I went to nslds.edu to get a copy of my financial aid report and it says they are stafford loans, but how do I tell if they are private or federal loans? My credit report says the original creditor is Washington Mutual, which makes me think maybe it is a private loan?? Unfortunately I do not have a copy of the original loan documents. Any help would be greatly appreciated .
My loan is in default. I am afraid of contacting them because I feel ignorant of how everything works. I have been researching all of this for the last couple of weeks. The more I read the more overwhelmed I get. My loans were with Sallie Mae, now they are with ECMC (educational credit management Corp). The credit bureau told me they are a collection agency. They have added $4600 to my original $5300. I am wondering if I can contact someone besides them to work out a deal? My credit report says that Washington Mutual is the original creditor. Any suggestions or info is much appreciated.
Don't let yourself feel overwhelmed. You can work it out. Contact the FSA Ombusdman as I suggested in your other thread and get someone to review your entire case. Then, if you're concerned about what they suggest you do, come back and bounce things off of us as well.
Do you remember if a credit report was pulled? If it was a private loan they would have pulled one. I believe if it were a federal loan it would reflect on your credit report with something stating "Sallie Mae"....I borrowed my federal loans through bank X, but reports as Sallie Mae. Plus the federal loans give you a 9 month grace period before reporting you as default, a private loan does not give you that luxury and reports default the first month a payment is missed. Student Loan Borrower Assistance » Default and Delinquency
Sherriann you are talking about different things: 1) NSLDS only shows your federal student loans, if any of those loans are in default, you will be alerted as it will show a caution sign with the caption default underneath. 2)ECMC is a division of Salliemae, ECMC is now servicing the defaulted loan. Washington Mutual was your lender, typically, unless it is Federal Direct Loans or Salliemae Lending, your lender does not service your loans. You must contact ECMC to determine whether you have a private or federal student loan. That is easy to discern. If it is private, you will have less options for curing the default. If it is federal, you can elect to participate in a loan rehabilitation program or consolidate your federal student loans, which will cure the default.
