Mark Resnick
When Mark Resnick sold his Richmond-based ice company to a large competitor in 2013, he said at the time he was off to search for a new purpose and a “bigger game.”
Nearly two years later, Resnick said he thinks he’s found both with his new venture, Student Loan Freedom, which launched in April at 7204 Glen Forest Drive in the West End.
Student Loan Freedom provides consultation services that help borrowers with federal student loans search for ways to manage their debt. The company charges a onetime fee to help customers navigate programs offered by the U.S. Department of Education to potentially lower their payments, get out of default or pay off the loans sooner.
“I’m a middleman to the DOE, just like an accountant doesn’t work for the IRS,” Resnick said. “You can do your own taxes, you can stitch your arm up if you cut yourself. There are a lot of things we can do for free, but that doesn’t mean we want to.”
After selling his previous company, City Ice, for an undisclosed sum, 59-year-old Resnick said he initially tried to take some time off and relax.
“I don’t think I made it to a year and a half,” he said. “I was so bored at home.”
He made the move toward student loans after seeing constant news coverage of the topic and talking with a friend in the banking industry who described American student loan debt as a problem of “epidemic proportions.”
“It’s not news that there is more student loan debt than there is credit card debt. It’s weighing people down and weighing the country down,” Resnick said. “That led me to do more research, and I found that there was something I could do.”
SLF can consult anyone with federal student loans, but Resnick said it usually targets borrowers with debt of $10,000 or more.
Resnick said there are all sorts of DOE programs that can help people deal with their student debt, but many borrowers often aren’t aware of their options.
“You come to me just to see what your choices are,” he said.
Student Loan Freedom is based out of 7204 Glen Forest Drive. Photo by Michael Schwartz.
SLF makes its money with a onetime fee that varies depending on the situation. If a customer’s loans are in default or if the government is garnishing his or her wages for back payments, for example, SLF charges a higher fee than it would for a simpler consolidation, Resnick said.
The company gets paid up front and puts a borrower’s loans in administrative forbearance while it works through the DOE process.
One of the challenges Resnick’s new company faces is a problem of perception hanging over the industry. He admits that pockets of the debt consolidation industry are known as fertile grounds for scammers and predatory operators that prey on those already down on their luck.
Resnick said some of that is perpetuated by his competitors, which include large servicing companies like Nelnet, Navient and American Education Services.
“They call companies like mine scams, even though I’m doing more good for the person with the loans than they are,” he said. “It’s because we’re taking money out of their pocket.”
To combat that perception, Resnick said SLF is up front about the fact that the company helps borrowers do something they could do on their own through the DOE at no cost.
“Anybody can go online and do what I’m doing for free,” he said. “But the DOE isn’t easy to negotiate and is not easy to understand.”
SLF’s four employees are tasked with learning the DOE programs and clearly explaining how the process works.
“I tell my staff all they have to do is tell the truth,” Resnick said. “The truth of the programs, the truth of what happens if you go to default.”
For now the company fields calls and web inquiries from individual borrowers that find their way to SLF. To really scale the business, Resnick said he’d eventually like to sign deals with large lenders to help fix their potential borrowers’ student loan issues, making clients more attractive candidates for mortgages or car loans.
“All I need is one large bank to realize I can increase their loan (volume) by 15 percent, and I’d staff up,” he said. “I rented 2,000 square feet, and I’d like to put 20 people in this office. All it takes is one smart executive to see what we’re offering.”
Resnick wouldn’t say specifically how much he has invested in the venture so far, only that it’s “more money than I’d want to admit to.”
“I went from a really thankless job of manufacturing and delivering frozen water to one where people are really thankful for what you’ve done for them,” Resnick said. “Part of the attraction isn’t just profit, it’s also helping others.”
In satisfying his need for a “bigger game,” SLF gives Resnick a chance to tap into the $1 trillion market of outstanding student debt in the U.S.
“I’m here for the haul. This is not a short-term idea,” he said. “I’m very optimistic about the future of this business. I get more optimistic every day with the people we help.”
