# Traveling with LOANS? HELP!



## Skies (Aug 21, 2008)

I'm not sure if any travelers have set out while still financially bound by... having to pay loans =( I have to start paying a big ass university loan in November and I was planning on traveling at the start of January or maybe end of December. 

I'm going to start work soon (August or September), I have a job as a teacher's aid making 10 bucks an hour it's on call, but I'm waiting to get my ID in the mail from the DMV so that I can go get the state required finger print done to start the job. It takes three weeks for the results of my finger print to get mailed back to the agency I'm working for. So I should start the teacher's aid job in less than a month. I also should get hired full time at some other place, I mean I had the interview already and I did well and they said they'd give me a call by the end of the week so hopefully I will get hired there. I've applied to a lot of other jobs and blah blah blah they have me on file and I'll get work soon.

So about the loans. With all the money I make from whatever work I have for the next 3-4 months, lets say I save up at least $ 3,500, shouldn't I just save all that in my bank account and then pay my loans about 300-400 dollars per month, head out to travel in January, and make money on the street while I'm traveling (I once made 55 bucks spanging for 30 minutes I'm sure if I spanged A LOT I can make enough) and have that money put into my account and keep paying off loans while I travel? I'd have the lender take the money out of my account, of course. 

Is it illegal to be traveling while paying off loans? I know that if you change your address you have to tell your lender, but if I'm homeless/nomadic will I get in legal trouble somehow? Can the cops come after me? I gotta ask cause I don't know just how crazy the law will get if a traveler/hobo/homeless-ish person is paying off loans with that kind of lifestyle and no steady job. I know that if you fall under economic hardship your loan will be cancelled (and I'm gonna be fucking homeless or whatever) but uh would I be that lucky? haha

Has anyone traveled while also paying loans off or am I the only one in a retarded situation? ARGH


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## Dameon (Aug 22, 2008)

I'm sorry, but I gotta laugh a little at a university graduate being homeless. 'course, I imagine it's by choice, but it sure is funny.

I had student loans. I just never paid them. I haven't been thrown in jail after several years of not paying them, so I think you're pretty safe on that front. I once had a debt collector get ahold of me at my mom's house, and when I told him I was homeless, that stumped him. Kind of hard to threaten you when you don't have anything they can take away.

I don't think the people you're paying care about your address as long as you're still paying the loan. If you don't pay off their loan, and have no address, there's nothing they can do about it, although that's probably not the route you want to go, since I imagine you want to have a normal life at some point soon after doing some traveling.


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## finn (Aug 22, 2008)

You don't have to worry about the police; they got rid of debtor's prisons a long while ago. What they can do is take money from your bank account. I know one guy who has bank accounts in a friends name to get around that. Also, if you're paying back the loan, I don't think they really care if they know your address or where you're living.


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## dirtbag (Aug 22, 2008)

HA!!!


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## nobo (Aug 23, 2008)

look into getting a swiss bank account. debt collectors, or anyone for that matter cant touch your money and it works just like any other bank account, you can get a debit card and shit. in any case yea nothing will happen if you owe money and you get arrested or something especially if youre paying it off. loans are just a bad situation to begin with....


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## Skies (Aug 23, 2008)

Dameon said:


> I'm sorry, but I gotta laugh a little at a university graduate being homeless. 'course, I imagine it's by choice, but it sure is funny.
> 
> I had student loans. I just never paid them. I haven't been thrown in jail after several years of not paying them, so I think you're pretty safe on that front. I once had a debt collector get ahold of me at my mom's house, and when I told him I was homeless, that stumped him. Kind of hard to threaten you when you don't have anything they can take away.
> 
> I don't think the people you're paying care about your address as long as you're still paying the loan. If you don't pay off their loan, and have no address, there's nothing they can do about it, although that's probably not the route you want to go, since I imagine you want to have a normal life at some point soon after doing some traveling.



Thanks. I'm actually not a college grad. At all. I went to a university for a year and fucked up academically there. I've been wanting to travel for a few years, it's not a new idea for me, I just had different things to choose from and I chose college at the last minute kinda and well haha since I tried it out I realize it's not fitting me at this time in my life at all. Thanks again for the 2 cents, I have a lot of tension taken off now.


