This website is a testimony to the problems Canadian Student Loan borrowers experienced from approximately 1996 to 2008 and until their loans were paid off.
The privatization of the Student Loans system by the Chretien and Martin Liberal governments broke the system and defaulted thousands of borrowers who were trying to pay their loans. There were even stories of suicide due to the harassment of borrowers.
Read the report that I prepared back in 2007 here. Canada Student Loans-The Need for Change Fortunately the new Conservative government at the time revamped the program and fixed the system for new borrowers, but borrowers under the previous program were left with ruined credit and continued harassment from debt collectors.
I call on the Canadian Government to apologize to the borrowers affected by this fiasco and make amends.
Unfortunately the Liberal government is again clobbering the Education system with their changes to International Student Visas. Yes, there's a problem, but instead of a well thought out plan, they have pulled the emergency brake on the train causing a derailment. This has introduced unprecedented instability for both private and public education institutions who serve both international and local students.
Universities have been forced to cancel programs and layoff hundreds if not thousands of full-time and contract instructors.
Again, the Liberal government has messed up the education environment.
QuoteReplyTopic: 2-yr, 10-yr... which rule applies? Posted: 27/May/2004 at 11:19am
Ok, this is the first time I've posted in a forum like this, about this subject, so please bear with me. It is obvious that there is a lot of confusion regarding the interpretation of the rules regarding student loans and bankruptcy, but if anyone has any info for me, it would be greatly appreciated.
Background: I attended a private institution (CDI College) from October 1995 and was scheduled to complete studies in October 1996. I applied for and received about $17,000 ($11,000 in tuition alone!) in a combination of federal and provincial student loans. I was offered a job about a month before finishing school, and since I had a wife and new child to care for and money was tight, I took the job.
I hate to admit it, but since leaving school, I can't remember having ever made a payment on my student loans... I may have made the first couple of payments, but I honestly can't remember. Anyway, to make a long story short, I worked for a couple of years, then was unemployed, in what has become a fairly consistent pattern for me (what can I say? I'm a computer guy). During the last seven or so years, I've had two more kids, and my wife and I split up a few years ago. Employment for me has been a rollercoaster ride, having made some mistakes, and always struggling with the retraining/unemployment dilemma of being in the computer field. Now, not only have my student loans grown to close to $22,000 (thanks to the beauty of interest), but I now owe about $10,000 on an unsecured consolidation loan (thanks in part to my ex), as well as close to $18,000 in child support payments and have been chased by Family Maintenance Enforcement Program (FMEP) and attended court a half dozen times in the last year.
Current Situation: As of now, I returned to school in February (CDI again, unfortunately) on an HRDC-funded retraining program, which I will complete by the end of June, 2004. I know when I start working as a computer consultant in July (job already lined up) that I will quickly have the wrath of FMEP on me again. I don't really mind FMEP all that much because I do believe in making sure my kids are cared for. My first comment is that FMEP is ruthless, and have an enormous amount of power. The only advantage to having FMEP after you is that, when you get a harassing phone call from a creditor of another debt, all you have to do is mention that FMEP is after you and they leave you alone, because they know that they can't even hope to compete for money against FMEP. The disadvantages are, once they consider you a "deadbeat dad", you are treated like a criminal by financial institutions. I opened a Royal Bank account a couple of months ago (to cash my HRDC-funding cheques), and they wouldn't even give me a debit card to use an automated teller because I'm considered a high risk for potential fraud, based on my credit history! It doesn't seem to matter that I have never committed a crime in my life, or that I was in the military for awhile. On top of that, FMEP quickly (within a month and a half) froze that bank account, demanding that any deposits made to that account be forwarded to them immediately, despite a court order I have to ensure that FMEP leaves me alone while I'm attending school...
Question: As for bankruptcy, do I fall within the 2yr or 10yr rule as far as student loans are concerned? I'm not sure when the 10yr rule came into effect, and I don't know if it matters whether you had your student loan before the rule...
I apologize for making this such a long post, but I guess it also gave me an opportunity to rant a little bit. Any info anybody has would be great!
