Question requarding private student loans?
Asked by DueSept10Itsaboymy husband has a student loan from Sallie Mae (someone else may have heard of them). This may be TMI, but it started as 30,000, and for reasons not under our control, he has had to defer them the last 2-3 years. so it's now up to about 50,000. We cant afford to make the min. monthly payments on these, it's like 1100 a month!!! Any place that has called to say they could help lower monthly payments, winds up turning us down because it's thru one lender and it's private?! Does that make any sense? and im pretty sure they're all federal loans, so u know what that can do to your credit :( Has anyone else had this same issue, and if so what can we do about lowering the payments so we can afford it?
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Answered by mattpetrone
I have both federal and private loans via Sallie Mae. Sallie Mae acts as a sort of intermediary for both federal agencies and private lenders, so you can have both thru them. Sallie Mae does offer different plans for payback, so they might be able to help. The plan I use is called "level", which means I make equal payments over the life of the loan. But there are also ones that are "front-loaded" and "back-loaded", meaning the payments get progressively smaller/bigger over time. If you check out www.manageyourloans.com or call them, it should help. If the loans are federal, they can be consolidated and you can shop them around for the best rates. But if they are owned by private lenders, there isn't much you can do. You might be able to talk reason to the company and tell them they need to work with you if they ever want to see a dime since you can't afford it their ridiculous monthly rates. But student loans will not disappear even if you declare bankruptcy, so you will have to find a way to pay it. If you decide not to pay it (and don't have approval to defer), they can contact both your husband's and YOUR employer and have money deducted from your paycheck each period. Since you are married, you are liable for his loans as well. I work in a governmental HR office and I see it happen. Sad, but true.
I have both federal and private loans via Sallie Mae. Sallie Mae acts as a sort of intermediary for both federal agencies and private lenders, so you can have both thru them. Sallie Mae does offer different plans for payback, so they might be able to help. The plan I use is called "level", which means I make equal payments over the life of the loan. But there are also ones that are "front-loaded" and "back-loaded", meaning the payments get progressively smaller/bigger over time. If you check out www.manageyourloans.com or call them, it should help. If the loans are federal, they can be consolidated and you can shop them around for the best rates. But if they are owned by private lenders, there isn't much you can do. You might be able to talk reason to the company and tell them they need to work with you if they ever want to see a dime since you can't afford it their ridiculous monthly rates. But student loans will not disappear even if you declare bankruptcy, so you will have to find a way to pay it. If you decide not to pay it (and don't have approval to defer), they can contact both your husband's and YOUR employer and have money deducted from your paycheck each period. Since you are married, you are liable for his loans as well. I work in a governmental HR office and I see it happen. Sad, but true.
