Defaulting on a Student Loan

Recently I received an e-mail from a reader who had defaulted on a private student loan because of a communication issue with their lender. Managing student loans can be difficult for anyone (especially for adults with ADHD) because often you do not begin paying the loan until after you have completed your education. In many cases is could be several years before you have to start paying off student loans, and it is easy to misplace important documents and/or forget to update your address.

Student Loan Borrower Assistance is an excellent resource for people who want more information on how student loans work. This site has a lot of information about dealing with repayment, collection, default, and bankruptcy as it pertains to your student loan. If you are having an issue with any loan(student loan, auto loan, mortgage, etc.), the most important thing you should do is to contact your lender. For most situations your lender will work with you to find a mutual beneficial resolution. I realize that it can be difficult to contact your lender but it will save you a lot of time and frustration in the future. Sometimes there can be confusion when dealing with these loans so make sure to:

Document any communication you have with your lender: This mean writing down the time, who you talked to, and any agreement that was made, if you talked with someone on the phone or in person. You also want to save a copy of any written communication between you and your lender.

Try to stay patient: It often takes additional time to resolve issues related with loans. The person that you are communicating with might not have the ability to resolve your problem right away. It can be difficult to keep your cool when dealing with a stressful situation, but if you do you are more likely to get a more desirable outcome. Hand in hand with patience is being persistent, sometimes it will take more than one phone call to resolve your issue.

Comments

[Robin Smith]

Your blog on "Private Student Loan" is really a nice one. After reading this blog we can understand what the merits and demerits in these type of loans. So thanks a lot for posting this.

http://studentsblog2.blogspot.com/2009/09/impact-of-student-loans-disaster-in-uk.html

[Deborah Hart-Curtis]

Between the years of 2000 and 2005, a co-worker told me her son was going to college (possibly a community college) free as a result of his attention deficit disorder. Do you have any information or websites that provide information on the loan process/grants that would address this. Thanks