RBC Med/Dental LOC Specialist Information

[jnl82]

does this apply to a guy as well ?

like.. u get married and have a baby ?

[Jochi1543]

does this apply to a guy as well ?

like.. u get married and have a baby ?

 

Well, if you decide to take paternity leave, then yes. Obviously, if you don't take paternity leave and keep working, it doesn't matter.

[Jochi1543]

They will do this to you as well if you have a baby during medical school. I have a friend who went through hell dealing with RBC because of this. Not only did they make her start repaying the LOC while she was away from school for one year, they raised the interest rate to prime+3.5% and did not allow her to use the LOC anymore. If this is a situation you find yourself in and you want advice, pm me.

 

I am with MD Management and I have been able to extend my degree to six years from four years and they have not blinked an eye. So there are better options if this is a concern for you. In my case, I had no idea I would get sick, you just can't predict the way life will go sometimes. It's nice to have the security knowing that in the event of something unforeseen, you will not be penalized for it.

 

Yeah, the rep kept saying "Well, you can't just spend your time worrying about all the what-ifs!" I'm like, "Uh, yes you can, and you SHOULD."

[chemgirl]

They tell you not to worry about the "what-ifs" on your side, but they make sure that you have life insurance for the value of the LOC balance for their protection. It's rich that the rep told you that Jochi! I can't imagine the nerve. Having a baby during residency is a pretty probable what-if!!!!

[Jochi1543]

They tell you not to worry about the "what-ifs" on your side, but they make sure that you have life insurance for the value of the LOC balance for their protection. It's rich that the rep told you that Jochi! I can't imagine the nerve. Having a baby during residency is a pretty probable what-if!!!!

 

LOL, I know, I'll be 33 by the time I finish your regular 5-year-long residency, so it's definitely very probable. I bet she's so mad at herself for telling me this, lol, I was going to go ahead and sign up with them until she told me. Then I called MD Management to check their policy, and they said it wasn't an issue, so I was like, alright, thanks for your time, gonna go with MD Management, heh.

[Jochi1543]

Oh, another thing about RBC...if you don't match, they make you pay back right away, as well. MD Management gives you 12 months' grace, so you can enter next year's match or start a master's and remain in deferral. So if you are thinking of a competitive specialty, this is something to keep in mind.

[future_doc]

Jochi, good for you and you taught us all an important lesson when our time comes. Thank you! I'm sure the RBC lady wishes she kept her mouth shut and we are all so glad she didn't. The what-ifs work both ways.

[sethy]

I would suggest asking your specific RBC representative about their policies because my LOC says in writing that the interest rate will be prime for the life of the loan and there is a 12 month grace period after finishing school and having to start paying back the principal.

[astudentis]

Does anyone know if it is possible to switch LOCs, say a few years down the road (while having an outstanding balance)?

[Jochi1543]

Does anyone know if it is possible to switch LOCs, say a few years down the road (while having an outstanding balance)?

 

Yes, but I don't know whether there are any penalties. My MD Management rep mentioned several students who switched to them.

[dawn]

Word of warning about RBC, especially for the ladies. Just spoke with a rep and if you decide to have a baby during residency, even though you are not technically finished schooling and are on maternity leave, RBC WILL make you start repaying the loan. She told me about a resident she just dealt with who got pregnant without knowing it and it was a total disaster - they couldn't afford to have her not work AND start paying back $1000 a month on her husband's salary (whatever he did), so she had to have the baby and continue with residency full-time.

 

I am not planning on getting pregnant anytime soon, but this is 9 years we're talking about where I couldn't get pregnant without finding myself in a total financial hole, so I'm not going to go with RBC.

Jochi, after reading this I immediately contacted my RBC account manager. Like you, I didn't plan on having children during my residency, but I want the option should the situation arise. This discussion surrounding maternity leave didn't come up at all when I was talking to my account manager before I signed the LOC papers, so needless to say, I was more than a little concerned when I read what you had been told by another rep. My account manager just emailed me back her response so I thought that I'd (perhaps?) ease some minds out there (at least those of us that went with RBC!) It seems that RBC matches what MD does in terms of mat leave with the 12 month grace period. This is what my account manager said in the email:

 

"With regards to your question, I spoke with a rep at our loan department and she informed me that this is also a non-issue and your credit line will NOT go into repayment if you go on mat leave and that it will automatically enter the 12 month grace period and by the time your return to school the following year you will then provide the bank with confirmation of enrolment - which means that within those 12 months you continue to pay interest only and have access to funds."

 

I'm with the RBC in Halifax (Spring Garden Road) and the account manager that deals with med students is Marianne DeCastro (she's great!) if anyone would like to contact her directly.

 

Just to be sure, I will definitely be hanging on her email though!

[Mourning Cloak]

Yes, but I don't know whether there are any penalties. My MD Management rep mentioned several students who switched to them.

 

My hubby (R2) was with CIBC, but they raised their interest rates by 1% so he switched (effortlessly) to Scotiabank (still @ prime).

 

There were no penalties or fees, other than the hassle. The account rep took a cheque from him for the outstanding balance from the new account to pay out the old account and she walked it down the block to CIBC to deposit it.

 

This is what $47K in interest/year will buy you

[shaka84]

Are you suggesting that your husband pays 47 000 in interest on his loans per year?

