FAP569: Interview with SimpleTuition CEO Kevin Walker, ACLU scholarship, Geoff Smith

Student Financial Aid News
+ BankNet360: Federal bank, thrift, and credit union regulators issued stricter guidelines Friday to regulate the subprime mortgage lending market.
+ The new policy will have two major affects on lenders catering to borrowers with less-than-perfect credit — it would require lenders to collect much more information to prove that borrowers have the capacity to pay. It would also require lenders to give borrowers the option to refinance out of an adjustable-rate mortgage at least 60 days before the interest rate jumps to a higher level, without penalty.
+ In addition, the guidelines will require lenders to underwrite loans based on a borrower’s ability to make payments on a loan’s adjusted reset rate, not just its low introductory rate. Nearly 75% of subprime adjustable-rate mortgages issued last year had a low “teaser” rate for the first two or three years of the loan, which then reset to a much higher monthly payment.
+ Nearly 5% of home bought with a subprime mortgage are in foreclosure, up from 2% in 2005, according to LoanPerformance, a mortgage industry researcher.
+ Opponents of the new rules say the guidelines will restrict many borrowers’ access to homeownership.
+ Bravo Sierra – if you can’t afford a regular mortgage, you’re probably borrowing beyond your means – don’t do it – borrow comfortably within your means or not at all
+ Parent PLUS Loan from ParentPLUSLoan.com
+ Student Loan Network encourages responsible borrowing
+ New rates are in effect for variable rate student loans
+ NASFAA: “A bachelor’s degree will cost Ohio State University senior Adrianne Dues about $32,000 in tuition, almost double what she would have paid five years ago. But the federal government won’t loan her any more money than it loaned students in the class of 1992,” The Columbus Dispatch reports. “A tweak of the system becomes effective [July 1″>MP3 file, but it won’t change how much undergraduates can take out: $23,000 for those whose parents claim them as dependents and $46,000 for those on their own. The new law changes the annual limits. It allows undergraduates to borrow an additional $875 their freshman year and an additional $1,000 as a sophomore. But the money is simply being reallocated from what they could have borrowed in their fifth year.”
+ Federal student loans first
+ Private student loans once other options are exhausted

Scholarship Update
+ ACLU Stand Up for Freedom Contest
+ We want you to get creative about defending your rights by producing a video PSA or an audio podcast about how the government is abusing its power. Make it funny, slam it, turn it into a documentary — for both PSA and podcast categories, any type of original work will be considered. This is your chance to win money AND make some noise about the news that bugs you, whether it’s government surveillance, illegal detentions, or censorship.
+ Best Overall PSA ($2000)
+ Best Overall Podcast ($1000)
+ Runner Up: Humor (in any category) ($500)
+ Runner Up: Production (in any category) ($500)
+ Runner Up: Originality (in any category) ($500)
+ Timing: The Third Annual ACLU Stand Up for Freedom Contest commences at 12:01 a.m. EST on April 1, 2007 and ends at 11:59 p.m. EST on Oct. 4, 2007. To be considered, your entry must be received between these dates.
+ Details at our free college scholarship search site

Expert Interview
+ Kevin Walker, CEO of SimpleTuition

Podsafe Music
+ Geoff Smith, Hello Hello
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network

Reminders

+ Private student loans
+ Stafford loans | Other federal student loans
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA tutorials and free help
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidNews.com.
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file