Mark Resnick
When Mark Resnick sold his Richmond-based ice company to a large competitor in 2013, he said at the time he was off to search for a new purpose and a “bigger game.”
Nearly two years later, Resnick said he thinks he’s found both with his new venture, Student Loan Freedom, which launched in April at 7204 Glen Forest Drive in the West End.
Student Loan Freedom provides consultation services that help borrowers with federal student loans search for ways to manage their debt. The company charges a onetime fee to help customers navigate programs offered by the U.S. Department of Education to potentially lower their payments, get out of default or pay off the loans sooner.
“I’m a middleman to the DOE, just like an accountant doesn’t work for the IRS,” Resnick said. “You can do your own taxes, you can stitch your arm up if you cut yourself. There are a lot of things we can do for free, but that doesn’t mean we want to.”
After selling his previous company, City Ice, for an undisclosed sum, 59-year-old Resnick said he initially tried to take some time off and relax.
“I don’t think I made it to a year and a half,” he said. “I was so bored at home.”
He made the move toward student loans after seeing constant news coverage of the topic and talking with a friend in the banking industry who described American student loan debt as a problem of “epidemic proportions.”
“It’s not news that there is more student loan debt than there is credit card debt. It’s weighing people down and weighing the country down,” Resnick said. “That led me to do more research, and I found that there was something I could do.”
SLF can consult anyone with federal student loans, but Resnick said it usually targets borrowers with debt of $10,000 or more.
Resnick said there are all sorts of DOE programs that can help people deal with their student debt, but many borrowers often aren’t aware of their options.
“You come to me just to see what your choices are,” he said.
Student Loan Freedom is based out of 7204 Glen Forest Drive. Photo by Michael Schwartz.
SLF makes its money with a onetime fee that varies depending on the situation. If a customer’s loans are in default or if the government is garnishing his or her wages for back payments, for example, SLF charges a higher fee than it would for a simpler consolidation, Resnick said.
The company gets paid up front and puts a borrower’s loans in administrative forbearance while it works through the DOE process.
One of the challenges Resnick’s new company faces is a problem of perception hanging over the industry. He admits that pockets of the debt consolidation industry are known as fertile grounds for scammers and predatory operators that prey on those already down on their luck.
Resnick said some of that is perpetuated by his competitors, which include large servicing companies like Nelnet, Navient and American Education Services.
“They call companies like mine scams, even though I’m doing more good for the person with the loans than they are,” he said. “It’s because we’re taking money out of their pocket.”
To combat that perception, Resnick said SLF is up front about the fact that the company helps borrowers do something they could do on their own through the DOE at no cost.
“Anybody can go online and do what I’m doing for free,” he said. “But the DOE isn’t easy to negotiate and is not easy to understand.”
SLF’s four employees are tasked with learning the DOE programs and clearly explaining how the process works.
“I tell my staff all they have to do is tell the truth,” Resnick said. “The truth of the programs, the truth of what happens if you go to default.”
For now the company fields calls and web inquiries from individual borrowers that find their way to SLF. To really scale the business, Resnick said he’d eventually like to sign deals with large lenders to help fix their potential borrowers’ student loan issues, making clients more attractive candidates for mortgages or car loans.
“All I need is one large bank to realize I can increase their loan (volume) by 15 percent, and I’d staff up,” he said. “I rented 2,000 square feet, and I’d like to put 20 people in this office. All it takes is one smart executive to see what we’re offering.”
Resnick wouldn’t say specifically how much he has invested in the venture so far, only that it’s “more money than I’d want to admit to.”
“I went from a really thankless job of manufacturing and delivering frozen water to one where people are really thankful for what you’ve done for them,” Resnick said. “Part of the attraction isn’t just profit, it’s also helping others.”
In satisfying his need for a “bigger game,” SLF gives Resnick a chance to tap into the $1 trillion market of outstanding student debt in the U.S.
“I’m here for the haul. This is not a short-term idea,” he said. “I’m very optimistic about the future of this business. I get more optimistic every day with the people we help.”