This website is a testimony to the problems Canadian Student Loan borrowers experienced from approximately 1996 to 2008 and until their loans were paid off.

The privatization of the Student Loans system by the Chretien and Martin Liberal governments broke the system and defaulted thousands of borrowers who were trying to pay their loans. There were even stories of suicide due to the harassment of borrowers.

Read the report that I prepared back in 2007 here. Canada Student Loans-The Need for Change Fortunately the new Conservative government at the time revamped the program and fixed the system for new borrowers, but borrowers under the previous program were left with ruined credit and continued harassment from debt collectors.

I call on the Canadian Government to apologize to the borrowers affected by this fiasco and make amends.

Unfortunately the Liberal government is again clobbering the Education system with their upcoming changes to International Student Visas. Yes, there's a problem, but instead of a well thought out plan, they have pulled the emergency brake on the train causing a derailment. This has introduced unprecedented instability for both private and public education institutions who serve both international and local students.

Universities can't plan. I've heard of courses being cut because the government has no process in place for universities to send the newly required acceptance letters to the government.

This means that students who have been accepted can not attend courses that start in the summer 2024 semester. With cut sections, current Canadian students will have trouble getting courses, and may have to switch to part-time which changes their enrollment status and might trigger repayment of their loans or ineligibility for funding. I've seen this before. It wreaks havoc on the student loan borrowers.

Again, the Liberal government has messed up the education environment. Will the new system needed in a rush for the acceptance letters be the new Arrivecan scandal?

I call on the government to implement a slower phased in approach and delay the requirement of the acceptance letters until a process is in place to submit these letters.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote umpatan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 23/April/2009 at 8:59pm
Yeah, but one collector gave a good advice to my friend.  He told him that if he looked hard enough he can make his payments.  He was advised to do the following:
 
1) Cut back buying toilet papers by getting napkins at McDonald's, Starbucks, Burger King, etc.  Take a pencil and roll the toilet paper when going to the washroom and get yourself a bundle.
 
2) Get a short happy planet bottle with a wide mouth and get free ketchup at McDonald's
 
3) Eat at soup kitchens, and if one doesn't like old food, to eat at variouus Sikh Temples called Gurudwara that offer free langar.  For those who don't know what langar is, that is free food that is given to anyone who comes.  If one lives in close proximity, that is a great way to cut costs. 
 
4) Various banks offer free Coffees and teas.  Get some tea bags offered for free there, and get hot water from McDonald's or starbucks, and get out of paying for these things.
 
5) Do you have any unwanted things?  Sell them on e-bay or have a garage sale.  By minimizing everything to the bare bones, one needs to rent out only a smaller place.  This is where the real cost cutting comes in, more so than what you will get in selling of your stuff.
 
6) When looking for furniture, go to free section on Craigslist, and get them for free. My friend got couches, refrigerator, a CRT TV, Desktop Computer (old, but working) Washer and Dryer.  He didn't have a truck, so he bought a cheap Ford Aerostar for $400.00, moved his stuff, and resold it for $800 12 days later. 
 
7) Salvation Army offers free clothes to those who need it.  He went to Kingsway and Fraser location office and they gave him a voucher for free clothes.  He later asked for them on craigslist as well and was given free clothes. 
 
Now this seemed harsh, I told my friend, but he said that the collector told him in such a friendly way, that he took it to heart and paid almost half of his loans in a year.  He paid $600 from his $900/biweekly cheque when he is only making $13.50/hour.  His payments are pretty impressive given that he makes below average pay where he was unable to find a way to pay for his debt to cutting his costs.  All he had to do is make a few minor adjustments on his lifestyle, and he showed that if one is determined and is truly responsible, that it is not impossible to make payments.
 
