I'm quite new and I'm amazed at the information I'm finding! I'm hoping I can get a bit of advice for my own situation. Sorry for the length, but I'm sure you all will appreciate the info up front instead of having to ask a hundred questions.
I'm 19 years old (will be 20 when I apply for a loan, and when the fall 2008 semester begins), and I need to take out student loans. I have exhausted all of my Federal loan/grant options (I only qualify for Unsubsidized staffords, no grants, and scholarships will be scarce). I have a FAFSA, but my parents make almost $500k/year so I qualify for the bare minimum. My parents also were the "You're 18 now! SEE YA!" types that have decided that I needed to make it all on my own from that point on. I live with my boyfriend and his family (They're wonderful, but I don't want to ask for anything more than a roof over my head because they have their own serious troubles to deal with), but am otherwise completely self-sufficient.
I have looked through all my options, budgeted and planned non-stop for the past few months, and I have come to the conclusion that I will need to take out a student loan. As evil and dangerous as they can be, this is my only option for finishing my degree on time. Which, I really need to do because I simply refuse to be living with my boyfriend's parents until I'm 25. However, I will take this housing while I have it, as it is relatively free (and you can't beat that), but I will not stay a moment longer than I must.
Now, here's my history:
When I go to apply for the loan, I will have lived at my current and most recently preceding addresses for about 15 months. Of course, that is the minimum requirement, but most lenders look for more than that.
Also, I will have only been with my current employer for 10 months (although I will have 5 years of CONTINUOUS employment history in the same field, retail/customer service). I am still a little fuzzy on how the employment factor works, but I know that lenders like Sallie Mae do not take into account income (or so they say on their website? I'm still a bit confused about that).
I have one (or two, since it is through two separate lenders) student loan right now, it is an Unsubsidized Stafford loan, and I only have $3500 of debt. Half of it is through Direct Loans and half through LaSalle Bank (I have only ONE semester to go before I am awarded my Associates Degree, so only $3500 is pretty good!).
I have decent credit (the last time I checked my FICO score was 645, and that was in August of 2007). I also have an auto loan with NO cosigner through Chrysler Financial ($4500 left on the note) that I obtained AFTER I checked my FICO score so I'm sure my score could be higher by now based on timely payments. I have 3 credit cards, all of which add up to $2400 in available credit (but NONE OF MY CREDIT IS BEING UTILIZED). The really sticky part is that by the time I apply for a private loan, I will only have 22 months of credit history. I have NO HOPE of ANY COSIGNER. I need to get this loan all on my own (I will be applying for about $5,500).
So just to summarize.... Loan is my only option. I have decent credit, although a little less than two years. I've never been late on ANY payments. EVER. No revolving credit is being utilized. Have my own auto loan. No hope of a cosigner for this loan of $5,500!
Does anyone think I could get a loan based on this?
Thank you!