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## Mouse (Aug 25, 2008)

you can ask for a hardship deference with your student loans. I've done it when I'm out of work. they'll either reduce your payment or temp. stop your payments. you'll still rack up interest but at least you wont default. I've known people that work seasonal jobs and just keep saying they are out of work and keep getting their payments postponed. 

or you can register for classes, which means you're still technically a student, which means you don't have to pay your loans, and then when it's time for those classes to start you can drop them without paying. I've never tried this but I think it would work. 

I think you've got 3 months after leaving school until you gotta start paying (most loans work that way) so you can wait 3 months, reg for classes for the next semester, get your loan payments defered and then drop the classes when the time comes and then you've got 3 more months before you gotta worry about it again.


or you can just not pay them. that's kinda my plan. I'm gonna get my BFA and then skip out. lol. bad credit wont kill me. Eventually you can go into forbearance(Sp?) and get your loans forgiven kinda like bankruptcy or some shit like that. My one friend who has a Masters in photography was telling me about his plans to avoid paying the $5,000 a month payment he'd have to make. I can email him and ask him to explain it again cuz I kinda forget most of it. 

there's ways to work the student loan system that can make it so you don't have to pay for years.

and you CAN go to jail for not paying loans. but that's mostly for credit card loans. they treat it like stealing cuz you buy STUFF and then never pay for it. but student loans will only ruin your credit and they'll try to garnish your wages or bank accounts until it's paid off.


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## Skies (Aug 25, 2008)

Mouse said:


> you can ask for a hardship deference with your student loans. I've done it when I'm out of work. they'll either reduce your payment or temp. stop your payments. you'll still rack up interest but at least you wont default. I've known people that work seasonal jobs and just keep saying they are out of work and keep getting their payments postponed.
> 
> or you can register for classes, which means you're still technically a student, which means you don't have to pay your loans, and then when it's time for those classes to start you can drop them without paying. I've never tried this but I think it would work.
> 
> ...



Thanks. Well I have six months after I stop school and I stopped in May so I gotta start paying in November. Since you're saying they'll garnish my bank accounts until it's paid off (if I don't pay them) then I should not pay through my bank account right? I have a bank account, but I can pay in another way right? The thing is I didn't mind paying the first few months, BUT I'm starting to change my mind now haha. But lets say I DO start paying my loans for the first two months of November and December and I DON'T pay by having them take it out of my bank account, and then I suddenly stop paying my loans, is there anyway they can start taking the payments out of my account when I stop?

Or is it a better plan to ask for a hardship deference with my loans for 3 months so that I'd have to start paying in February when I'm already traveling? The thing is I'd still have a bank account while traveling but they can't just start taking money out of my account if I never said how I'd pay off the loans? And if they find out I'm homeless? The other thing is I might start working in the next few weeks for a few months and if I ask for my loan payment to be postponed and they ask for evidence of economic hardship then would they say that I still have to pay the loans starting November if they see I'm making around 1,000 a month? 

See if your friend can explain his plan to you again cause any information is helping me out over here.


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## Matt Derrick (Aug 26, 2008)

Mouse said:


> and you CAN go to jail for not paying loans. but that's mostly for credit card loans. they treat it like stealing cuz you buy STUFF and then never pay for it.



technically, this is untrue. you can only go to jail if the credit card companies can prove you intentionally blew your credit without any intention of paying it off. this is extremely difficult to nearly impossible to prove.

i can name about ten people off the top of my head that i know that have blown their credit intentionally. none have ever (or ever will) go to jail for it. and these aren't paltry sums of money either (5k - 65k!).

now, im generally the last person to let big corporations keep me in line through fear, but there are consequences to not paying off your loans or blowing your credit, or whatever. you should take these into careful consideration.

for example, if you don't pay off your student loans, there is a possiblity of your wages being garnished and whatnot. the best solution to this is to just not use banks ever again. cash your checks through check cashing places, and anytime you need credit cards, just buy greendot prepaid credit cards. generally, you just have to learn to live "underground" and keep your income/finances off the books. it's not the easiest thing to do, but it's not terribly hard either if you're willing to make some sacrifices.

ive been doing it for about 3 years now.