8) While going to school, go work as a security guard where you just sit and do nothing.  There, you can get your studying done and get paid for doing your own homework.  You get paid a bit better than working in fast foods, and also, you are able to put in more hours, because the time you have to take out studying working in other jobs where you can't take your laptop and type up your essay or read your textbook.  Some people have made enough money killing two birds with one stone, that they graduated university having banked $10,000 laying aside $100/cheque.  Now this isn't much, but to graduate university without living off one's parents and paying one's own way and still coming out debt free and having a bit to start off is not bad for a student.  (I guess if my friend took the collector's advice before starting university and worked as a security guard, he could have banked $64,200 as he said).  But then, you wouldn't be applying rule #1-7 if you play rule #8 unless you are in debt.  Rule #1-7 is kind of unethical to be applying except for Rule #6 for big ticket items, if you are not in the red, especially if you do #8 for a living as it is a bit of a contradition. 
 
What do you think.  I know this was a bit harsh, but it looks like many of you on this forum are on a really tight spot during the recession, so I figured some of you could apply some of the methods to get out of the hole faster.
 
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Syne View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Syne Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28/April/2009 at 5:16am
Quote Now this seemed harsh, I told my friend, but he said that the collector told him in such a friendly way, that he took it to heart and paid almost half of his loans in a year.  He paid $600 from his $900/biweekly cheque when he is only making $13.50/hour.  His payments are pretty impressive given that he makes below average pay where he was unable to find a way to pay for his debt to cutting his costs.  All he had to do is make a few minor adjustments on his lifestyle, and he showed that if one is determined and is truly responsible, that it is not impossible to make payments.


Does your friend live in his mom's basement?

I fail to see how he was able to pay $1,200 a month from an $1,800 a month pay cheque. How was he able to pay rent, groceries, utilities, telephone, internet, gas, insurance with $600 a month?


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote umpatan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01/May/2009 at 12:31pm
Originally posted by Syne Syne wrote:

Quote Now this seemed harsh, I told my friend, but he said that the collector told him in such a friendly way, that he took it to heart and paid almost half of his loans in a year.  He paid $600 from his $900/biweekly cheque when he is only making $13.50/hour.  His payments are pretty impressive given that he makes below average pay where he was unable to find a way to pay for his debt to cutting his costs.  All he had to do is make a few minor adjustments on his lifestyle, and he showed that if one is determined and is truly responsible, that it is not impossible to make payments.


Does your friend live in his mom's basement?

I fail to see how he was able to pay $1,200 a month from an $1,800 a month pay cheque. How was he able to pay rent, groceries, utilities, telephone, internet, gas, insurance with $600 a month?


 
No, he crashed on his friends sofa.  One of his friends gets a disability cheque for his bioplar disorder and another collected welfare.  He was there to just crash on the couch for free.  And to answer your questions about the grocery bill, I told you about the Sikh Temple free food.  He went to the food bank on Hastings St behind the London Drugs near Nanaimo St located at the church on every Thursday except for Cheque week.  He drove his buddies there so they could get a ride to collect the food and would take them to the Sikh Temple in exchange for free rent.  He owned a Koodo cellphone which costs him just under $40.00/month.  The $600 was for his car insurance and gasoline, as well as a few odd things here and there.  He even got toothbrushes and shampoos from Hotels for free by asking the front desk.  All toliet paper was again obtained from McDonald's, and other fast food outlets.  Now I believe he goes to grab a free coffee there every morning.  Remember, spending $600/month is still a wooping $20 a day, and it is not that frugal.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote paulaffleck Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02/May/2009 at 12:46am
All these things could be done.  But let's face it, few among us are that focused during our school days.  Most of us live on what we borrow and fill our human need for the occasional indulgements in life that we can.  We may also look back and wish we had been more frugal, but "20/20 hindsight" is a common experience among mature adults who look back on anything in their pasts.

So, although this is good advice for the few who could do it (certainly not me), I think an enlightened student loan policy must account for the common student, not the extraordinary one.

