Credit Cards Forum

[JDHopeful]

Okay, so I'm trying to get my cards paid off by the time I go to law school.

However, if there is a couple thousand dollars left on the cards by the time I apply for loans, how will this affect me?

To note: I've never missed a payment on anything; I've been out of undergrad for 3 years and have been paying rent, car loans, credit cards, student loans, among other things on a timely and complete basis for the entire time.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

[krad]

Okay, so I'm trying to get my cards paid off by the time I go to law school.

However, if there is a couple thousand dollars left on the cards by the time I apply for loans, how will this affect me?

To note: I've never missed a payment on anything; I've been out of undergrad for 3 years and have been paying rent, car loans, credit cards, student loans, among other things on a timely and complete basis for the entire time.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

Tag. Same boat, 3 yrs out of UG, paying all that jazz, trying to pay down my cc. I am pretty sure I'll get there before next fall, but I'm curious to know peoples' thoughts as well...

[JDHopeful]

Okay, so I'm trying to get my cards paid off by the time I go to law school.

However, if there is a couple thousand dollars left on the cards by the time I apply for loans, how will this affect me?

To note: I've never missed a payment on anything; I've been out of undergrad for 3 years and have been paying rent, car loans, credit cards, student loans, among other things on a timely and complete basis for the entire time.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

Tag. Same boat, 3 yrs out of UG, paying all that jazz, trying to pay down my cc. I am pretty sure I'll get there before next fall, but I'm curious to know peoples' thoughts as well...

Yea, I'm not sure if I'll get the entire thing down. But we'll see...

But yea, definitely curious to hear thoughts...

[NYC_7911]

To the best of my knowledge, this shouldn't have any impact on your ability to take out loans (federal, at any rate). Stafford loans are not credit-based. Grad Plus loans, which do require credit review, just require that you don't have "adverse credit," defined as:

- currently 90 days or more delinquent on repayment of any debt;
- has had debt discharged in bankruptcy during the past five years; or
- evidence of a default, foreclosure, tax lien, repossession, wage garnishment, or write-off of a Title IV debt during the past five years.

If you've always made payments on time, etc., having a balance on your cc (especially of a couple thousand dollars) shouldn't mean anything for federal loans. I don't know about private, but again, I'm sure your credit is fine with just a small balance on a cc.

[homestyle28]

Okay, so I'm trying to get my cards paid off by the time I go to law school.

However, if there is a couple thousand dollars left on the cards by the time I apply for loans, how will this affect me?

To note: I've never missed a payment on anything; I've been out of undergrad for 3 years and have been paying rent, car loans, credit cards, student loans, among other things on a timely and complete basis for the entire time.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

Tag. Same boat, 3 yrs out of UG, paying all that jazz, trying to pay down my cc. I am pretty sure I'll get there before next fall, but I'm curious to know peoples' thoughts as well...

Yea, I'm not sure if I'll get the entire thing down. But we'll see...

But yea, definitely curious to hear thoughts...

A few grand balance won't affect things much so long as you've been making payments, most students cover costs with fed loans and these aren't too hard to get with good credit (600+ fico). It might make private loans a bit trickier or require you to get a cosigner for the private loans. This link is helpful: http://www.top-law-schools.com/funding- ... ation.html

[vanwinkle]

To the best of my knowledge, this shouldn't have any impact on your ability to take out loans (federal, at any rate). Stafford loans are not credit-based. Grad Plus loans, which do require credit review, just require that you don't have "adverse credit," defined as:

- currently 90 days or more delinquent on repayment of any debt;
- has had debt discharged in bankruptcy during the past five years; or
- evidence of a default, foreclosure, tax lien, repossession, wage garnishment, or write-off of a Title IV debt during the past five years.

If you've always made payments on time, etc., having a balance on your cc (especially of a couple thousand dollars) shouldn't mean anything for federal loans. I don't know about private, but again, I'm sure your credit is fine with just a small balance on a cc.

TITCR. Good repayment history is sufficient for federal grad loans up to the full costs of tuition+living expenses; they don't worry about existing debt or income because you're assumed to get a high-paying job to pay this stuff off when you graduate.

(That's possibly a fault assumption, but it's how the system works.)

[JDHopeful]

Thanks for the insight.

Def. not looking forward to sorting all this out.

Nonetheless, thanks!