Repaying student loans


Graduating college is the culmination of years of hard work, studying, and late nights. Soon after you receive your diploma, however, you will probably receive letters stating it's time to start paying back those student loans. Repaying student loans can seem daunting if you are employed, not to mention if you haven't immediately found a job.

Luckily, you have several options for repayment, depending on the type of student loans you received.

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Deferment

This allows you to put off repaying the loan for a period of time, sometimes turning off the interest as well. There are multiple reasons the government will allow you to defer payments, including military service, return to school, temporary disability, and loss of income, among others.

Forbearance

If you don't qualify for deferment, you may be able to qualify for forbearance, which suspends principal payments, though interest continues to accrue. Some loan amounts may be forgiven as well, if you work in a particular area.

Graduated Payments

Lenders may give you the option of making small monthly payments that gradually increase over time. Keep in mind, however, that this could result in monthly payments that are 50% higher than the normal payment at the end of 10 years.

Consolidation

Many students graduate with multiple student loans. If you were one of these, you may want to consolidate all of the loans into a single one to simplify payments and interest rates. The repayment period is usually longer, giving you a lower monthly payment. The drawback is that by the time you finish paying off the loan, you could end up spending more on interest than the original loan amount.

If it looks like you may have problems repaying student loans, contact the lender immediately to make a plan. Lenders may be more willing to be flexible if you seem sincere in your intent to repay.