my husband had an interesting observation last night. he rarely says much but this made me think. ( this might ramble on a bit - sorry)
i owe the bank money - about 30K. the same bank that posted in excess of 600 MILLION in profits previous quarter. 600 million/120 days=5 MILLION in profits per day - and they continue to systematically destroy my life by sending me to collections rather than negotiate in good faith. oh feel sorry for the banks being victims of computer fraud and spending all that money upgrading their securtiy systems when my hubby was still defrauded of 600 bucks by an email transfer he never authorized ( the rcmp caught the guy and he got his cash back but thank god he had overdraft for the four months it took to get resolved. when you live paycheck to paycheck a 600 mistake causes lots of problems). oh feel proud to put your money in the bank they are a sponsor of the olympics or the theatre or whatever but how many grants and scholarships have they given to deserving students ? how about some loan forgiveness for those of us who could really use it ?? if i can qualify for interest relief why cant i qualify for loan forgiveness or debt reduction ? and what would possess a bank to give a 19 year old a credit card in addition to a student loan anyways ?? they really expect a family of 4 to live on 35K with today's cost of living ?? 35K would be fine but once the government takes their cut its more like 24K - for rent/mortgage, vehicle payment, insurance, gas, hydro ( gotta love the way that bill has been going through the roof), gas/heat, phone, vehicle maintenance, health care ( dentist, glasses, medication. not everyone has a health plan), oh and groceries too. other bills - personal loans or credit cards, water bill, taxes, internet, cell phones, satellite or cable tv never leave much room for entertainment or savings. none of which is even considered for debt reduction or loan forgiveness. but the bank is trying to make things easier for students to repay their loans - sure, if you haven't missed any payments yet. they post on their website that they have donated so many millions of dollars to charities over the last year. should i pat them on the back for being so socially responsible when their policies drive people to homelessness, depression, collections and mental breakdowns ?? i thought we were their customers and they worked for us - not the other way around. i try to navigate the websites to get info on my loans but can't - since my loans are before 2000 i cant access anything online, either at the bank (because i have no account for them to like it to) or NSLC. so i have to sift through the last ten years worth of statements hoping that documents i need didnt get trashed in a flood. i try to negotiate a payment i can manage but no one seems interested in a revision of terms. and why is it that i always talk to a different person even though i request to speak with Nicole at BNS - she hasn't returned my calls at all this past month. god forbid they hire someone who knows what they are talkning about - ask them about collections and they have no idea what you can expect. the lst girl i spoke with suggested i get a personal loan to pay them off. honey, how can i afford payments on a personal loan when i cant pay you. hello, lights are on but noone is home.
i cant pay them back. not that i dont want to ( mind you the way ive been getting jerked around since graduation i must admit to not being in a hurry to pay them at all ) i just cant. because the same government that allowed me - no ENCOURAGED me - to get into debt with their student loan program is the same government making it impossible for me to get a job . i cant afford car insurance (government regulated ). i cant afford daycare (government regualated ) if i could afford the car insurance to drive my kids the 45 minutes to the nearest daycare facility ( government funding cuts ). i cant afford to work for less than 12 bucks an hour to cover the cost of daycare - 35 bucks per child per day plus the extra gas driving to and from daycare and i will likely have nothing left of my paycheck to put towards my loans once the government takes its cut - so i am stuck in a nasty downward spiral.
why am i losing sleep over this ? i owe money and i cant pay. too bad for them, they should know better than to lend money to students. i have no assets for them to seize, no means of repaying my loan in the next three years ( once my kids are in school i might be able to get a job, providing my health permits it and the job market is cooperative). and the bank has no desire to wait that long - send it off to collections and ruin someone else's life. that doesnt mean im not a good person ( i think he made me cry here)
if the banks would freeze interest rates on student loans at 1% they would still make money and it would be easier for us to repay them. if they were more flexible with paymnent options maybe they'd get more of their money back.
if they dont want to play nice, why should i play with them at all ?? play nice or go to your room is what i tell my kids. same goes for the banks and the collection agencies and the government ?? play nice or else ? pretty soon no one will want to play with them and they can kiss their profits goodbye altogether.
sometimes the man has a point...