<p>Basically, I currently have some deferred college loans that I have to start paying back next month. I am currently unemployed and may hopefully have work soon, but there is the chance that I will fail my interviews and still wind up jobless. I do not own a credit card, but have been rather using a debit card throughout my college years. My worry is that I’ll still be jobless and my credit will be destroyed as a result of being unable to pay anything back past the deferral date.</p>
<p>I basically worked through school to pay off what I could and put the rest on loans for that which I couldn’t nail down, but I admit I know very little about the proper way to handle all of this post-grad. Yes, I know I am a Wharton grad, but I’m being honest – I truly don’t know what my best options are at this point. My relative is urging me to get a credit card, but I feel like that is too dangerous for me right now and I don’t want to put myself in a deeper hole, especially since I do not have a means to pay any of my expenses off at the moment.</p>
<p>Of course, owning my interviews would make all of this go away.</p>
<p>At any rate, when do you feel is the smart time to actually get a credit card/how would you advocate its usage? I absolutely do not want to make a foolish mistake in this rather crucial point in time. Thanks!</p>
<p>You may have trouble getting a credit card in the current environment without any income at all. That said, a credit card is useful for things like reserving hotel rooms. And… if you get a credit card and pay on time, it will build up your credit rating. However, defaulting on your student loans would certainly offset that…</p>
<p>My recommendation would be to get any job (even one flipping burgers and living with your parents) to start making those loan payments on time. Hold off on the credit card unless you really need to do something with it you can’t already do with a debit card. Once you have steady employment with a reasonable paycheck, then go ahead and apply for a credit card. But… pay the balance off every month. Don’t put anything on the card you wouldn’t be able to pay cash for. Don’t carry credit card debt, it is stupid.</p>
<p>Consider filing for an additional deferment on your student loan(s) due to economic hardship, and I second the motion of not even considering getting a credit card until you are more established.</p>
<p>That’s exactly my logic, too. The problem is, of course, work. Transportation has been an issue and a lot of the jobs around here have not been hiring at all – even the megabasic ones. I’ve been earning some money from various internet jobs, but it’s only been enough to handle food expenses. There’s no way I can pay off student loans with this. I absolutely need a fulltime job.</p>
<p>That being said, is there any way to contact the lenders and let them know the situation? Is there any way to push back payment dates at the expense of additional interest instead of damaging credit to some extreme extent due to this outlier case? I don’t want to default on my loans but I just have no way of paying them back in time unless I get a job.</p>
<p>I (me personally) have student loans from going back to school. When I was on layoff (Dec 2008-Nov 2009) I went online to my student loan service provider, filled out a form (online) they sent me a paper to sign and I was granted a deferral for that period of time. </p>
<p>So just get in touch with your provider, online or by phone.</p>