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## Dameon (Aug 26, 2008)

> Since you're saying they'll garnish my bank accounts until it's paid off (if I don't pay them) then I should not pay through my bank account right?


That won't prevent them from getting that money out of your bank accounts. If your loan defaults and gets sold to a debt collector, if there's money anywhere they can get at it, it's fairly certain they will get at it. With a judge's approval, they can empty out your bank account. I've heard of it happening before. Debt collectors are brutal, and will do anything short of shattering your kneecaps to get "their" money out of you (and then keep bleeding you for as long as they can for "interest").


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## Mouse (Aug 26, 2008)

I've had a debt collector on my ass for over a year for some money I owe a college that I don't plan on paying. they only call me endlessly. they haven't threatened to take money from me by force. I plan on waiting until they'll cave for less money (they will, my friends have told me they've done it. make a deal for like half the amount or less just to get you off their books)

as for your student loan, you'd have to call your loan people and ask for info. I'd suggest you just postpone payments as much as possible through whatever options you have available through your loan (not the right word, i know.) maybe just call them up and ask for a copy of their rules and shit and they'll send you the info. 

they wont find out your homeless unless you tell them. if anything, that might be to your advantage possibly. 

postpone postpone postpone. I wouldn't go defaulting right off the bat cuz you might regret it if you decided this isn't the life you truely wanted. some people, like Matt, are ok with it. some aren't. I personally start freaking out a lil inside when my savings account gets below $100. so the whole massive debt thing kinda worries me. 

and if money doesn't mean anything to you, why not just get rid of it in order to pay off your loans? hmmm? by not paying off money you've borrowed you're basically saying "I hate money! but you can't have any of mine and I'll take all of yours!"


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## Skies (Aug 26, 2008)

Well, Mouse, thanks for the extra info, but the thing is I don't have an extra $17,500 lying around and I'd have to work for like years in order to pay all that off. I actually have two loans that need to be consolidated into 17500 so yeah eek. But uh... I guess I could get rid of my bank account when I start traveling but I'm scared if that'll be a huge mistake. I mean Dameon said debt collectors can start draining money out of my account if the loans defaults and judges give permission to go into my account. 

If I pay 700 a month I'll pay the loan off in 2 years approximately. I'd rather pay like 300-500 a month but then that's well over 3 years. AH! 

So back to what Mouse said, sure I'd give out my money to pay off loans but I mean I don't have much money now and it's not like I can pay off the loans in two months lol. I really don't want to spend years paying off loans and then travel after that just so that I know I have good credit to come back to if/when I come back to standard living. I know people would say that's actually the logical thing to do but I can't stand living the monotonous pattern of standard living right now. I fucking postponed traveling last year because I wanted to try out university life. I don't wanna keep postponing traveling. Maybe that sounds stupid, but I'm being honest. I got a glimpse of the traveler lifestyle a few months ago and it fit me rather well. 

Maybe I should moreso follow Matt's advice? 

Damn I think I'm gonna get screwed sometime with this and it ain't gonna feel gooood. =(

It's gonna be September and I don't even have temporary work yet, so my short term plan is to talk to my lender and see if I can get the loan payments postponed. With the fucking horrible financial/employment luck I've had all summer I doubt I'll soon be able to start working enough to start paying off loans in November.


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## derekja (Aug 26, 2008)

It's too bad it's a student loan. They have extra ways of collecting those and there isn't a time limit on them suing you. Lots of good information here:

http://www.studentloanborrowerassistance.org/

But, I mean, if you're traveling you're probably not making enough taxable money to have them taking your income tax refund be a concern, and it takes a while for them to start garnishing wages and stuff (and never if you're under the table.) It's going to hurt your credit rating, but that goes away after 7 years.

You have to make a call as to whether greater pain to clear it up in the future is worth ignoring it for now. Do some research before you talk to the loan counselor. They're not on your side, regardless of calling themselves a "counselor."


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## BrokeWhiteBoy (Sep 29, 2008)

Guess it was a good thing I got Cal and Pell Grants and the Board of Governors Fee Waiver (Fresno City College thing). My tuition costs were $15 a semester and books and all that ran $200 a semester. The grants were paying me about $4000 a semester. Got arrested and banned from campus in February, but stayed enrolled. Kept getting checks until June.