 

shaka

[Mourning Cloak]

Missed the decimal point!

 

4.7K

 

(Loving this recession!)

[astudentis]

also do u mean mcmaster med class of 2012? (in your sig)

[Mourning Cloak]

I took a year's deferral.

 

(and changed the signature)

[future_doc]

This is what my account manager said in the email:

 

"With regards to your question, I spoke with a rep at our loan department and she informed me that this is also a non-issue and your credit line will NOT go into repayment if you go on mat leave and that it will automatically enter the 12 month grace period and by the time your return to school the following year you will then provide the bank with confirmation of enrolment - which means that within those 12 months you continue to pay interest only and have access to funds."

 

I'm with the RBC in Halifax (Spring Garden Road) and the account manager that deals with med students is Marianne DeCastro (she's great!) if anyone would like to contact her directly.

 

Just to be sure, I will definitely be hanging on her email though!

 

For what its worth, I would write to her and put on the record precisely what ytour understanding of her email is - so that should she no longer be with the bank, should you become pregnant, etc., should the bank try to impose upon you what Jochi learned, you will have both 'a defence' and 'recourse' (in damages) against the bank, should they pursue a line of action other than you now understand what will happen in that circumstance.

 

I have been taught that bankers are the lowest of the low (lower than lawyers:p ) and they won't think twice to go in a direction that suits them at the time. It is up to you to keep them honest, hold them to their word upon which you reply and your putting this in writing will do just that.

[smilee]

Hey everyone, I posted this in the dental student board as well but wanted to post in here since the med/dental loans are handled by the same people and I would REALLY appreciate some feedback.

 

Has anyone signed a loan where they have ensured that the interest rate will stay at prime for the entire life of the loan (i.e. during repayment after graduation and the 12-month grace period)? If so, would you mind sharing the bank, branch, and person that you spoke with? I am looking for someone to speak to in the London area preferably, but I could also speak to someone in the GTA. (You can PM me if you like.. but most of the contact info for bank officers is on the internet now anyways)

 

I met with RBC today and the branch officer I met with was not very knowledgeable about med/dental student loans.. but in the loan contract (which I have not yet signed) it states that 12 months after graduation the bank reserves the right to increase the interest up to a max of prime + 5% per year. So if there is anyone who does have it written in their contract that their loan will stay at prime for the life of the loan, I would really appreciate you sharing the contact information of that branch officer with me so I can perhaps contact them. Or is this normal for med/dental student loans?

 

Thank you for your help!!

[future_doc]

Smilee, I don't have the information you are asking but I do know that you should be dealing with only a bank "specialist" from any bank in Canada in professional student loans, and this specialist need not be in your city or province. Luna in the McGill site recommends her specialist in Montreal, get the coordinates from her, mention her name and write the guy for starters. I would not sign just yet if I was you. Dealing with just anybody handling loans at the bank is not good enough. Good luck.

[Mourning Cloak]

Has anyone signed a loan where they have ensured that the interest rate will stay at prime for the entire life of the loan (i.e. during repayment after graduation and the 12-month grace period)?

 

Yes, that occurred to my then-boyfriend when he was setting up his. He has it in writing that the interest rate remains at prime + whatever (right now prime + 0%) for 10 years following completion of residency and all fellowships. (Now, there is a repayment schedule set up which kicks in after 12 months, but the interest rate won't change.)

 

This was Scotiabank.

 

Couldn't get it in writing that the 0% would never change, and we really tried. But 10 years (after finishing residency/fellowships) is pretty good - if you can't get your loan paid off after 10 years of full salary, you're doing something wrong!

[chemgirl]

See this is all fine and good if you only plan on taking one 12 month period off. If you take more time off than that, say you have two kids or there is some unforeseen circumstance in your life that forces you to take more time, it sounds like they wouldn't give you any more than 12 months. That is the difference with MD Management... like I said, I have already taken an extra two years... my grace period would have been well and gone with RBC by now. And I can still have a kid in residency and take time off knowing that my LOC won't go into repayment.

 

No one plans to take extra time... hell knows I thought I was the last person in the world who would need to take more time or get sick.

 

Oh, and get real life insurance asap, not just LOC insurance... trust me on that one

 

Jochi, after reading this I immediately contacted my RBC account manager. Like you, I didn't plan on having children during my residency, but I want the option should the situation arise. This discussion surrounding maternity leave didn't come up at all when I was talking to my account manager before I signed the LOC papers, so needless to say, I was more than a little concerned when I read what you had been told by another rep. My account manager just emailed me back her response so I thought that I'd (perhaps?) ease some minds out there (at least those of us that went with RBC!) It seems that RBC matches what MD does in terms of mat leave with the 12 month grace period. This is what my account manager said in the email:

 

"With regards to your question, I spoke with a rep at our loan department and she informed me that this is also a non-issue and your credit line will NOT go into repayment if you go on mat leave and that it will automatically enter the 12 month grace period and by the time your return to school the following year you will then provide the bank with confirmation of enrolment - which means that within those 12 months you continue to pay interest only and have access to funds."

 

I'm with the RBC in Halifax (Spring Garden Road) and the account manager that deals with med students is Marianne DeCastro (she's great!) if anyone would like to contact her directly.

 

Just to be sure, I will definitely be hanging on her email though!