Warning: Sold Student Loans May Cost You More Money

Last month, my student loan was sold to none other than the infamous government backed lender affectionately named Sallie Mae. I got the notice from my previous lender on March 1^st that stated I should discontinue payments to them and wait to hear from Sallie Mae regarding my new account and payment structure.

My student loan's due date has always been on the 5^th of the month. I had already sent my March payment via snail mail into my previous lender and it was properly recorded before the loan was turned over to Sallie Mae. (I used snail mail because the lender's website didn't offer the option of doing one-time monthly payments and I didn't want to do an automatic monthly payment).

Now, student loans get bought and sold all the time. I'm not upset or complaining about that but there is one little, make that big, tidbit of information about the events that have unfolded over the past month that makes me seriously wonder how sneaky Sallie Mae might be.

I went to make my payment two weeks ago and logged into my account at Sallie Mae. There was no record of my account. I called the toll-free number that they gave me on the website and I was told that my paperwork hasn't been processed yet. I checked back a week later with the same results.

This week my student loan appeared on Sallie Mae's website and I actually got some paperwork in the mail regarding my new account number and balance. The paperwork said nothing about the payment amount or the payment due date, nor was there a payment book amidst their privacy policy and welcome letter.

Now, I know I have a payment due (technically, in my mind, it's past due because it's April 8^th). It's been over a month since my last payment was processed and interest is accruing daily so I logged onto Sallie Mae's website again and started to really look at my student loan account information.

Do you have any idea what I found? I bet you don't. I found that my next payment isn't due until September 5^th, 2012! Now, I've been paying extra on my student loan so that explains a due date so far off but if I was waiting for a payment book I would have missed that little tidbit of information and not have made a payment for over a year.

So, I can take this as a giant windfall for the next 16 months and let the interest pile up or I can make my payments online. They won't send me a payment book or statement until a payment is actually due.

I try very hard to keep up with my bills, as do most people, but what if this one fell through the cracks and I decided to wait for my payment book or a statement? The letter actually said: We'll notify you about your due date and other repayment options closer to your repayment date.

Well, I'm not waiting 16 months to make a payment and I want to send this warning to anyone who may have had a student loan sold to Sallie Mae:

Keep making your payments and don't rely on Sallie Mae to tell you when your payment is due!