https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/maria-shriver/life-ed-how-manage-student-loan-debt-n129521

1. advertisement
Ad closed by
Report this ad Why this ad?
Ad covered
content
Seen this ad
multiple times
Not interested
in this ad
Ad was
inappropriate
SECTIONS 
MARIA SHRIVER 
MARIA SHRIVER JUN 12 2014, 10:35 AM ET
Life Ed: How To Manage Student Loan Debt
Paying off student loan debt can be a long, complicated, and often arduous
enterprise, one that can put significant pressure on an individual’s finances,
influence major life decisions, and put healthy credit at risk: it’s estimated that
about seven million of the nation’s borrowers are in default. With so much at
stake, how can borrowers best manage their student loan debt?
SHARE  


2. For expert guidance, we turn to attorney Heather Jarvis, a student loan expert
who knows what it is to pay down hefty student loan debt: she graduated Duke
University School of Law with loans totaling $125,000. Jarvis has specialized
in student loan education for nearly a decade, working with universities,
professional advisors, and borrowers.

4. Heather Jarvis  Chad McMeen
Here, Jarvis points the way to vital resources and shares her expert insights
into how to best manage student loan debt.
The Reality Check
Four-year college graduates continue to experience far less unemployment
and earn higher salaries than those with only a high school education. In 2012,
the unemployment rate for college graduates was less than half the rate for
high school graduates.


5. But higher education is expensive and scholarship and grant aid has failed to
keep pace with rising tuitions. In the United States today, there are
approximately 37 million student loan borrowers who together owe more than
one trillion dollars. Seven in 10 college seniors who graduated in 2012 had
student loan debt. Those who had debt owed an average of $29,400.
1. Know Your Loans
If you need to borrow for school, look first to federal student loans. Private
loans are not backed by the federal government and are more risky and
expensive than federal loans. All college students should fill out the Free
Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA); submitting a FAFSA is necessary
for participation in any federal student aid program, even those that do not
depend on financial need.
Avoid misunderstanding the key differences between your loans by getting a
clear inventory of what you owe. Check out the National Student Loan Data
System at www.nslds.ed.gov to find a complete listing of all your federal
student loans. You will need your Federal Student Aid PIN to access your
information.
If some of your loans aren't listed on the National Student Loan Data System,
they are probably private student loans. Pull a recent copy of your credit report
from www.annualcreditreport.com to see a listing of all your creditors including

6. private student lenders, and note the balance and lender contact information
for your private loans.
2. Stay in Touch with Your Loan Servicer
Loan servicers send lots of important information to borrowers including
information about when your payments begin and how to select a repayment
plan. If you miss your servicer’s communications, you may be enrolled in a
repayment plan you don’t like or be late on payments. That can be expensive
for you.
Steer clear of problems by updating your lenders and loan servicers with any
new phone numbers, email addresses, and mailing addresses. Not sure which
company is your loan servicer? See the steps for getting an inventory of what
you owe above.
3. Pick the Right Repayment Option
Choosing a repayment plan can be confusing, so take some time to fully
understand the trade-offs between the different options. The Department of
Education provides information and calculators regarding the various
repayment options online at studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loans.
These are the highlights:

7. Standard Repayment
Standard repayment (for a loan that isn’t consolidated) means that you’ll pay
equal monthly payments over a ten-year period. Monthly payments may be
high, but because you’ll pay off your loan quickly, you will pay less interest.
Income-Driven Repayment Options
If your debt is relatively high as compared to your income, the income-driven
repayment plans provide significant advantages. Monthly payments are
established as a percentage of income so that when you don’t earn a lot, your
payments are low. But the income-driven options have the disadvantage of
requiring annual income verification and other paperwork, and because
monthly payments are low, interest charges will be correspondingly high.
4. To Consolidate or Not to Consolidate
A consolidation loan combines multiple loans into one loan with an interest rate
based on the weighted average interest rates of the underlying loans.
Consolidation is not necessary or important for most recent student loan
borrowers, but some borrowers can access more beneficial repayment and
forgiveness programs by consolidating older federal loans. Take some time to
fully research the pros and cons of consolidation before making a decision
about whether consolidating makes sense for you.

