I have it set up so that my bank mails 2 physical checks for $100 to her every pay period.

I do this to maximize the cost of processing the payment.

I just think it would be funny to add a stupid memo.

Not funny enough to risk the payments getting rejected though.

PS: If anyone's wondering my logic is that if they're going to make money sucking the marrow out of all of our bones, they're at least going to have to pay a check processor to open the payments up and apply them.

Why is it no one talks about regulating the escalating costs of colleges and interest rates, rather than 'loan forgiveness?'

Why is it that colleges are allowed unchecked discretion to raise their student fees to fund fancy dorms and student living amenities, new constructions, executive level salaries and other nonsense? I feel like colleges have become a business targeting young adults without much financial knowledge, and expecting government to essentially fund them.

Why can't government limit federal loans to colleges that have an excessive amount of graduates with student debts that they cannot pay because the college did not provide them with the promised job opportunities to repay?

Why can't interest be replaced with a flat fee charge for taking the loan? So the amount owed doesn't increase exponentially and gives a real chance for borrowers to repay without undue burden?

Right now, it seems like colleges can go about their merry way charging exorbitant fees without providing any service/benefit worthy of the fees, while taxpayers and students and expected to pick up the slack.

(TLDR BELOW) So I finally got in contact with someone at Mohela after calling at open (8am EST) and finally getting an “answer” at 1045M EST.

Now, I explained how I was on the SAVE plan and received a letter from MOHELA stating no interest would accrue on my account (it did). The lady I talked to sent me to an advisor (another hour wait) and the advisor told me the following: MOHELA is aware of the issue, they stated they will correct it, and any additional payments made during this time will be negated from the balance before the interest was wrongly applied. I hope this helps someone as I’ve seen posts on this issue.

Now side note, I did record the call, I’ve downloaded and saved all correspondence, and check back regularly.

TLDR: Mohela knows interest is accruing on SAVE plans when it shouldn’t, they don’t know when it will be fixed but, according to them, it will be fixed.

Just looking for re-assurance here. A couple questions:

1) My impression is that “IDR End of Payment Term” is the amount of time it will take for me to pay off my federal loans, and that “PSLF/TEPSLF Payment Progress” is the total number of payments left until my federal loans are forgiven. Is this correct?

2) If I am eligible for PSLF, should I be paying attention primarily to PSLF Payment Progress vs IDR end of payment term, since I am in hopes of reaching forgiveness through PSLF?

Thanks in advance!

I have a check, but I don’t seem to need it. I’m set up to get more each semester till I graduate. If I haven’t used my first loan I don’t think I need the others. Should I return the money?

So I owe maybe 10 k in student loans. I got a small settlement 25k. Should I just pay them off? I have been paying on a no interest plan an paid down from 20 or 15k. I want to buy a home and as a single person the mortgage is a big commitment. So i figure just pay them off

My wife and I consolidated our substantial student loans into a spousal consolidation loan in 2006. We have both worked in public service our entire careers, but were not eligible for PSLF because we had a spousal consolidation loan. Fast-forward to October 2022, and the Spousal Consolidation Loan Separation Act was passed. We applied to separate our loans into direct loans and both submitted PSLF applications by the deadline (I think it was by 10/31/22). Now, 2-plus years later, we’ve finally received notice from Aidvantage that our loans have been separated into direct loans, and I’m wondering what I can do to check on the status of our PSLF applications? When I log into studentaid.gov it’s not showing anything.

Has anyone else dealt with this issue yet? Thanks for any help.

I grew up the youngest of four in a single income household. We lived in a rural area where was always tight. Neither of my parents finished college. All of my older siblings went to college. I had undiagnosed ADHD in high school that prevented me from being at the top of my class. I faked it until I made it and still got into a good college.

I went to an out of state private college. The first year’s tuition was next to nothing as my parents had four kids in college that year. My understanding of loans was foolish. I viewed them as almost Monopoly money. When I graduated college at height of the housing crisis, I took the LSAT without studying. I did well enough to go to a low tier law school out of state.

I graduated in 2011 with $340,000 in federal student loans plus $17,000 in private bar study loans. The severity of my situation felt like being hit by a tidal wave. I often fantasized about paying my loans off in one big payment. I worked for other firms for a few years before I went on my own in 2014. I made very little the first year. I was still able to pay off the private loans first. That left $340,000 in federal loans, growing at 7%. It felt impossible. I thought I would be paying these off for 25 years. I really envied those with public service jobs. They seemed a much safer option.

I was able to pay less for a few years by asking for forbearance/deferment (I can’t recall which at moment). When I started making money in my small business, I lived in constant fear of making too much one year, getting caught with high payments, and then having a bad year. Thankfully this never happened.

COVID hit. As I made less in 2019, my monthly payments were tiny when payments resumed.

During the last 5 years my business started to thrive. In 2021 I found myself with enough to pay loans off. It would have left me in a tight spot, so I parked the balance in VOO and let it grow. In the next years I funded other important buckets, such as funding SEP IRA, HSAs, 529s, and six months emergency expenses.

