Many of you are probably still working to pay off your student loans. A new law called the Income-Based Repayment Plan could help make your payments more affordable. If you stick with it, the government could even pay off your debt. The College Cost Reduction and Accessibility Act created the program back in 2007. Starting July 1, students will be able to apply to see if they’re qualified.
Whether you’ve only been out of college a few months and are still looking for a job, or you’ve just lost a job you had for the past five years, you may not always be fully financially equipped to handle your student loan debt. When unexpected expenses or hardships hit, even the most responsible borrowers can find themselves struggling to make their student loan payments.
But the good news is that your federal student loans come with repayment plans and deferment and forbearance benefits that could help you when you’re having trouble making your monthly payments.
To help you avoid getting caught in financial trouble with missed payments and defaulted student loans, NextStudent, a leading Phoenix-based education funding company, offers this quick guide to your deferment and forbearance benefits.
Postponing or Reducing Your Monthly Student Loan Payments
If you’re having trouble affording your monthly payments, don’t just ignore your monthly bills; always communicate with your lender about your financial situation and ask about your deferment and forbearance options. Deferments and forbearances allow you to temporarily postpone or reduce your monthly student loan payments while keeping your credit score intact.
Deferments and discretionary forbearances (granted in cases of financial hardship) aren’t automatic. You need to contact your lender to request a deferment or forbearance. You may be required to complete a deferment or forbearance request form and to submit supporting documentation.
Most federal student loans (including Perkins loans, Stafford loans, PLUS loans, Grad PLUS loans, and consolidation loans) come with deferment and forbearance benefits. Some private student loans may also offer deferment or forbearance periods—you’ll need to contact your private student loan lender.
Deferment
Deferment allows you to temporarily stop making payments on your student loans.
You may be able to request a deferment on your federal student loans if you are:
Enrolled in school at least half time
Unemployed
Experiencing economic hardship
In the military and have been deployed
When you’re in deferment, you’ll only be charged interest on your unsubsidized student loans. The interest on your deferred subsidized student loans will be paid by the government.
You can choose to make interest payments on your unsubsidized student loans during deferment in order to avoid having any accrued unpaid interest added to your principal student loan balance.
For your private student loans, contact your lender to see if they offer deferment periods under certain enrollment, military service, or financial circumstances.
Forbearance
Forbearance allows you to temporarily reduce or postpone payments on your student loans. You may request a discretionary forbearance in cases of unemployment or financial hardship. Generally, your lender can grant a forbearance for up to a year at a time.
When you’re in forbearance, you’re responsible for all interest that accrues, whether the student loans in forbearance are subsidized or unsubsidized. You can choose to make interest payments during forbearance in order to avoid having any accrued unpaid interest added to your principal loan balance.
Avoiding Default
Just like making on-time car or credit card payments, timely student loan repayment can be a way for you to build credit or improve your credit score. At the same time, every student loan payment you miss can bring down your credit score. Miss enough payments, and your student loans could go into default, which can cause damage to your credit that takes years to repair.
The key to avoiding default is communicating with your lenders about your financial situation and requesting a deferment or forbearance if you need one. More likely than not, your lenders are going to be willing to work with you to help keep you from defaulting by keeping your student loan repayment affordable, even when you’re facing tough financial circumstances.
NextStudent believes that getting an education is the best investment you can make, and we’re dedicated to helping you pursue your education dreams by making college funding simple. Learn more about Student Loans, Private Student Loans and Student Loan Consolidation at NextStudent.com.
Jeff Mictabor is an enthusiast on the topic of student loan issues in the news. He has been writing for the past 10 years for a variety of education publications. He now offers his writing services on a freelance basis.
If you just graduated in May with federal Stafford student loans, you may be having to adjust your monthly budget to accommodate new student loan payments as your Stafford six-month grace periods end sometime this month. If you’re still looking for a job, or if you’re at an entry-level salary right now, you may not have the money you’re going to need to meet a new monthly student loan expense.
Whether you’re a recent graduate or any parent or student loan borrower, if you’re having trouble meeting your student loan payments each month, NextStudent, a leading Phoenix-based education funding company, urges you to contact your lenders about your deferment and forbearance options. Deferment and forbearance periods can allow you to temporarily reduce or postpone the monthly payments on your student loans without putting yourself at risk for damaging your credit score or defaulting on you student loans.
What are deferment and forbearance benefits?
Deferment allows you to temporarily stop making payments on your student loans. If you’re unemployed or experiencing financial hardship, you may be able to request a deferment, for up to a year at a time, up to a total of three years over the life of the student loan. You must contact your lender to request an unemployment or hardship deferment, and you may need to fill out a deferment request form.
Forbearance allows you to temporarily reduce or postpone payments on your student loans. You may be able to request a forbearance if you’re unemployed or experiencing financial hardship. You must contact your lender to request a hardship forbearance, and you’ll typically need to complete a forbearance request form. You may also need to submit supporting documentation.
