In the News: What in Tarnation is an FFEL Loan?!

Under the recently announced Limited Waiver Opportunity for PSLF, FFEL borrowers have an opportunity to pursue PSLF without restarting the clock. As long as the other conditions for PSLF were met—full-time employment at a public service organization like a 501(c)(3)—previous payments made on FFELs will count towards PSLF as long as they are consolidated before October 31, 2022 and submit the appropriate employment paperwork.. Finally, borrowers under this orphaned loan program will be able to enjoy PSLF without the added hurdle of 10 extra years of repayment.

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Missing QPs: Real-life Solutions for Nightmare Problems

If your QPs go missing, don’t panic! It’s usually a simple mistake that can be corrected with a little patience. If this happens to you, give us a call—we’re here to guide you through thick and thin!

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Spooky Student Loans: The Case of the Missing QPs

She pulled up last year’s form, which she had saved to the cloud. It looked identical to this year’s—just the date was changed—no new qualifying payments, 12 shy of the number she expected. Her heart sank: this was wrong. Was it her fault? Did she forget something? How could this have happened? Almost worse than the results was the fact that now she would have to call. She’d have to dial her servicer, sit on hold, and be told that she’d made a mistake.

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Big Changes Coming to Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As borrowers make plans to resume making student loan payments in February, they may have questions about who will be servicing those loans. We learned earlier this year that two large student loan servicers—PHEAA and Granite State—would no longer service federal student loans. The former, through its subsidiary FedLoan, is responsible for all borrowers pursuing Public Service Loan Forgiveness, a program that has been under intense scrutiny throughout the student debt crisis. Just last month, yet another major servicer—Navient— announced that it would no longer manage federal loans, transferring them to another company.

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Embattled Student Loan Servicers Are Jumping Ship

As borrowers make plans to resume making student loan payments in February, they may have questions about who will be servicing those loans. We learned earlier this year that two large student loan servicers—PHEAA and Granite State—would no longer service federal student loans. The former, through its subsidiary FedLoan, is responsible for all borrowers pursuing Public Service Loan Forgiveness, a program that has been under intense scrutiny throughout the student debt crisis. Just last month, yet another major servicer—Navient— announced that it would no longer manage federal loans, transferring them to another company.

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Buying a Home with Student Loans

Good news for Navigate clients: many lenders accept the monthly student loan payment estimates we run with you for DTI purposes. That way, we can help you avoid taking your loans out of COVID forbearance!

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Student debt cancellation: What’s the hold up?

Over the past nine months, two questions have dogged the student debt cancellation conversation: does the President have the authority to forgive student debt without Congress, and—if so—how much should he forgive?

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Student Loan Industry Continues to Fail Communities of Color

Report after report has shown that majority Black- and Latinx-communities to bear the greatest burden of student debt and its effects. In 2015, the CFPB documented the effects of the Great Recession on student debt in communities of color, “with many families seeing their net worth nearly cut in half.”

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IDR Plans and Payment Caps: ‘Til PSLF Do You Part

Oftentimes, we and our clients have to correct mistakes made by loan servicers, and having your payment plan messed with can be one of the most detrimental. If your loan servicer tells you that you no longer qualify for your plan, they’re wrong. When you enroll in an IDR plan, it’s “‘til death do you part,” or—to put it in a more positive light—“‘til PSLF do you part.” Have no fear, give us a call, and we’ll help you ride the cap all the way there.

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Lost in the Seas of Student Loan Payment Plans?

A new report from the government consumer watchdog finds that student loan servicers betrayed borrower’s trust, gave misleading and fraudulent advice, and withheld refunds when their mistakes were identified.

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