All the money after Feb went to paying off bail.


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## Mouse (Sep 30, 2008)

damn, u lucky fuck! lol.

sadly my parents make too much so i don't get shit in grants or assistance of any kind. thats why I'm hitting up community college on their dime until I turn 24 and can file the fafsa without them involved and hopefully get grants and need based shit plus a healthy about of merit based scholarships because i maintain and 4.0 as best I can.


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## Mouse (Sep 30, 2008)

because everyone wants to be famous?


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## BrokeWhiteBoy (Sep 30, 2008)

Mouse said:


> damn, u lucky fuck! lol.
> 
> sadly my parents make too much so i don't get shit in grants or assistance of any kind. thats why I'm hitting up community college on their dime until I turn 24 and can file the fafsa without them involved and hopefully get grants and need based shit plus a healthy about of merit based scholarships because i maintain and 4.0 as best I can.



Combined income for my parents was just over 100k. My dad made about 74k. I got around that by claiming I didn't live with him. If I remember right, you can just say that you are working and living on your own and have been for the prior 12 months and get around the parent thing. Hell, no one has to know your "rent" isn't real or being paid since you still live at your parents house.

I still think it is pretty funny that the campus police arrested me, the dean of students banned me from campus until the case is closed and he gets a chance to review if I should be allowed back, yet I was still getting checks mailed to me from their financial department. I also have 11 books still that I checked out from their library, but since I was banned, I can't return them (yes I am aware I could have a friend take them back). I informed the library staff that the books were in my bag which was taken as "evidence" and they are sitting in the campus police evidence room, so I can't get them out. They dropped any and all fines, just as long as I promise to return them when I get them back.


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## Mouse (Oct 1, 2008)

ha.

I've tried to figure ways around it but my mother keeps claiming me as dependent on her taxes so I can't bullshit around that. I don't know if she's done the math but she's prolly not saving much money claiming me vs. paying my tuition w/o grants subtracted. Fuck it, she can fuck herself over all she wants. I'm not paying it right now. When I'm 24 that'll be a different story but by then I'll have it worked out that I AM out of her house, independent (tax-wise) and all that good shit that will get me tons of help... everything short of being knocked up lol.


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## BrokeWhiteBoy (Oct 1, 2008)

Yeah, as soon as I turned 18 my mom quit claiming me, said I can start filing my own taxes. Which is great because I made $981 paid $13 in withholdings and some change last year, and could legitimately claim $1100 in education costs. I was given my $13 back.

$13 bought me two packs of smokes, and a few beers. Was a good day.


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## Mouse (Oct 1, 2008)

yeah. I get constantly fucked by my parents because my mother knows nothing about money. I couldn't get that stimulus check because of her stupid ass. and I can't even get work/study jobs at my college anymore (which has cut MY income in 3rd, which she doesn't seem to understand! always asking me for money and shit that I no longer make!!) because my step dad got a raise.

my parents are stupid as shit.


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## BrokeWhiteBoy (Oct 1, 2008)

Yeah, it sucks. I just had to bail my mom out on her phone bill. Somehow she went over on minutes by over double. The bill was $389.15.


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## finn (Oct 1, 2008)

Huh, I guess it kinda pays to have parents who don't make so much money, since they know how to save it. My parents refuse to take any of my money, and if I pay for a taxi for them, they will repay me at the first opportunity they get and they won't take no for an answer. I'm thinking it's a matter of pride for them...


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## Kryl88 (Oct 21, 2008)

Thanks a lot for all the replies to this thread.. It's kinda helped me out since I'm a college student stuck between wanting a life of adventure and exploration and currently being stuck with a life of boring-ass shit. Not quite a fan of our current system of living.

In any case, I was thinking that if I register and decide to take classes next semester, and don't withdraw this one, I may well just travel during the summers between classes and work during the semesters so that I have some money coming in for the 2-3 month trips I'd be taking. I'm still strongly considering just going off the grid, essentially...


