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Handling Student Loan Debt With Ease

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By Freida Michael


Your student repayments are likely to become a heavier burden as responsibilities increase or you are hit by a financial difficulty. The difficulty gets aggravated even after deferment and exhaustion of forbearance. Default is not even an option considering its grave consequences. This is the time to explore student loan debt adjustment and management plans that would bring great relief.

Among the basic repayment and management options is an extension on the standard 120 months or ten years period. The extensions or other adjustments are usually based on your earnings. It is possible to find reprieve if you have gone back to school or are earning a significantly low income.

The Pay As You Earn plan is for those who have taken loans recently. It limits the monthly installment to ten percent of your discretionary income. You also will qualify for forgiveness after making a stipulated number of payments without exhausting your amount. Forgiveness is usually given after 120 repayments. This takes a huge financial burden off your back. It also frees money to be used on other responsibilities.

To qualify for Pay As You Earn forgiveness plan, you must produce evidence that you are experiencing financial difficulty. The first federal loan must also have been acquired after 1st October 2007. You also must have applied and been successful in eight Federal Direct or Direct Consolidation loan. The date for acquisition of either of the two loans is 1st October 2011.

Income Based Repayment plan or IBR was created and is managed by the federal government. It targets education loans by capping the maximum repayment installment at 15 percent of discretionary income. The repayment period is adjusted to 300, 240 or 120 installments depending on your financial situation. This will provide relief to debtors willing to pay but are facing financial difficulty.

You only qualify for Income Based Repayment under special circumstances. Two vital considerations are the number of dependents and your level of income. The two factors will determine the amount paid which in most cases is below what you would pay under the standard ten year plan. Through this plan, your income computation is adjusted to fit your family size. In case the debt ratio is high, you will be considered for Income Based Repayment.

The Income Based Repayment plan primarily hinges of your disposable income and size of family. This removes the factor of interest rates in determining your monthly repayment. The cap is placed at either 10 or 15 percent maximum. You must complete all necessary repayments to qualify for forgiveness.

Defaulting on student loans comes with grave consequences that would better be avoided. You will be considered to have defaulted if you fail to make payments over a 270 days period. There are lenient repayment plans that can help you avoid penalties and default.

There are a number of plans to make repayment easier and manageable. They include Standard Payment Plan, Guaranteed Payment Plan, Pay As You Earn Plan, IBR or Income Based Repayment, Extended Payment and Income Contingent-Payment Plan. Consult an expert in student loans to identify the best plan for you. This will ease your financial burden and keep you off default which comes with grave consequences.




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