Student loan shock post Ch. 13 discharge

[dt3813]

so great lakes just sent me notification that I will be in repayment for their loan.  This is only one of I think 3 loans I have. The original loan amount was $68,000.  There has been over $23,000 in interest , so the loan is $98,000.  Over the life of repayment I will pay back $211,000. I'm sick about this I can't sleep.  I just paid $172,000 over 5 years for my ch. 13. I feel like now I'm back in financial hell. Ugh. Just venting. I can't wait for the other 2 loans. This is my lowest interest rate loan. Nightmare. 

[Anonymous]

Ouch! This definitely puts things into perspective for me. I shouldn't stress about the small amount that I owe. I hope it all works out for you.

[Pat94108]

It's a lot of money but are you on a IBR plan or PAYE or something similar? If you are, you can have the loan discharged after 25 years if I am not mistaken.

[Luscher]

Yeah and then have huge tax bill at the end of that year!

[Anonymous]

Student loans are the worst.

Any government backed, stafford, ffelp etc. are way way better than any private loan.

Stafford etc. loans will allow consolidation. Through consolidation you can get on Income based repayment etc. there are several different loan programs to choose from.

Whatever you do, do it quick and communicate with your student loan co. so that you can not fall behind.

I feel ya.

There are grassroots groups to try to get changes made regarding the awful burden of student loan debt issue as well.

hope this helps!

[Anonymous]

When you get 1099c for student loan discharge after 25yrs. fill out insolvency worksheet and Form 982 Insolvency Worksheet? This form determines to what degree you are insolvent and how much in taxes you WILL owe to the IRS!!  I got 23 years to worry about that I am on IBR plan also. I will probably be dead before then though.  I got 1099c for  charged off cc a couple years ago filled out form didnt owe any.

[youdontkillmoney]

The way I look at debt is that the lender, bank was there for you when you needed it, when you needed to pay tuition. So they helped you, you asked for the loan, or any loan whether student, auto, home or credit card; the terms were presented and you accepted. The goal now is to pay at least the minimum, make boatloads of money, and when / if you do, aggressively pay down the debt, until they are all gone. If you do not make enough and / or do not save enough then you will havethe debt for years and years and years and years. I had student loans, over ten years ago, they no longer show up on my credit file, but I never missed a payment, deferred when I was in school, but paid them down to zero. My wife at least paid the minimu, and just recently paid them off aggressively to zero. Hers was $40K. Mine was, I don't quite remember, maybe $50K total. We got our degrees to be able to earn more and that is why the student loan made sensed to us, me for my undergrad education in economics and hers in nursing. There were good paying jobs available when we graduated and got enough experience to land the jobs.

[Anonymous]

If you have eligible loans you should consider the new income based repayment (IBR) plans.  They look at your adjustable gross income and calculate the family size to determine your disposable income, then you pay 10% of that for 20 years (10 if you are in public service) and then the remainder is forgiven without any tax penalty.  I just learned of this when I consoidated my loans.  I make 119k a year, my adjustable gross is around 87k I have 4 in the household so instead of my payment being $1300 a month for 25 years it is $521 (adjusts with income) a month for no more than 20 years.  Basically at that rate I will never even pay the interest because I will only have to pay for 10 years.  Even if you arent in public service if you have high student loan debt and/or low income this is the way to go without question.

[Pat94108]

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@youdontkillmoney wrote:

The way I look at debt is that the lender, bank was there for you when you needed it, when you needed to pay tuition. So they helped you, you asked for the loan, or any loan whether student, auto, home or credit card; the terms were presented and you accepted. The goal now is to pay at least the minimum, make boatloads of money, and when / if you do, aggressively pay down the debt, until they are all gone. If you do not make enough and / or do not save enough then you will havethe debt for years and years and years and years. I had student loans, over ten years ago, they no longer show up on my credit file, but I never missed a payment, deferred when I was in school, but paid them down to zero. My wife at least paid the minimu, and just recently paid them off aggressively to zero. Hers was $40K. Mine was, I don't quite remember, maybe $50K total. We got our degrees to be able to earn more and that is why the student loan made sensed to us, me for my undergrad education in economics and hers in nursing. There were good paying jobs available when we graduated and got enough experience to land the jobs.

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I agree. When I borrowed the money for grad I knew I only wanted to borrow up to a certain amount. For one, I didn't want loads of debt and for two I only wanted to borrow what I thought I could repay in a reasonable amount of time, (it came to 38k). 5 and 1/2 years later I am almost done paying it all off, have 3 more months to go.