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## snor (Oct 21, 2008)

I've been traveling for over a year and a half now and was supposed to start paying back my student loans over a year ago. Thats right, i went to a corporate ass college. ive been homeless since i was 17 1/2 and made the poor decission to go to college for nothing i cared about, cause i felt pressured. With Sallie Mae i can defer up to 18 months with tons of interest accrueing in the meantime... but for me, it's worth it to live out another 6 months at a time and dealing with the debt later. I wish i had never done it, but it's too late, something to fall back on....whatever. i have over $70,000 to pay back, but fuck it. i'll get around to it at some point. you really can't get in that much of legal trouble (poor credit, maybe). do the shit you wanna do in the time being, it won't ruin your life. Maybe by the time comes to pay the shit capitalism will fall... Live it up!


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## Kryl88 (Oct 22, 2008)

With any kind of luck, and the slew of things allegedly going to happen in 2012, capitalist ideals may well fall short of being kept around. Not saying it will happen, but maybe people will realize that it's kind of a fucking waste to not spend your life doing what you want to do, instead of working oneself to the bone and paying out the ass for a whole bunch of big, useless crap.

That's one of the reasons I've been wanting to hit the road and disappear.. With any luck, I'll take next Summer to go around traveling and have such a good time that I just disappear and don't give a shit to return to the grind. I just don't think people were designed to live the way that we are forced to.

Peace

~Kryl


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## elokupa (Oct 22, 2008)

in england ya dont have to pay back student loans until youre earning £15,000 or more a year, which is never gonna happen...

im sure a friend told me it was the same in the US..


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## dirtbag (Oct 28, 2008)

Widerstand said:


> Whatever happed to the good old reliably plan of when things get shitty just pack up and walk away? If you don't have an address, real job, or a traceable cellphone in todays world you may as well not even fucking exist.



Exactly. If you're gonna sit around planning and worrying about something like this. Just fucking go get a job.


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## Spinelli (Nov 10, 2008)

Crediters still sweat my mom on her student loans, from like the 80's I think, something to do with Reaganomics and she got fucked over, so I wouldn't fuck with them if you want a straight life. Her unpaid loans are likely to be pushed on my father so run out and get married kids!!


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## Skies (Nov 14, 2008)

What the flying houseless FUCK? I had NO idea people were even posting on this damn thread. Ok well here's the answer to my fucked up lil situation: I ain't paying SHIT! I'm leaving soon and I really don't care. I just needed some details on the situation and now that I got them, fine it'll be fine 7 years and the shit's cleared supposedly. I'm too goddamn free spirited to get a job. I'm never really happy when I work. I tried explaining that to my family too, but of course, what does everyone (who's not a traveler) suggest? So yeah FUCK LOANS just fuck them FUCK THEM UP THE ASS. Ok yeah BUT...

My mother co-signed the bigger loan cause I got two loans, and I feel horrible that the loan is gonna roll over to her if I don't pay it. Thing is she just got laid off, she's on unemployment and disability and has a MILLION medical problems. In some while -however long - when they tell her she needs to pay, maybe she won't have to cause of her fucked up medical/unemployment situation? A friend told me that if I need to I can get a ACLU or NLG lawyer to evade the loan, so I told my mom maybe she should do that. But she's pissed like PISSED that I'm leaving and not doing shit about the loan. My deal is, I'm not gonna work years and years to pay off a loan. I've put traveling on hold for several motherfucking years, the economy can fuck off. I just don't like hurting my mother over this stupid loan shit. I would work and pay it off myself but cmon putting off traveling for years and the urge is fucking oozing outta my lil veins? Jesus Christ and his brother Bob headed to London on a viking ship, I wanna hit the roaaddd. So I don't know, I feel horrible about the situation with my mother but I offered criminally making money and sending it to her and she said no. So uh if anyone has suggestions on what to do with this new situation, please tell me. Either way, I'm leaving soon I ain't paying for loans from a hypocritical education system that never taught me real shit anyway.


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## Adonis (Nov 17, 2008)

I defaulted on a 10k car loan which my dad was co signer on. After about 3 months of not paying, One morning I woke up and the car was gone... (I had to go track it down to get my plates and things from it too!) Anyways this was almost 4 years ago now and they have never come after me or Him for it..

I also have two defaulted (and maxed out) credit cards. and have had various other "minor" credits I have been given on things like laptops, cameras etc...

Like Matt said unless someone can prove you intended to default from the start, there is very little that can happen from a legal standpoint. 

