So you went to a college for one semester and incurred a $30k bill and owe $20k of that? And you are 17?
You will not put this on a credit card! Don’t do that even if you have one and even if they advise you to do that. We are advising you to make a payment plan with the school as this is not on a loan, you owe the school.
Where are your parents?
What college is this?
It sounds very shady that your financial aid wasn’t announced in May when you were admitted.
I agree that alking with a lawyer will help you see what your path forward is.
How in the world is it you and not your parents who are on the hook for this $20K?
@Agree with @Erin’s Dad I didn’t think a 17 year old could sign a legally binding document. Hmm… maybe I was wrong about the need for a lawyer…
Seventeen year olds can sign for student loans and can register to attend a college and be responsible for the tuition. When my 17 year old attended college, the only documents I signed were for the NCAA (for drug testing) nothing from the school.
good to know @twoinanddone, I wonder why they can sign a for college loans and not a rental lease? I was told because a 17 year old could not sign a lease even if they could show financial means because it was a contract and not legally enforceable.
I just reread the OP. In it the OP says they applied to this college last spring. OP .did you attend college last spring…or did you apply last spring?
When did you incur this $20,000 debt? Spring or this fall?
You say the semester ended…but the fall semester has NOT ended yet.
Please clarify.
@“Erin’s Dad” Legal Aid Society was the recommendation. The OP does not want to just agree to a payment plan and terms suggested by whatever college is in question. You can be sure the college has lawyers. Would you negotiate against someone who has legal counsel without your own counsel?
@AverageDummy - Please seek low cost legal counsel. Legal Aid Society is a possibility. The other possibility is to contact a local law school. They often run free (or low cost) legal clinics. Many people here seem resistant to lawyers but you need one even if you just go the lawyer once.
@3scoutsmom the legal age for contracts in most states is 18, that someone under that age does not have the mental capacity to understand the consequences of committing to the terms of a contract. A contract signed by a 16 year old is not void, but voidable. Minors often have credit cards and enter into other forms of contracts but a smart person will have an adult back up that contract. A 17 year old can sign a lease, but the landlord worries, rightly, that the teen could void the contract when he turns 18.
Enter the US congress. It made regulations that say minors can sign loans for college and they are not voidable. It’s unclear what the OP signed with the college and he may have a right to void the bill (he said there is no loan involved, just a bill from the school). I doubt it, but worth a shot.
Thanks for the explanation @twoinanddone, I wish the OP would give more information things don’t sound right to me.
there is some missing information here.
To clarify certain things, i attended the university this past spring. I have spoken to a counsellor there and have worked out a plan that would bill me small fee until the debt is paid which from calculation is basically for life.I can not be issued a credit my 18th birthday, so i have asked for more time. For those asking about my parents and why they aren’t on the hook is because they can not afford to pay the debt.
I was never asked to sign any documents for the school. The problem is getting credit worthy cosigners to help me take out the loan. So i am basically stranded
What is this school?
A for-profit scammy school?
no, a private uni upstate
What have you been doing since the spring?
If you are a citizen and work full time, 40 hrs × $8/hr= about $300 a week, $15,000 a year. You could pay this off in a few years, then go back and finish your degree at an affordable school.
How did you think you were going to pay for it? What did the net price calculator show you when you were applying?
I’m still unclear as to why you think you need a credit card to start paying off this debt. Take x% of your paycheck and send it to the school every week. Why burden yourself with interest from a credit card? Many schools will charge extra fees for paying with a credit card, I know I checked.
You do NOT want to put this on a credit card.
Here is what I would do. I would get one job to pay my living expenses. And I would get a second part time job. The entire earnings from that part time job would be sent to pay off the school debt. In addition, I would save as much as possible from my full time job…and send additional money to pay off the loan.
There still seems to be a missing piece here. are you saying your first semester in college was Spring 2016? And that you had NO WAY to pay the bill?