Cluster E

2006-06-15T07:11:00.000-07:00

Whatup Cluster E?? We missed you in Rhode Island a few weeks ago, land of steamers, awful-awfuls, good times and wild beasties.

Hope to see you all soon..

2006-06-06T21:49:00.000-07:00

Oops I just realized i forgot to post some pictures from my Paris trip ... so here they are !
I hope everybody is doing well, I just started my internship at Walt Disney and I am trying to get accustomed to Los Angeles. I miss a lot of you already ! Best, Sebastien

2006-06-06T18:25:00.000-07:00

I was wondering whether to consolidate my Federal Stafford loans, so I did a little math. Executive summary: consolidate if you can afford to start making payments right after graduation.

Caveat: this is a highly rational argument that values ($16.92 per month for 10 years, total of $2000) more than $1161.12 in the summer of 2006. Your call may be different.

Assumptions

The rate will not be lower on 6/1/2007 than it was on 6/1/2005
You are keeping the 10-year duration of the loan
Numbers here do not include the initiation fees, etc, that are built into the loan.
I did not consider time-value of money: all calculations are comparative on monthly values, so time-value is relatively meaningless (I could have discounted through the first six months, but I'm not a complete masochist)
These numbers only apply to the Stafford loans. Your private loan is probably floating-rate, so this analysis should be extended to those numbers as well. (I got lucky: Massachusetts gave me a fixed-rate loan)

Your first-year Stafford loans add up to $18,500, and are currently at 4.7%. On July 1, they will go to 6.54%. Consolidation seems very logical, especially given our understanding of the Fed, the economy, and Bernanke's speech yesterday. Let's see how the numbers play out.

$18,500 @4.7% for 10 years = $193.52 =PMT(4.7%/12,10*12,18500)
$18,500 @6.54% for 10 years = $210.44 =PMT(6.54%/12,10*12,18500)
Savings: $16.92/month.
That's around $2000 in undiscounted dollars.

Great! However, if you consolidate to save $17/month, your repayment starts immediately after we graduate. You will make $1161.12 in payments over those six months. Aside from the cash flow question, you could be using that money to reduce your worst student loan. If you take $1161.12 less in private loans at 8.5%, then your monthly payments would be reduced by only $11.43, so it's better to consolidate: a net savings of $5.49 per month, $658.42 over the loan. What's the break-even interest rate? 15.84%.

So in sum, you should consolidate if

You are willing to make 6 monthly payments of $193.52, starting right after graduation, and
Your worst student loan has an interest rate below 15.84%

You are saving:

$16.92/month, $2000 over 10 years
(If you would have paid that $1161.12 into your loans) $5.49/month, $660 over 10 years

2006-06-02T04:54:00.000-07:00

Congradulations Rob! I'm so excited to hear this kind of great news.

2006-05-18T21:16:00.000-07:00

Congradulations Rob!

Yea Rob! Congrats! That is great news. Hope you guys are having a great time. Have a safe trip over the pond.

Panni

2006-05-17T16:30:00.000-07:00

Hey Cluster E,

The rumors are now true. Nicole and I are engaged!! I asked this morning and it only took her until this afternoon to say yes :). Just kidding, she was as emotional as I was. We are very happy and are celebrating tonight with dinner at our favorite restaurant in Atanta.

I hope you all are enjoying your summers so far. I look forward to seeing you all again in the fall. That is, of course, unless you come to London this summer. My door is always open.

Best,
Rob

2006-05-16T07:39:00.000-07:00

hey y'all

if you are having trouble posting, email me..

seems like maybe some of you didn't receive invites (or many of you haven't responded to them).

vacation rules but this rain BLOWS!

mkr

2006-05-12T07:25:00.000-07:00

Bruises from Karoeke

Thanks to Brian Jacobs who gave me two HUGE ugly bruises on my leg during Karoke which are still totally visible preventing me from wearing my favorie mini skirt. Brian you owe me big time!

Panni

2006-05-12T07:22:00.000-07:00

Cluster E

Thanks Nick for getting the crew together! The best part was seeing Nick in an apron serving drinks!

Rob good luck this summer. We want to get updates about whats new in London, fashion tips would also be helpful!

Panni

2006-05-12T05:03:00.000-07:00

Fun Times @ Nick's
Hey party people, had a great time at Nick's last night for Rob's send-off. In the second game of beer pong, I teamed up with Geoff to take on Rob and Mahmoud. It was a nail-biter, but they took it home in the end. But to my credit, I think that was the second time I ever played beer pong :)

...and as usual, I was the first to go home (give it up for the guy from Queens)

...and for all you cereal enthusiasts, definitely talk to Nick about his 1-yr stockpile!

2006-05-09T11:02:00.000-07:00

hey cluster E!

welcome to cluster E's blog!

this is your space to post your thoughts and feelings about your rockin' internship, your rockin' clustermates, and how much you miss uris deli over the summer..

see you all at the beach..