M K asked:


Okay, so my husband and I graduated college in 2007 and started paying off our loans (70K total) about a year ago. Our monthly payments (combined) are about $450 a month. We make every (EVERY) payment on time, and always pay a little more than the minimum. The problem is that our combined income is about $72K a year, or $6000 per month. (We both make equal money and have equal loan payments every month on our separate accounts.)

We have absolutely no problem making the payments, and (monthly) this comes out to a relatively small chunk of our income.

But when I have my credit report analyzed through Experian (online), it says my debt-to-income ratio is at almost 100%, 99% of which is the student loan account. Apparently this is calculatedby comparing my total loan debt ($35K) with my income $36K). It also stresses that this negatively impacts my credit score.

But if I’m only paying about $225 a month on student loans, out of $3000 a month in income, and I pay the loan on time, every time, why does this lower my score?!?!?

This is a 20-year loan, and we want to buy a house in 2 years. I’m afraid this will affect our interest rates when we apply for a mortgage, but for the life of me I can’t understand why this would be the case.

Help?

Out Of Credit Card Debt

sad & heartbroken asked:


we had a joint checking account and she simply had the money transferred. So i cant prove she stole it cause she was authorized to make transfers and because of that i was not able to pay for school one year and had to drop out. As a result my student loan has gone into default and all the other bills i had as a student including medical and other essential things are consuming every paycheck i receive. I don’t know what to do. HELP!!!

Credit Card Debt Elimination

lightningboltjs asked:


I’ve nearly paid off my student loans, I’ve only got a few thousand dollars left and I could pay it all off by around June or so. I’ve paid WAY ahead, which some sources say has actually hurt my score by as much as 15 points. I know that the type of dept you have affects your credit score and student loan debt as a higher percentage of your overall debt is better than having 100 percent credit card debt even though I pay off the entire balance of my card every month. I was thinking if I kept $1,000 of student loan debt that might be favorable to zero, giving me some points for an older account and mitigating the size of whatever is on my credit card when they rate me, but I don’t know. Am I better off with zero or some? I have no idea.

Bad Consolidate Credit Debt

Jeremy W asked:


Ok heres my situation. My student loans are due. I the payment they are asking is way to high for my budget. I called and they cannot lower my payments without consolidation. Unfortunately I dont have a cosigner and my credit isnt good enough to consolidate! What can I do? I asked for lower payments and theres nothing they can do to help. The interest just keeps building.

Consolidate Debt

First Namen asked:


I’m filling out grad school apps and they’re asking for all kinds of financial information. I think it’s a bit odd for a school to not have a blank to put in the student loan debt. Would it fall under “investment debt”? If not, where do I put that figure? Here is the form below:

“2009 Adjusted gross income:
Expected 2010 adjusted gross income:
2009 income earned from work:
Cash, savings and checking accounts:
Other untaxed income and benefits:
Investment Value (stocks, bonds, certificates of deposit, etc.):
Investment Debt:
Business Value:
Business Debt:
Farm Value:
Farm Debt:
Real Estate Value (not primary home):
Real Estate Debt (not primary home):”

Credit Card Debt Free