They can only affect your credit and Here in Canada the stature of limitations is 7 years. However not everything is so simple as it does take some sacrifices. For example lets say a debt collector call you and you answer the phone "hello" and the collector asks for you by name and you say "speaking" right then and there your stature of limitations just started all over again! 

The best and hardest way to pull this stuff off is make your self invisible so to speak of every system. which means banks, government, registered clubs, library etc.. 

Currently how I do it is to make "them" chase me all over the Country. I have various mail address, phone numbers(I screen every call anyhow and my cell is prepaid under a alias), emails etc... and the less you tell others your current situation(s)/location(s) the better.

I can't truly offer any advice/tips on dealing with the loan where your mother is involved as that is something only you can decide how to act on. They may or may not come after her...

But something I do suggest you do is utilize this wonderful thing called Internet to research credit, credit scores, and US federal law surrounding such. As the more you educate yourself the more you can make sound decisions that's right for you. 

and as a matter of interest have a look this web site http://www.natural-person.ca

and also I recommend reading about George Gorden http://www.georgegordon.org

Whatever you do, good luck!


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## Spinelli (Nov 17, 2008)

Widerstand said:


> She should not pay them!!! Money is just fancy paper... It's only as real as you want it to be!


I don't know what thier gonna do, I wouldn't pay she got fucked, oh well.


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## bikegeek666 (Dec 1, 2008)

Dameon said:


> I'm sorry, but I gotta laugh a little at a university graduate being homeless. 'course, I imagine it's by choice, but it sure is funny.
> 
> I had student loans. I just never paid them. I haven't been thrown in jail after several years of not paying them, so I think you're pretty safe on that front. I once had a debt collector get ahold of me at my mom's house, and when I told him I was homeless, that stumped him. Kind of hard to threaten you when you don't have anything they can take away.
> 
> I don't think the people you're paying care about your address as long as you're still paying the loan. If you don't pay off their loan, and have no address, there's nothing they can do about it, although that's probably not the route you want to go, since I imagine you want to have a normal life at some point soon after doing some traveling.



pretty much what i've done, just blown them off...i also only went for a semester, so they're not big. and i've never really wanted that "normal life" and home ownership and shit, so i'm not worrying about my credit or anything.

so depending on your future plans for yourself, my advice might just suck.


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## Angela (Jan 7, 2009)

I've been putting mine in "financial hardship" deferment for a couple of years now. To do this though you do have to have some form of legitimate income(however small) to prove your income. I usually work at least a small part of a year which let's me file my taxes and then send my tax return to SallieMae as my proof of income(an added benefit to this is that I can claim the Earned Income Credit on my taxes and get a nice little chunk of money in February). They will only let you do this for a maximum of five years but then I can start using up my alloted five years of putting the things in "voluntary forebearence". Most loans also offer various income dependent payment plans that let you pay very little if you earn very little. By the time those things finally come out of some sort of deferement hopefully the country will have come to it's senses and decide to finally stop trying to make people corporate slaves if they want an education and if not fuck it as long as they don't bring back debtors prisons.


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## IBRRHOBO (Jan 7, 2009)

Hmnn, I smell the stench of fear driven by capitalism here?! My two cents ... and if u see me spanging I want them back ... are this: credit, today, doesn't mean a hel of a lot. We see this as the banks shouted loud that they had no money to lend, which in turn frooze the markets, in response to which we gave them money and basically still no money is being moved in the credit market. If ur on this site u've already contemplated the unorthodox tactics, methods and lifestyles most of us employ. So, really u don't give a rat's ass about fucking the Dpt of Ed; I venture that for whatever reasons the hardship on ur mom isn't that much of a concern as she will simply file bankruptcy and save her house, car, etc. The TRUE reason, I would guess, is that ur searching for some kind of affirmation that that which u have already contemplated is acceptable in some fashion. Morals shift generationally. No smoke and mirrors necessary here in the parlor. Get drunk, catch out, have a meaningless overnight relationship, squat a bit and GET THE FUCK OVER IT! [footnote: I am not being mean here; I don't know u and could care less, but I don't want everyone who posts to be summed up like me ... I'm just blunt and real] Good Hunting!


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