Ok, on to my second post and I’ve only just opened up shop here.
Check these out:
Ever notice that the HESAA-NJCLASS bill gives you a much smaller payment window than other bills? Maybe it’s a coincidence?
When I spoke with a HESAA representative about the fact that the “billing period” is only three weeks they could offer no explanation. What’s worse, even though this was a “December” billing period, if I had sent them money before the arbitrary date of December 16, it would not have counted as my monthly payment! The representative was almost sheepish as she explained this greedy policy.
In comparison, the billing period for a Chase credit card for the same period starts on December 5 and the borrower gets all the way until January 2 to make a payment. Why should it be any different with student loans? Well, you aren’t in Kansas anymore, there are very lax rules and protections regarding student loans, a problem I urge all readers to get involved in changing.
This tactic is a loan sharking trick to get people to miss payments. If you have a shorter window to pay, you are more likely to miss payments. Default = more money for the bondholders. I knew within a few months of taking out these loans that there was something shady going on with HESAA. In posts to follow, I will explore some of the “open secrets” about HESAA and how it colluded with Sallie Mae to screw students.