My wife and I lived differently than many of our friends after law school. We live and continue to live well below our means. We built savings first. I approach my bank account like that is all the money I will ever have. It is an odd mental exercise, but it drives me. Find your version of that.

I considered remaining on payment plan and letting my money grow. I would have done that if not for Trump’s election and the dismantling of Biden’s friendly payment plan.

Last month it hit me that I was not investing in my business as much as I should be because of this debt. I decided I should just be done with them. I sold off my VOO (just before the tariff panic!) and wired $365,000 to NelNet. Lifting this burden has been life changing.

My advice to all of you is to bet on yourself. Turn your fear into something productive by letting it serve as the coarse sandpaper to your rock in making a gem of your life. Challenges are necessary for a fruitful life. Whether you accept it or not, will always have problems. Student loans are certainly hard problems, but they do have capacity help you to live a better life. As a professional with a career in the United States you will be able to make things happen for yourself.

Don’t let the debt burden own your happiness. I suggest going the private route if you have the stomach for it. I am significantly better off 10 years down the line than I would have been had I gotten a public service job. I have much more money in the bank and am set up to earn a lot more the rest of my career from the compounding returns I will see from 10 years of doing the same job.

I got an email that my IBR was accepted. The email had a preview that also said that I received a billing statement in error. I got a new billing statement earlier in the week. I can’t find this message second email in my account. Do I have to call them?

Currently working for a company that is not PSLF, but have a possible opportunity in the coming months to join a university with PSLF. I am in the SAVE repayment plan with an account on forbearance until 8.2025. Is there any reason to apply to another payment plan? Do I ride this whole no interest thing out?

Under Sweet v Cardona, I had my borrowers defense application approved.

A Mohela representative last week told me that 2 checks were sent out on the 24th and 28th. I haven't received either and the treasury, using my social, couldn't find anything and said there weren't any tracking numbers for the check.

I've seen horror stories about stolen checks and am getting worried that potentially might have been or could be.

How long did it take you to get your checks for those who got refunds? What's my timeline and best approach for if the worst happens?

Treasury really should have a direct deposit set up.

I can't imagine this is not a mistake, but I logged in to check my balance, and it says its all paid of. About 18.5k paid at the beginning of last month. I wasn't signed up for any special repayment plan. I've been paying about 400$ a month since our loans came 'back online' after the pandy (my minimum is around 170).

This happen to anyone else?

With all the changes that are going on, I’m debating if I should get a student loan to finish off my last two years of graduate school. Any advice?

I took out $6490 in loans to get certified at medical administrative assistant at the age of 23 in 2004. The school promised to also teach us billing and coding and help us find employment after graduation. They never taught us billing and coding and the job they helped me find was with a life insurance company doing customer service. I did not need to go to Lincoln Tech to get that job. I tried to fight the loans due to broken promises but to no avail. The school is still open today. Anyway I have finally paid off the those 2 loans in addition to paying $2723 in interest. If I could go back time, I would have not wasted my time and money and just went to community college which is where I ended up after Lincoln Tech anyway. If you don’t have the right guidance, you definitely make costly mistakes. I now have $88,000 in federal loans that are under the SAVE plan left to pay. I used these loans to complete my MSN. No interest is accruing since I am in the SAVE plan til 8/2026. I hoping to pay them off in 3-4 years. Thanks for reading and good luck to all trying to get out from the traps they call student loans in this terrible economy.

Anyone else seeing similar? Just logged in to make my monthly payment and instead of the regular amount it shows $0 currently due. Is something going on that I've missed?

For those whose loans were forgiven for any reason:

Did you receive a refund of any type?

Paid off loans, were you refunded?

Loans with balances, but you made payments on them, did you receive a refund for the amount you paid?

If you were, how long it take to receive the refund?

Were you told you were receiving the refund or it just showed up in your mailbox?

Thank you

My wife is on the SAVE plan right now in forbearance. We filed separately last year so that the payment would only be calculated from her income (she's a social worker and makes peanuts). Filing jointly would give us a significant bump in our tax return but I'm not sure if that would disqualify her from the SAVE plan or change the loan status in any way. Definitely trying to stay on that plan as long as possible, but if the plan is going to get axed or if changing filing status won't do anything to her loan, then I might as well get the bigger refund. Anyone have any thoughts or insight?

EDIT: for what it's worth..

The loan status = Awaiting Form Administrative Forbearance-Ends 07/31/2025

The repayment plan = Saving on a Valuable Education - Ends 12/28/2026

In previous tax years, my wife and I have filed separately, forgoing tax benefits so my SAVE payment would be lower.

However, with SAVE dead, I asked the FSA loan simulator which plan would be best for me. It recommended SAVE, then the Standard, then the Graduated Repayment plan. Crucially, it told me I wasn’t eligible for the PAYE, IBR, or ICR plans. Also, I work for a 501c3 and have some certified payments for PSLF (though I’m still a ways away from forgiveness).

