Their creative math and not having the correct loan payment amount is not my problem. But still... that is 3 months worth of payments and for 2 of those months they have told me that I was in interest relief for. So why am I not getting it back? It's a lost cause to even try to fight for it... but still. I just get the run around.

Looks like a priority is to remove the automatic withdrawal from that account. At least then they can't steal my money. I'm thinking the government has their own creative scheme going on. Back the borrower into a corner that they absolutely cannot get out of. They can't file for bankruptcy so you basically own them. And then change the loan payment amount on them so they end up paying more... even if they did not agree to it. There is certainly nothing fair about the system.

I'll be the first to say that right now I really do feel at a loss... I feel like my hands are tied and there is nothing I can do. I have tried everything I possiby can and gotten nowhere. When you work full time it's very tough... Tough to think that the government can actually do this to you... take 25% of your income and leave you basically nothing to live on. I just got a call today from my phone company threatening to cut off my phone if I don't pay the bill this week... And then there is the rent that is overdue. They can put up a notice of termination at any point and threaten me with eviciton. What am I supposed to do? In spite of working full time I can't even make ends meet any more... and while I should be getting the money back from the Royal Bank considering everything that has happened I'm not sure I should be holding my breath on that one.

I think the light at the end of the tunnel has finally been extinguished. Ever since this nightmre began I've been telling myself that I can't take much more of this... The stress... the anxiety... not being able to even catch up on bills... yet I keep going. I think I am finally at that breaking point. Really they have now taken everything from me... I've lost count of how many bills have been at least a month behind. There have been times when I couldn't buy groceries. and then the ultimate was when they told me they weren't taking the payment and then bounced my rent cheque. And to be told that even though I am on interest relief I am not getting back the $600, that is like a slap in the face. What good is interest relief then? You can only take so much of this. And I am finally at the breaking point.

Good News, Bad News & Everything In Between

So on Friday I got the letter telling me that my application for interest relief had been approved. Finally some good news. Today I was at work and I get a message to call the National Student Loan Center about my revision of terms. I had sent a not-so-nice letter with it since it will cost me about $900 more to pay off my loan. But I was forced to do it. So I call them up and all they tell me is that my interest relief had gone through, nothing about the revision of terms. So I decided to ask what that meant for the payments I had already made. I was told that the money had been put towards the principle of my student loan and in no uncertain terms that I would NOT be getting it back. I was told that they were not able to do that. I was also told that if they did then my interest relief would have to be taken off, recalculated and then put back on. Oh yeah and I would owe them the interest. WTF? So let me get this straight... My interest relief was approved (which generally means you don't need to make payments and the government pays the interest) but I'm still making payments... Umm... how does that work? Oh yeah and I can't claim the payments on income tax because it's money put towards the principle of the loan, not interest. Then why did I apply? I might as well have just made the payments and then applied for interest relief effective now. At least then I'd have a reprieve in the payments. But obviously I wasn't going to get anywhere with that one... Customer skills were a wee bit lacking with that person... And my stress level shot through the roof.

My second phone call was to the Royal Bank. I must admit it is much nicer to deal with them. They have been good at delaying payments and what not. As soon as I called them they put in a request to get back the three payments that I have made. Unfortunately, the request does take 2-4 weeks but still. That's $660 that I should be geting back. Okay so now my day was getting a little better.

Now I had been playing phone tag with one of the guys from the Student Loan Center. I might have let it go and just been pissed off over it but they bounced my rent cheque the same day my interest relief was approved. So I thought I'd call and bitch about that. After all my application for interest relief was still being processed which means the payment should not have gone out. I got ahold of im this time and he said that despite what I had been told earlier I would be getting the money back. Now I am not sure if that is all three months, or just the last month... but still. Since they really don't seem to know what they're doing... and I just keep getting mixed messages I'm holding my breath until I have the cheque in my hand. Which again, will take 2-4 weeks.

So for the most part it was good news... And then my landlord called to let me know the cheque bounced. Decisions decisions... If I pay my rent off this week then I will have absolutely no money left over. And I do have other bills to pay... some that are at least a month behind. Or my cell phone that is on a cap and will be cut off. Or hey how about groceries. So I'm not sure I really want to go that route... especially since I am not sure when I'll be getting the money back. But that waiting for money is the reason that I really want to get my rent paid off. The longer I leave it the worse I'll be... and having a roof over your head is kind of important. But since my rent is now late does it really matter? For once living in a ghetto building is actually a good thing. Decisions decisions... Or maybe I should just start playing the lottery. I think my odds of winning are about the same as me not defaulting on my loan.

Sunshine Breaks Through the Clouds

I got home from work and there was a letter waiting for me from the Student Loan Center. My first thought was "What do they want?" I'm a little jaded and don't exactly hold much hope in a letter from them. But this letter said that my application for interest relief had been approved. Interestingly, it was dated the same day they took out the most recent payment. Finally some good news. Hopefully, I'll even get the money back since it is retroactive to July. Time to breathe a sigh of relief.

That fact really should bring a smile to my face. After all it means I won. And should mean that I have money coming back to me. But after 6 months of fighting I just don't feel quite so good about it. The nightmare comes to an end... but it's not like there will be much left over. I have to pay rent and get caught up on bills. They killed my credit rating (not that they needed much help) and have already cost me at least $100 for late payments/NSF charges. Not to mention the high stress levels.

