Student loan misunderstandings borrow trouble

Here’s a worrisome survey item from last week that caught my attention: Many college students are signing on the dotted line for student loans they don’t fully understand.

So many thousands of dollars on the line and they don’t know the terms and the numbers?

According to the report from the nonprofit Young Invincibles, nearly two-thirds of student loan borrowers misunderstood or were surprised by details of the loan process. For example, when asked about the monthly repayment, 20 percent acknowledged that the amount was unexpected.

Comments from three of the anonymous students quoted in the report offer more context:

“I did not fully understand the extent to which I was getting myself into. All I knew was in order to pay tuition, I would need to take out private and federal loans.”

“Obviously, I understood that I would have to repay my loans upon graduation. However, I did not realize how much interest (it) would take.”

“Looking back, I wish I asked a million more questions than what I did, but at the same time I don’t think I knew what to ask.”

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/03/30/3526301/student-loan-misunderstandings.html#storylink=cpy