Student Loans

[StartingLifeOver]

Last week, I rec'd letters from Direct Loans saying that my loans have been sold to Sallie Mae and what the repayment schedule would be. As of 3/21/2013, my first payment is 387.02 and all payments thereafter were 409.04. I just logged into my Sallie Mae acct for the first time and it clearly states minimum amount due is 285.70. When I changed payment to the original amount of 387.05, it asked which acct would I like to pay the add'l amount to? So my question is two-fold, (1) which payment should I go by? I would think the amount from Sallie Mae but I have not seen a change in what's reported on my CR. I'm completely confused since I want to buy a home and the difference will greatly affect my DTI. (2) if the amount Sallie Mae has is correct, how do I decide which loan to apply the difference to? The lower interest loans have variable rates and the higher interest loans are fixed.

Direct Loan - Sub

$1,378.10

2.39%

$0.26

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$2,755.24

2.39%

$0.52

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$918.43

2.39%

$0.17

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$2,755.24

2.39%

$0.52

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$1,836.83

2.39%

$0.34

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$6,276.93

6.8%

$33.85

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$6,276.93

6.8%

$33.85

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$3,162.46

6%

$17.22

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$2,740.25

2.39%

$1.01

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$2,930.03

2.39%

$1.09

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$2,422.55

2.39%

$0.89

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$7,238.91

6.8%

$42.11

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$3,479.11

6.8%

$20.24

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$6,339.93

6.8%

$36.88

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$5,815.73

6.8%

$33.83

03/21/2013

Direct Loan - Sub

$3,727.93

4.5%

$19.50

03/21/2013

Direct Loan- Unsub

$6,734.34

6.8%

$43.42

03/21/2013

TOTAL

$66,788.94

Minimum Payment Due $285.70

[SCF]

I think it would be a good idea to call Sallie Mae and sort out why there is a discrepency.  Generally, I'd say the website is correct, but with this being a loan they just took over, it's better to be safe than sorry.  I would worry that maybe they applied the incorrect payment plan in determining one of those payments, and you'll definitely want to know which one you're on if you're looking to take on a home loan, because several of them can change over time and you'll need to take that into account.

[kjel]

You might consider consolidation which generally results in a lower payment than if you have all the loans running individually. The payment amount listed by Sallie Mae on your statement or the website is likely the amount, but I have had some issues in the past with the payments fluctuating a few dollars either way . Just to be sure, I'd call customer service and ask, do take notes though! If you want to make additional payments beyond your scheduled payment, if it were me I would pay that towards the individual loan that has the highest balance at the highest rate.

[StartingLifeOver]

Thank you all for your insight. I was able to contact Sallie Mae this morning. The gentleman I spoke with had no idea why two different payment amounts are showing. I have to call back for a second opinion. He said the only explanation he could provide is maybe all my loans are not appearing yet online?? That didn't make sense because the total owed is correct. Then he said maybe monies I paid prior to my bk discharge are decreasing my amount due for this month. That made no sense either since I made those payments last summer!! He did inform me that it should be updated to the higher amount by next month. Idk…I'll wait and see. Payment is due in four days so I made the higher payment for this month just to be on the safe side. I just applied the extra to the highest loan amount.