-P
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote polyhymnia61 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02/May/2009 at 7:40pm
Really too bad that his solution isn't feasible for so many members on this forum who went back to school as mature students with families to raise. These are the people -- who need to retrain after a job loss or family circumstances -- who fall through the cracks of the student loan system because the government has difficulty seeing beyond the "young" single student living with mom and dad.

If you read the stories here, you will see that too many with student loan problems have responsibilities beyond themselves and have exhausted all available options.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Syne Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/May/2009 at 7:33pm
$20/day is very frugal if you live above the radar. I admire your friend's ability to eke out an existence on next to nothing, but basic living expenses for a regular person who contributes to the local economy is doubling or tripling that amount.

I'm glad he was able to pay off his debt, but he sent the wrong message to the collectors. He's basically saying that they matter... which they don't. They're bloodsuckers and bottom-feeders who care nothing for anyone but themselves. Make no mistake. They are the enemy.
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Yes.  My other friend decided to apply rule 1-7 while applying rule no. 8.  He is currently banking $720 biweekly.  To date, he has banked $37,740 while going to school for 2 years.  He did a little overtime here and there.  During an economics class, he mentioned the opportunity costs of going to school was mitigated after becoming a graveyard security guard where he did nothing but watch a fence in Surrey sitting in his car.  He too did not live with mommy and daddy, and told me that those who live at home and not have to pay rent have no excuse whining and complaining about being in debt.  He did tell me that his hardship growing up in Uttara Pradesh and immigrating to Canada at the age of 16 gave him the insight how abundantly we live where many things are free.  From his perspective, while things in India are cheap, many things in Canada are free.  Also, things like vehicles driving a 350 dollar Ford Taurus Station Wagon is unheard of in India, while cheap Ford Tauruses are a dime a dozen here.  What did he do for rent?  He decided to room with 3 other students who grew up in Kerrisdale who cannot clean up after themselves.  He offered to do everyone's dishes every day in exchange for the priviledge of sleeping on the floor with the sleeping bag he got for free on craigslist.  In fact, not only does he not pay rent, they give him $100 each every month for his services.  This extra $300.00 pays for his car insurance and gasoline.  He also told me to mention that he did not buy his textbooks when he was in school.  What he did was go to the bookstore, and buy the used books for his classes and then photocopy all the relevant pages for all his textbooks, adjusting the size of the pages so that two pages can fit onto the 8.5 X 11 and return the textbooks for a full refund.  When there is a shrink wrap, he asks a student in class if they would lend him the material in exchange for taking down notes on his laptop computer and sending that student a free copy via email.  He even offers to sell his notes that he took in class to disorganized students.  He would ask them sometimes to give him their textbooks when they are finished so he can go resell them in exchange for the notes.  This extra windfall money would be used to offset costs to pay any unforseen expenses so that he doesn't have to dip into his $720.00 biweekly reserve.  His 3 roomates buy the ink cartridges since they also get to use his photocopier since he put up the photocopier (despite him getting it for free).  

I thought that because we are in a recession, I felt that some of you could take pieces of this wisdom or share this wisdom with others.  Like the photocopying of the textbooks, is a great idea.  Often even if you buy the book used, and resell it at the end of the year to the college, the price gap is much larger than paying 2.9 cents at discount printers spending hours photocopying each page of all what you need at once. 

I am aware that most of us including myself would not go applying all these steps.  Many of us were not raised in third world countries to suffer like this.  While my Indian friend didn't think of it as suffering, he did mention that he could not bear to suffer paying back all that debt.  While most of us would find paying off debts is a normal way of living. 

Even those with families, I want to say that there is a filipino family I know who work as janitors.  They do cleaning at car dealerships, and they take their family members with them and they sleep in the various accounts that they need to clean, and do not have a home and pay rent.  They work day and night this way, so they have learned to cut corners.  I taught them about the free food from the Sikh Temple, and now they eat all their meals there also.  

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote John Wilson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20/April/2010 at 9:49pm
Don't be so worry. You will definitely recover your losses. Believe in God.Everything will be alright.


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