8. Beware of consolidating federal loans into a private student loan: you'll lose all
the repayment options and borrower benefits - like unemployment deferments
and loan forgiveness programs - that come with federal loans! Read all the fine
print and don’t expect to find low or fixed interest rates unless you have
excellent credit.
5. Stay out of Trouble!
Approximately 85 billion dollars of outstanding student loan debt is past due.
Two out of five student loan borrowers are delinquent at some point in the first
five years of repayment. Students who drop out of college before earning a
degree typically struggle most with student loans.
Talk to your lender or loan servicer right away if you are having trouble making
payments. Federal loans offer flexible solutions including temporarily
suspending or reducing payments. Ignoring your student loans can cause your
total loan balance to become due, ruin your credit score, result in garnishment
of your wages, and dramatically increase the total amount you pay. You have
many more options before default, but there are options for curing federal
student loan default, stopping collection efforts, and restoring eligibility for
federal financial aid. Find helpful information at
studentloanborrowerassistance.org.
6. Loan Forgiveness

9. Public Service Loan Forgiveness is a federal program that forgives student
debt remaining after 10 years of qualifying payments for people in government,
nonprofit, and other public service jobs. Additional loan forgiveness programs
are available for borrowers working in certain fields (like teaching, military
service or medicine). Find out more at studentloanborrowerassistance.org.
7. Know Your Resources
http://www.nslds.ed.gov: The National Student Loan Data System for a
complete inventory of your federal student loans.
https://www.annualcreditreport.com: Free credit report for an inventory of your
private student loans.
http://www.studentloanborrowerassistance.org/: Information from the National
Consumer Law Center including avoiding and getting out of default, and
dealing with collections agencies.
http://www.studentaid.ed.gov/: Comprehensive federal student aid information
and loan repayment calculators from the U.S. Department of Education.
http://www.studentloans.gov: Tools for managing federal student loans
including access to your account information and repayment estimator from the
U.S. Department of Education.

10. http://www.consumerfinance.gov/paying-for-college/repay-student-debt:
Student loan decision tree from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
http://askheatherjarvis.com: Free tools and resources for high-debt student
loan borrowers with a focus on income-driven repayment and Public Service
Loan Forgiveness.
TOPIC MARIA SHRIVER
FIRST PUBLISHED JUN 12 2014, 10:35 AM ET
 NEXT STORY The People's Pope: American Catholics Align With Pope Francis
More to Explore by TaboolaSponsored Links
Diy Crafts Decoration
Pancake Pillow
Skillshare
15 Incredible Ideas for Bathroom Makeover 1
The New Pillow Everyone Is Talking About! - The Pancake Pillow
How This Online Learning Platform is Helping Millennials Get Ahead

11. Santa Clara, California: This Unbelievable, Tiny Company Is Disrupting a $200
Billion Industry
EverQuote Insurance Quotes
Which Cruise is Right for Your Family?
www.whereverfamily.com
Coffee Break: Mansplaining
ReWork
SPONSORED CONTENT MORE FROM NBC NEWS
SimpleSite - Get a free website
SimpleSite
25 Most Rare Deep Sea Creatures
TodaysCollective
Free Things to Do in Orange County
This Summer Costa Mesa
Man Tries To Free A Trapped Wolf
HeadCramp

12. by TaboolaPromoted Links
Unlimitask - Largest Free Wordpress
Resource & 24/7 Premium S…
Unlimitask
Pompeo holds second day of
meetings with North Korean official
This Is What Worries Andy Cohen
Most About Porsha Williams' …
BravoTV
'Everyday Racism in America': Watch
MSNBC's full town hall
This woman thought her nose was
running – actually it was brain fluid
North Korean envoy meets Mike
Pompeo in New York
ABOUT US CAREERS CONTACT PRIVACY POLICY TERMS OF SERVICE NBCNEWS.COM SITE MAP ADVERTISE
ADCHOICES © 2018 NBCNEWS.COM