: my wife and I split up a few years ago... I now owe about
: $10,000 on an unsecured consolidation loan (thanks in part to my
: ex), as well as close to $18,000 in child support payments
I don't get it ...you are paying all this child support money, to
someone who has the kids ?
Someone explain to me the reasoning behind this ? It appears to
me that it would be easier that the person paying all this money,
rather than paying to someone else to do the job of raising the kids,
for the person to have the kids himself, spend the money himself
for the kids with himself.
I don't agree with this scam of forking over cash to another person,
for that person to be enjoying something that is only 50% their's,
in this case, kids.
Society is in big trouble to have this financial pressure levied
on individuals ....not to mention the emotional turmoil.
I can understand your confusion, and I totally agree with you. It's a long and convoluted story, but I'll try to tell it in a nutshell. When my ex and I split, I was working as a school district computer tech. The dilemma I faced when we seperated was to either take care of the kids and pay for daycare (they were all under six at the time) at close to $1000 per month (I didn't qualify for daycare subsidy - apparently you're rich if you make over $30,000/yr) or pay child support of about $700 per month. Obviously, there really is no right or wrong decision with this. The $700/month was forced on me based on my income and the fact that my ex went on welfare. The interesting thing is that welfare paid her that support, billed FMEP, who is, in turn, billing me.
I've been trying to negotiate with my wife to have the kids half the time (thankfully I have a girlfriend who loves my kids), which would cancel any child support requirements for either of us. The challenge, of course, is getting my ex to agree with this when she seems quite happy to make sure I "pay" for the rest of my life and stay in debt. The thing that pisses me off the most about her attitude is that she is at least 50% responsible for that debt. Anyways... it's just one of the many battles I'm facing in trying to get my finances in order once and for all!
I've seen data from Statistics Canada,
that say 40% of people who are renting
a dwelling (vs. owning) spend 50% or
more of their monthly wages just in
payments to the landlord.
Assuming this is $700, then the individual
has perhaps $700 left for other expenses.
If you add the child support you're paying,
it would eat up that $700...leaving many
people with nothing for food, nothing to pay
gas, public transportation, and other daily
staples.
Clearly.... the courts and the justice system
assumes everyone has a public servant job
that pays $55,000 per year, in Ottawa, Hull
or Quebec City, for example.
Thinking about it all almost makes me laugh now. Here's some more interesting info for you... when my ex and I split, I obviously had to find another place to live - thankfully I was able to move into my mom's basement "suite" for awhile. But, had I been been paying rent, my expenses would have looked like this:
Yes, I was paying for two leased vehicles when we split up. And that's not including food, utilities, etc. I realize that I risk looking like a complete idiot in writing all of this. I'm living proof that IQ and good grades have absolutely no bearing on making good decisions in life. I'm just about 34 now, and owe close to $60,000 in unsecured debt, and, having left literally everything to my ex, have nothing to show for 20 years in the workforce.
On a brighter note, both the vehicles were eventually repossessed, and thankfully neither of the lessors came after me for the rest of my lease or any penalty (which they could have... my fingers are still crossed), and I'll be going into a consulting job which will pay me $40 or $50 per hour. I guess 12 years in the computer field has to be good for something.
One last piece of trivia for ya... I heard on the radio about ten years ago (a station called LG73 in Vancouver, before going through numerous program changes) a "talk show" with some economist. Anyway, he said (back then) that if the minimum wage rose IN PROPORTION to the cost of living since the 1950s, the minimum wage would be around $27 per hour. That was back in the early 90s.
Financial distress and socioeconomic crisis can be compared to the common flu virus (without the mortality statistics, of course). No one is immune to them. You can wash your hands religiously, or be the most intelligent person on the planet. Finance, credit, student debt, etc., they are like a new form of infection. There are ways to make things more comfortable, or even cure the crisis, however, nothing is easy.
The best defense is AWARENESS because it creates EMPOWERMENT. That is the cure to one of the most common - yet debilitating illnesses in this country.
Solve Student Debt specializes in solutions for students and graduates in student loan default, and those at risk of defaulting.
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2-yr, 10-yr... which rule applies?
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