Should I get Maintenance Loan?

I got the highest amount of maintenance loan (due to where I live, home financial situation ect.) I could get in first year + grant from the NHS. I've saved a significant amount of it, and am wondering if I should take a maintenance loan at all for second year??

What's the pros and cons of not wanting to take a maintenance loan anymore? Has anyone realised in first year that they probably don't need to anymore, and hence will be paying less back post-grad? Plus the threshold to pay back has gone down and I think a lot more people will be paying their loans back. Should I just borrow half of it (about 4k) instead? I commute to uni btw

Any advice?

Hi there,

The decision on whether to take the Maintenance Loan in your 2nd year would be totally be up to you and you would need to make the decision in regards to this.

Thanks, Drew

Reply 2

sabz_76

OP

5

Original post by Drew SLC

Hi there,
The decision on whether to take the Maintenance Loan in your 2nd year would be totally be up to you and you would need to make the decision in regards to this.
Thanks, Drew

Hi, thanks for the reply, I was just wondering if anyone was in the same position as me if they're contemplating not taking a maintenance loan in second year, or half. Or if someone in second year already decided to do this

Hi there,

You could discus it with your university and they might be able to help you plan your finances.

Thanks, Drew

Reply 4

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by sabz_76

I got the highest amount of maintenance loan (due to where I live, home financial situation ect.) I could get in first year + grant from the NHS. I've saved a significant amount of it, and am wondering if I should take a maintenance loan at all for second year??

What's the pros and cons of not wanting to take a maintenance loan anymore? Has anyone realised in first year that they probably don't need to anymore, and hence will be paying less back post-grad? Plus the threshold to pay back has gone down and I think a lot more people will be paying their loans back. Should I just borrow half of it (about 4k) instead? I commute to uni btw

Any advice?

There's literally no reason not to take it. It's likely to be the lowest interest loan with the best possible repayment scheme you'll ever come across, and it gets written off after 40 years, and it won't affect your credit score.

There is never any reason to take less than the maximum maintenance loan you are entitled to. Even if you do save it, that is valuable as funds to support you potentially moving to a new graduate job somewhere else in the country (and buying appropriate work attire for e.g. formal office wear roles), the nucleus of a down payment for a house after graduating, etc.

Remember also that 40 years after you take out the loan it will be written off, and most don't fully pay of the loans anyway. Also bear in mind that the total value of the loans that you have taken out from SLC will not affect your individual repayments (just how long you have to repay) and you will never be repaying more than you can afford anyway.

About 15 years ago there were a number of articles about how students from extremely wealthy families who didn't need the loans as their family could and would pay their way through uni still took out the maintenance loan to invest in certain kinds of investments that would actually yield profits relative to the interest rates long term. If the rich kids are doing that you can be sure that not taking out the full loan as a less than rich kid means you're missing a trick.

Hi there,

If you have any further questions you can contact us on this platform again.

Thanks, Drew

Reply 6

sabz_76

OP

5

Original post by artful_lounger

There's literally no reason not to take it. It's likely to be the lowest interest loan with the best possible repayment scheme you'll ever come across, and it gets written off after 40 years, and it won't affect your credit score.
There is never any reason to take less than the maximum maintenance loan you are entitled to. Even if you do save it, that is valuable as funds to support you potentially moving to a new graduate job somewhere else in the country (and buying appropriate work attire for e.g. formal office wear roles), the nucleus of a down payment for a house after graduating, etc.
Remember also that 40 years after you take out the loan it will be written off, and most don't fully pay of the loans anyway. Also bear in mind that the total value of the loans that you have taken out from SLC will not affect your individual repayments (just how long you have to repay) and you will never be repaying more than you can afford anyway.
About 15 years ago there were a number of articles about how students from extremely wealthy families who didn't need the loans as their family could and would pay their way through uni still took out the maintenance loan to invest in certain kinds of investments that would actually yield profits relative to the interest rates long term. If the rich kids are doing that you can be sure that not taking out the full loan as a less than rich kid means you're missing a trick.

Thank you for your reply 😮 that does make sense, ig I didn't consider all the pros. Is that why it's called phantom debt? Is it a good idea to put the money in a savings account?

Hi there,

Once again it would be your decision on whether to apply for the money or what you do with the money. You can speak to your university in regards to help with your finance or bank if you wanted to open a saving account. These are not really questions for Student Finance England which is who you are contacting.

Thanks, Drew

Reply 8

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by sabz_76

Thank you for your reply 😮 that does make sense, ig I didn't consider all the pros. Is that why it's called phantom debt? Is it a good idea to put the money in a savings account?

It's a reasonable option. You can also just use it as a buffer in case you have sudden unexpected costs come up while at uni - needing to go home out of the blue for whatever reason, having to move sooner than planned due to a lease being ended early, major dental work, etc.

As above the Ask Student Finance England forum is really for queries specifically Student Finance England and they can't provide financial advice or recommendations, or whether you should or shouldn't take out the loan - they can just advise you on their processes.

It looks like the thread has been moved to the student financial support forum so people can advise more generally and the SFE rep isn't needing to follow up on it :smile:

Reply 9

IullyDL

2

I think will be a good way for you to apply for a maintenance loan as you can make some savings that might help you in the future.

Reply 10

Sumayaaaxx

2

Original post by Drew SLC

Hi there,
The decision on whether to take the Maintenance Loan in your 2nd year would be totally be up to you and you would need to make the decision in regards to this.
Thanks, Drew

Hey Drew can I ask you for advice on my sfe situation ?

Reply 11

Sumayaaaxx

2

Original post by Sumayaaaxx

Hey Drew can I ask you for advice on my sfe situation ?

I’ve lived in the UK for 5 years, just applied for my settled status and that’s due to come in a month
Originally I applied as a pre settled person on the EU23n form but my application was rejected because I was from the EEA(Norway) and not working

Then I applied through my partner who’s a British citizen and I told them clearly he’s not a migrant worker but after my application was processed it got rejected again because he’s British

I’m not employed, just a student and I thought I was eligible for sfe and my university has locked me out of my accounts because I did not pay my tuition, am I eligible? Is there another form I need to apply with?

Thank you
Sumaya

Reply 12

normaw

Clearing and Applications Advisor, Universities Forum Helper

19

Original post by Sumayaaaxx

I’ve lived in the UK for 5 years, just applied for my settled status and that’s due to come in a month
Originally I applied as a pre settled person on the EU23n form but my application was rejected because I was from the EEA(Norway) and not working

Then I applied through my partner who’s a British citizen and I told them clearly he’s not a migrant worker but after my application was processed it got rejected again because he’s British

I’m not employed, just a student and I thought I was eligible for sfe and my university has locked me out of my accounts because I did not pay my tuition, am I eligible? Is there another form I need to apply with?

Thank you
Sumaya