Generally, a lender can grant a forbearance for up to a year at a time. Unlike unemployment or hardship deferments, there is no three-year cumulative limit on discretionary forbearance periods granted due to financial hardship.
Which student loans are eligible for deferment and forbearance?
Most federal student loans Student Loan Consolidation, Stafford loans, PLUS loans, and Grad PLUS loans) are eligible for deferment and forbearance benefits.
Some private student loans may also offer deferment or forbearance benefits—you should contact your private student loan lender.
Keep in mind that if you’re considering an economic hardship deferment or forbearance, you need to contact your lender, even for your federal student loans. Hardship deferments and discretionary forbearances are generally not automatic.
Am I being charged interest while my student loans are in deferment or forbearance?
Yes. Interest charges continue to accrue on your student loans even if they’re in deferment or forbearance. You’ll be responsible for the interest on your unsubsidized student loans (such as unsubsidized Stafford loans) that are in deferment and on any of your student loans, whether subsidized or unsubsidized, that are in forbearance. The government will pay the interest on any of your subsidized student loans (such as Perkins or subsidized Stafford loans) that you have in deferment.
Any unpaid interest that accrues during a deferment or forbearance period will be capitalized and added to your principal student loan balance for you to repay once you go back into repayment. Even if your payments are postponed during a deferment or forbearance period, you can always choose to make interest payments to avoid having accrued interest added to your principal student loan balance and capitalized.
NextStudent believes that getting an education is the best investment you can make, and we’re dedicated to helping you pursue your education dreams by making college funding simple. Learn more about Student Loans, Private Student Loans and Student Loan Consolidation at NextStudent.com.
Jeff Mictabor is an enthusiast on the topic of student loan issues in the news. He has been writing for the past 10 years for a variety of education publications. He now offers his writing services on a freelance basis.
If you’re a graduate or college parent with any outstanding federal student loans, you may be able to lower your monthly student loan payments by up to 42% just by consolidating your parent or student loans. When you consolidate your college loans, you may be able to extend the repayment term on your parent or student loans by up to 20 years. With that longer repayment term, since you have more time to repay, the amount you have to pay each month will typically go down.
NextStudent, a leading Phoenix-based education funding company, offers a student loan consolidation program with no application fees, no processing fees, and no credit checks. By consolidating your parent or student loans, your monthly payments could go down by up to 42%.
Here’s an example: Estimated monthly payments on a $75,000 NextStudent Federal Consolidation Loan fixed at 7.25% and repaid over an extended term of 30 years are $512, versus estimated monthly payments of $879 on a $75,000 Federal Stafford Loan issued at 7.22% and repaid over 10 years — a 41.8% reduction in monthly payment amount. (Your actual payment reduction may vary and will depend on the terms of the student loans you’re consolidating.)
Replace Your Variable-Rate Student Loans With One Fixed-Rate Student Loan Consolidation
If you took out your Federal PLUS Loans or Stafford Loans prior to July 1, 2006, those student loans are subject to variable interest rates that will adjust every year. So when interest rates rise, your monthly student loan payments may also go up. Student loan consolidation puts an end to rate increases and rising payments.
NextStudent’s student loan consolidation program gives you the security of a fixed interest rate. By consolidating your federal college loans with NextStudent, you’ll replace your variable-rate college loans with a fixed-rate student loan consolidation loan and lock in your new monthly payments, so you’ll never have to worry about interest rates rising and leaving you guessing about your monthly payment amount.
Make Repaying Your Student Loans Convenient and Hassle-Free with Student Loan Consolidation
If you have multiple college loans in repayment and you’re dealing with the hassle of multiple bills, multiple due dates, and multiple monthly payments to multiple lenders, a student loan consolidation could help make your repayment easier to manage.
With a student loan consolidation program, you can bundle all your eligible federal parent or student loans into one single consolidation loan with just one monthly bill, one lender, and one monthly payment that’s fixed for the life of your student loan consolidation.
Apply in Minutes to Consolidate Your Student Loans
Typically, you can apply for a student loan consolidation in minutes. Just visit an online student loan consolidation lender or make a quick phone call to the lender of your choice. It’s fast, easy, and free to apply, and there are NO fees, NO credit checks, and NO co-signers required.
There are also no prepayment penalties. When you consolidate your federal parent or student loans with NextStudent, you’ll never be charged extra for paying more than the minimum each month or for paying off your student loan consolidation early.
Student Loan Consolidation for Private Student Loans
If you have private student loans in addition to (or instead of) your federal student loans, you won’t be able to consolidate your private student loans under the federal student loan consolidation program. But you may be eligible to consolidate your private loans separately with a Private Consolidation Loan, which offers the same convenience of a single consolidated loan for your private student loans.
NextStudent believes that getting an education is the best investment you can make, and we’re dedicated to helping you pursue your education dreams by making college funding simple. Learn more about Student Loans, Private Student Loans and Student Loan Consolidation at NextStudent.com.
Jeff Mictabor is an enthusiast on the topic of student loan issues in the news. He has been writing for the past 10 years for a variety of education publications. He now offers his writing services on a freelance basis.
