Korean Job Discussion Forums

[YellowStarGrl]

Sorry if this topic has been posted already, I'm new to this website. Anyways, I was wondering how I could pay my students loans in the US while I am teaching in Korea. Is the best way to just wire money every so often to pay the monthly payment? Is there a bank where I can do this through?

[blurgalurgalurga]

Sure. Set up direct withdrawl from your US account, then wire money home to your bank. You can do this from any major branch of any major Korean bank, provided you have an account there.
I'd recommend Standard Charter.

[freshking]

Just a suggestion, but if you could defer your student loan for a year and hang on to your won in Korea, you may save yourself a lot of money. The won is doing terribly against the US dollar right now, and it may be better to wait for the won to (hopefully) make a significant rise against the dollar this year.

[YellowStarGrl]

I see... Thanks for the info... but how do I defer paying my loans? Can't I only do that if I am in still in school?

[Ukon]

You can apply for a deferment....

[ChinaBoy]

You could always contact the loan company

[D.D.]

Buy yourself a cake and say out loud as u light the candles " I wont pay back my loans and will remove all guilt about it".

Blow out the candles and enjoy your freedom without the governements plan to make you a working slave hanging over your head.

[Missihippi]

Anyone found a bank with an international transfer fee thats less than W30k? I'm going to have to transfer money next month and that fee seems a bit high..

[afsjesse]

I use Nonghyup to transfer via internet and the fee is only 5k.

[DaeSung]

[roadwork]

Before I left, I opened a dual checking account with my dad and when I wired money home, he would send the check in. Last year around the time when the won was about 1100, I sent $10,000 USD home and had my dad pay off the final amount (close to $9000).
That was several months before it became 1400 won to the dollar. Just send small amounts home for the time being and hang on to your cash and wait for the won to go back down to around 1100-1200, then dump a bunch of cash and take a big chunk or two out of your loan.
Just my two cents.

[Morgen]

Where you live determines what's most convenient for you, ie in Seoul you have easy access to KEB but Nonghyup might be inconvenient. I'd say KEB has the best online-transfer system and it costs very little. I couldn't install the security key on my Mac, though, so I use KB's ATM transfer service, where I pay a negligible fee to KB and then my home back helps itself to $15. At any Korean bank you use you'll have to register the foreign account (which you can only do at one bank), and in addition to your account number they'll need a physical address of your US bank. Some banks have one central address for wire transfers and some go by branch, so check with your US bank.

You can apply for an unlikely deferment of your loans, but if you want to get it off your back while you're here, just put them in forebearance. The interest will still accumulate and be capitalized, but my lender gives me the option to pay the interest quarterly (in which case it's not capitalized), or more if I choose, or nothing at all.

[YellowStarGrl]

Thanks for all your input guys! I appreciate it.

[nosmallplans]

[Goku]