Oh and it's not like I get much of a breather... I start the fight all over again in a month. My interest relief is only good until December 31st and I have to have the application in and a decision made by then. If I am not mistaken after that time period is up the 30 months will be over and I will no longer qualify for interest relief. I have no idea what I will do then. You can apply for extended periods of interest relief (up to 54 months) but they reduce your loan payments first and then you have to qualify (based on the reduced amount). I already know I won't qualify. I still don't understand how they can justify taking 25% of your gross income. I can understand 25% of your take-home pay... but not the gross income. After all that is before any taxes are taken out. I guess they expect you to live on 65% of your income. If I wasn't living just above the poverty line that mgiht be one thing... but I have a low-income job. I struggle to make ends meet. I also have a disability that doesn't exactly leave me with the energy to take on another job. I might not have a choice though. There are very few promotions available at work... fewer all the time. And my wages are certainly not going to go up enough to cover it.

I suppose there is another option. I could try and find a sugar daddy. *lol* But knowing what the wages are like in Peterborough I suspect I would be moving to a different city for that as well. It's like the poverty capital. Low wages seem to be the theme. Mind you Peterborough also has a high percentage of mental health issues. I'm sure there is a correlation there.

So I guess I am back to doing it the old fashioned way. And for now I can just enjoy the fact that I am on interest relief and don't have to make payments. Hopefully, in the near future I'lll even get my payments back.

Just When You Thought it was Safe to go Back in the Water

It really isn't Jaws and I'm not actually being attacked by sharks.... I did however think that things might finally be going my way. Then I woke up this morning and it all went to hell again. I knew as soon as I woke up that I should just go back to bed. I walked to work and now I'm paying for it. I was in a lot of pain. But I still hauled myself out of bed to go to work. I decided to check my bank balance before heading out. I was a little surprised to find out that my loan payment had been taken out... and once again for a completely different amount then I ever authorzied... Remember what I said before about increasing my loan payments but not changing the payment length? That was what they took out... And then they argue with me about how by making payment I agree to the loan payment amount. I never made a payment... they took a payment. Trust me I would not have been making a loan payment at the moment. I never authorized it. In fact I was under the impression that it would not be taken out. And now... because of that loan payment I just bounced my rent cheque. That was returned as an NSF cheque which will cost me $25. Plus I lose out on the discounted rent for paying it on time. There goes anohter $25. Them taking out the payment will cost me an additional $50... $50 I really don't have. Plus now my rent is going to be 2 weeks late and there may be additional repercussions for that. It's like this bottomless pit... They just keep taking more and more money. Right now there doesn't seem to be a way out.

Interest Relief Update

I decided to re-read the letter I got from the National Student Loan Centre after trying to get ahold of someone for the 4th time today. It seems they have been really busy all day. Yes they are reassessing my student loan but the date on it says July 24th. That was before my initial appeal. I already know that in June I made too much money because of the bi-annual incentive. There's no way around that one. So I want the interest relief from July. I have no idea if the assessment is for June, July, or another month altogether. Fortunately for me I have to call them any ways. I suspect it's on hold... but I might at least get some answers. Assuming I can get ahold of something and stop hearing the "We are currently experiencing a higher then normal call volume. You might want to try your call again later."

Update: They lied to me... the lines really weren't busy. I got through immediately. Of course I am currently on hold. Jesus Christ... they denied my interest relief again and still have not fixed my payment amount, in spite of the letter I got indicating they were reassessing the loan. What does it take to get past the red tpe and get my interest relief approved? I am on hold again while they contact someone else. Looks like that department was actually busy. They don't have an answer for me... Just call back in a few days. And by then my next payment is due for the Royal Bank. However, they have taken my August payment and put it towards July instead. But regardless I am still a month behind. And still have no answers. Now I have to call the Royal Bank and try and get them to hold yet another payment and pray that it gets resolved soon.

This has definitely become a nightmare... It began 5 months ago and there is still no end in sight. Just more and more frustration. I am officially in hell.

Update 2: I just had to call them back and as expected my interest relief is on hold. They could approve it or deny it... but supposedly it would take affect for August. They should have a decsion within 5 business days. But I've heard that before.

Overtime

Looks like I just might squeak by and avoid filing for bankrupcy after all. It's contingent on the National Student Loans Center getting something right. I have reapplied for interest relief but in order to be approved they still have to fix my loan payment... something they have been unable to do so far. So I am only cautiously optimistic. It's great that I might be able to get caught up. The downside is that it means working 55 hours a week. Last week I worked 48 hours, spread out over 6 days. Had one day off and then have been working longer shifts all week. Once again it's a 6 day work week. Next week 12.5 hour days. About the only thing that keeps me going is the fact I'll have 5 days off at the end. It's pretty tiring though. A lot of mixed emotions there too. Happy that I should be able to get my bills caught up... but discouraged that for all the extra hours I am putting in it's to catch up... and doesn't mean that I'll have spending cash or be getting ahead. Counting down the days until I am on vacation... 8 days to go :o)