So, do I either:

1). File separately again, forgoing tax benefits but keeping the hope that something will happen with SAVE or I’ll become eligible for another IDR plan

2). File together, get the tax benefits, switch to standard, forgo PSLF.

3). File together, get the tax benefits, but stay in SAVE and hope I can get into another IDR plan. I might have higher payments than filing separately, but I’d at least be able to still qualify for PSLF.

Feels like each option has dizzying pros and cons, so I appreciate any thoughts 😵‍💫

My partner and I (DINKs) are close to filing our taxes and deciding whether to file separately or jointly. We have filed separately the last several years due to my student loans. The document MOHELA recently sent me said my recertification is August 2026 meaning it will be based on 2025 tax returns. Given this, we are considering filing jointly this year (2024 returns) and then separate again next year (2025 returns) if needed. My question is: has anyone’s recertification date ever been moved up? Or is this a possibility?

1.) To be eligible for the extended repayment plan, all i need to have is more than 30K worth of Direct-type loans, correc? (I'm amusing it doesn't matter if it's a single loan that's >30K, or multiple Direct loans that are >30K?)

2.) What happens if I were to pay off a couple loans over time while on that plan (ex. 15 years), and then the balance falls below 30K before the 25 years is up... do they automatically move me into a standard repayment plan since I'm no longer eligible??

3.) Lastly, am I able to switch from an IBR plan to the extended plan at any time? (I'm currently on the SAVE administrative forbearance, but thinking about switching later this year when payments resume if SAVE gets axed)

Hi, im looking for any advice on student loans for Malmö University in Sweden. I recently got accepted and was ready to finally apply for student loans from typical providers, however most mainstream international loan agencies Ive found dont cover this college (nor any college in Sweden for that matter). American federal loans also are unreliable. Ive attempted to contact the college itself on financial aid services but havent heard back from them and time to obtain funding is really short. Does anybody know of any loan agencies that would cover expenses for this specific University?

When I look at my student loans on my credit report it says that they are in admin forbearance. Restart May 2025. I have not received anything from my student loan servicer about payments starting. Will this be pushed back once we are into May? Does anyone know?

I’ve been unable to receive any help from Mohela. The first accrual started in March, stopped after a few days, and is now accruing again this week. Both times that I’ve called Mohela, they’ve told me that the interest will be removed “later.” Has anyone had a similar issue or had this resolved? I do not want this added interest included in my credit report. Btw, I’ve been on SAVE forbearance since last July and interest only started accruing last month, unexpectedly.

Dear Diary,

1. I received a call from my servicer’s ombudsman this morning—very pleasant and patient woman. I had initiated a complaint because my payment count was incorrect over a month ago, and she confirmed she could see the issue. She mentioned that they are waiting for firm guidance from DoEd on whether the count adjustments will be handled by DoEd or if it’s the servicer’s responsibility to complete the one-time adjustment. Until they hear otherwise, they are assuming it's DoEd's responsibility.  She mentioned that it had taken a while for me to receive her call because she was waiting for a definitive response before reaching out.

2. She said this could be resolved this month, by the end of summer, or even next year. If I don’t hear back by summer’s end, she advised that I file another complaint.

3. She was extremely patient throughout our conversation and also noted upon my inquiring that any surplus payments made would eventually be refunded. (For context: I had met the eligible payment threshold the day I entered SAVE. My IBR application—visible in their system—is currently paused due to the current administration’s directive. She assured me that once they get approval to process applications again, mine is in good standing.)

4. Interestingly, she pointed out that if I were to leave IBR next month for another non-IDR plan, and it’s later determined that I met the forgiveness threshold back in June 2024, the move out of IBR wouldn’t count against me - meaning, I would get the forgives and any excess payments returned. That’s positive but I don’t know I’d be willing to take that to the bank. 

5. Now, for the vibe check: I got the sense that Nelnet believes the one-time count adjustment may be at risk in the current litigation.  She didn’t say it outright, but based on the conversation, it seemed like that is a possibility. This wasn’t the most refreshing news. It just reinforced the possibility that expectations could shift at any moment.

**B/c context is often useful:  I entered SAVE in April 2024 and made one payment under the plan before the injunction took effect. In December 2024, after being laid off, I applied for IBR since my job loss made me eligible—something I hadn’t qualified for before. My IBR application is still being processed.**  

Just wanted to share my conversation in case it can help another.

My husband and I both graduated from Ai Portland. He has received 2 refund checks (he had 2 servicers). I asked my servicer for a timeline and they replied, "Your student loans say 'Paid In Full Discharge: No Refund' and if you think that's an error, call the Dept of Ed."

I still had a huge remaining balance when the discharge came through.

Today's Saturday - I don't expect to reach anyone until Monday.

Anyone else experience this? If you haven't gotten a check yet, I recommend calling your servicer to confirm if this is what your account says too.