Is your student loan repayment plan too hard on your budget?
For many college graduates, student loan repayment is a task that may take years or even decades. Many people with large amounts of college debt find themselves repaying student loans well into their middle years, making it hard to achieve financial dreams like owning a home or funding a retirement plan.
For others, student loan repayment is simply more than their income and budget can bear. They may become delinquent in payments or end up in student loan default, which can create additional serious financial problems that may take years to resolve.
Fortunately, there are many ways to manage student loan repayment in order to avoid default and pay off student debt more quickly. That’s where American Consumer Credit Counseling (ACCC) can help.
Get help with student loan repayment options at ACCC.
ACCC is a nonprofit organization that provides free credit counseling, a low-cost debt management plan and free educational resources that can help you get out of debt and avoid debt in the future. When you want to explore ways to lower or eliminate your student loan repayment, our certified and highly trained credit counselors can provide expert assistance.
When you contact us by phone or in person for your credit counseling session, we’ll work with you to get a clear picture of your circumstances, including your income, expenses, debts and assets. Then we’ll create a personalized list of options for managing your student loan repayment and getting out of debt as quickly as possible.
If you already have defaulted student loans, we can walk you through the best options for making amends as quickly as possible.
Ways to manage your student loan repayment.
After reviewing your financial situation, our counselors may recommend one of the following strategies for handling your student loan repayment.
- Student debt forgiveness. Borrowers who choose to work in fields like community service, healthcare, education or the military may be eligible to have their loans forgiven.
- Loan consolidation. When you consolidate student loan debt, you may be able to lower your monthly payment by taking one new loan to pay off multiple existing loans.
- Deferment or forbearance. If you are facing tough economic times or are entering the military, you may be able to stop your student loan repayment for a number of months or years.
- A new repayment plan. There are a number of ways to lower your student loan repayment with a new payment plan that ties your payment level to your income or lengthens the amount of time over which you must repay your loans.
Learn more about ways to manage your student loan repayment at ACCC, and find helpful financial tools like a financial planning worksheet on our website.