Sallie Mae Student Loans Review

I have been with SallieMae for longer than I care to admit. I probably should have paid my loans off a while ago, but that is MY fault and not the loan servicing company's. I originally took out my student loans at a local bank, and they were bought by SallieMae. I have not been bounced around and had my loans bought and sold by various companies, and I consider myself lucky in that respect. I have heard more than one horror story from other students about that.

When I graduated from college, I had the full payment (principle and interest)automatically debited from my bank account. It was that way for years. I fell on hard times, overcame them, and now I am unable to work. I have not had steady work since 2002. Some may think it is a bad thing that SallieMae offers deferments, forbearances, and extended payment plans, effectively "trapping" you in "loan limbo." SallieMae does not refuse payments over the minimum. You don't ONLY have to pay the minimum.

I am happy for all of these options. Yes, I have carried the loans a while, but I don't have black marks all over my credit either from them, which I DID get from my other unsecured debt when I became unable to work steadily. Finally, I do have average credit now and SallieMae is on there with on-time payments.

I found it very easy to work with SallieMae, both in internet correspondence, and on the phone. They were always willing to work with me. I consolidated my loans (2 sub. and 2 unsub.) for a very low interest rate a while back, so maybe I am a little luckier than some. I have paid them a lot in interest, but I can't say I didn't get anything for it. I have a degree and a steady payment history with them. I don't have a mountain of fees and back-payments piled up into a large figure due that I cannot possibly pay at once.

Even though I am still unemployed and will be for the forseeable future, I am on an extended payment plan. My P & I payments will come due a month after my car loan is paid off. I will have the balance paid off extremely quickly because my car payment is a lot higher than the payments that will be due. I plan to keep making my car payment, just shift it over to SallieMae.

As far as their website goes: I find it to be at the low-end of financial service websites. It is disjointed and you have to hunt around. I only go on there to pay and log off. Everytime I go on there it tells me I have not signed up for the important email correspondence. I have signed up for it, and I do get it, but the message never goes away. For some reason, it always tells me two payments are due at once, then I have to elect to underpay, confirm it, and pay. It has never shown up on my credit report that I have paid late. It has just become a familiar annoyance to me. I never have luck using the "back" button on my browser.

If I was a new parent or student using that website, I might find it to be off-putting. Since it's "the devil I know" now, I still peg my SallieMae experience at five stars. SallieMae has been a very forgiving lender.