Tag Archives: HigherEducation

Student Loan Relief

The sad reality for most of my student loan clients is they have large federal and private student loan balances.  In many cases they also have co-signors, usually a parent or relative, who will be on the hook if the main borrower defaults.  Federal loans can be consolidated and placed in affordable repayment plans, but private loans are usually another story.  That said, there are options for dealing with private loans, even if you are in default. (1) Check your Statute of Limitations period (“SOL”).  All states have SOL deadlines for creditors to file collection lawsuits.  If the SOL has expired on a private student loan, the creditor is out of time to sue and obtain a judgment unless you make a voluntary payment to extend the SOL period (federal student loans do not have an SOL).  If sued after the SOL has passed, you still need to raise the…
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Feeling Crushed By Student Loan Debt? Read This Story

Do you believe this? The U.S. Department of Education reported that 101 individuals owe at least $1 million dollars in student loans. Due to rising tuition costs and easy access to credit, the amount of people that have accrued at least $100,000 in student debt has increased. Pursuing higher education has become a financially daunting task, especially if you want a graduate degree. Some graduate programs charge tens of thousands per year in tuition. In parts of the country with high costs of living, graduate students are borrowing hundreds of thousands of dollars to make ends meet. A recent article in The Wall Street Journal discussed how a former graduate student accrued more than $601,506 in student loans for dental school at the University of Southern California. The former student’s debt is roughly the price of three Lamborghini sports cars. Due to interest and fees, his balance grew to more…
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Four Common Mistakes While Talking to Federal Student Loan Servicers

There are multiple types of mistakes you could make while repaying your federal student loans. You could make late payments or pay the wrong amount. Another common mistake is not utilizing income-based repayment programs while experiencing financial hardship. However, you should also be aware that there are mistakes you could make while talking with your loan servicer. These are companies contracted by the Department of Education to collect payments on loans and answer inquiries. There are general mistakes and major mistakes you could make with your student loan servicer. Forgetting to update your address information may not be a big deal if your servicer has a copy of your email or phone number. More serious mistakes could cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Mistake #1: Not Keeping Records Student loan servicers are notorious for making mistakes. Borrowers have reported their servicers lost paperwork, applied the incorrect amount for…
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