TLDR on 2nd-to-last line.

Hello everyone, hopefully others can explain the situation I just found myself in. I was checking my emails and saw a credit score statement from my credit card tracker that said one of my accounts was "paid off"... "weird," I thought, since I didn't pay anything off manually nor do I have any automatic payments set up to do so. So I read the report, and it says that my Discover student loans were "paid off."

Extremely confused, I relogged into my Discover Student Loans account after not touching it for over a year, since my last payment to them was in March of 2023; I was planning on letting them go delinquent and just take care of them later with a lawyer when they went to collections.

After logging in, lo and behold, all three of my accounts of balances of $0.00. My loans all together totaled to over ~$103,000 last time I checked. Is this because of the Biden administration's student loan forgiveness act? I think I signed up for it to have my federal loans forgiven, or at least put into a $0, 0% interest, payment plan, or something like that. I'm so confused right now... I don't want to get excited and believe that this is something good, nor do I want to suspect this is something bad, I just want answers that the internet nor a query into past posts of this subreddit have provided. Again, my status under my Discover loans just says "Write Off."

My credit score also just went from 655 to 728 as I was typing this, when I refreshed my score history in my banking app again, I don't know how scores get updated, I'm not fully knowledgeable on the timing of how that all works, but it seems odd that it'd happen in the middle of the night.

TLDR; my loans suddenly have a $0.00 balance and a status of "Write Off," what does this mean for me?

Thank you for you help!

Looking for some advice about filing taxes. I’m 26F and graduating medical school next semester. Up until now, I never filed my own taxes (had zero income anyway) and my parents are claiming me as a dependent on their taxes to get the refund. Rightfully so as they have helped me with my living expenses in undergrad and medical school over the past 8 years.

I’m wondering if this will cause issues when/if I try to sign up for an loan repayment program. Would it be of greater benefit to me to file taxes as an independent this year (so that I have a tax statement reporting my zero dollar income for the year) as that would make my student loan payment lower on an income driven repayment plan?

If my parents were to continue claiming me as a dependent, would that mess up my ability to sign up for an IDR?

So I had a debt from going to college and not going back b/c life was lifing…anyways they sold my debt to Reliant Capital Solutions after like 30 days of me being aware of it?? Besides the point, I reached out and asked for the following Agreement with the creditor that authorizes you to collect on this alleged debt; The agreement bearing my signature stating that I have agreed to assume the debt; Valid copies of the debt agreement stating the amount of the debt and interest charges; Proof that the statute of limitations has not expired; Complete payment history on the account along with an accounting of all additional charges being assessed Proof that you are licensed to collect in my state; and Your license numbers and registered agent They responded with quite literally a screenshot of my charges with only essentially 1 out of the 7 things I asked for, has anyone ever had this situation? I’m going to respond saying I didn’t receive any of the other stuff I asked for

I graduated college in may and have been working since October. I make a very solid income, have a great credit score for my age, and have gotten pre approved by SoFi for a loan consolidation/refinancing that will cut my interest rate in half(very bad interest rates originally). The loan forbearance on my original private loans ends next month. I am hesitant to officially apply as the inquiry will cause my credit score will go down. Looking for general advice on the entire situation. Should I mass apply to different loan companies or will that hurt my credit score more? Can I trust this pre-approval will be accurate? Should I wait longer to make the inquiry worth it? Is there harm that could be done applying this early(I’m desperate as anything offered would help my rates). Any advice is very much appreciated

So I dropped my class this semester to focus on my mental health and I would like to go back to school next semester, but fafsa can’t cover the rest of my classes plus the tuition from this semester. Most if not all student loan lenders I’ve applied to said I need to have a co-signer. There’s no one I know who could help with co-signing. Idk what to do. Are there any lenders who don’t require a co-signer?

Hi I’m currently freaking out, I’m a high school senior and the FASFA just opened, my mom doesn’t know anything about any of it and I finished it and my CSS profile, we are not poor but live paycheck to paycheck, mom makes abt 70k a year, 30k to taxes if not more rest is basically to bills. She has $0 to put towards my school and idk what to do.

Every school I applied to even state schools will be abt 20k a year with my $2000 bell grant, and I’m only qualifying for $5k in loans???? She has horrible credit will not qualify for a PLUS loan. I’m willing to go in debt I just don’t know HOW. Where do I get loans??? I’m 18 and my fasfa will not cover anything honestly- my mom’s credit is tanked. CC isn’t an option please don’t recommend that, I just need to know how I can take out loans- where to find somewhere I can get a loan as an 18 year old my mom will co-sign only issue is her credit. How do ppl get 200k in debt if federal loans max at like 10k?

Please help if u can any advice helps!!

Hi everyone I have MS (multiple sclerosis). However, I'm not completely disabled. I use a crutch to walk sometimes and I have a really hard time standing for more than 2 hours (my body forcefully pulls me down). I also have some issues concentrating and remembering. I was first diagnosed at 18 and I'm 23 now. I've tried looking for jobs that wouldn't require me to do strenuous activity to not much luck. I've been doing some door dash and selling things on ebay in the meantime. I also do freelance as a Graphic Designer sometimes.

I was just wondering if it would be possible to be forgiven or the amount I owe every month can be reduced a bit? Thanks for the help.

I'm on an IBR plan and my monthly payment is $0, so I don't often look at my loan statements because it gives me anxiety. Anyway, I looked at the numbers for the past few months and the "Unpaid Interest" has gone all over the place:

June: $4,192.59
July: $4,603.59
August: $5,028.28
September: $287.73
October: $287.73
November: $4,411.57

It makes sense to accumulate ~$400/month... but why did it suddenly get nearly wiped and then go back up to 4.4k? I made no payments during this time.

https://ctmirror.org/2024/11/20/ct-student-loan-reimbursement-program/

With all the doom and gloom, this post made me feel hope! I don't live in Connecticut, but happy for CT residents and hoping other states might follow suit!

I don’t know what is going on but my nelnet is showing more loans than what I actually have with higher balances. Is anyone having issues with nelnet showing loans showing this? I just logged in today and there are two more loans showing Income base repayment but I’m not on income base repeat plans. I am so confused, I wasn’t sure if there is a glitch happening or if anyone else has this issue. I will have to call them tomorrow, nelnet is the worst and I wish I had Great Lakes back.

A little bit long of a title, but as the title states, my private student loan servicer is trying to make me pay due me being on a one term semester leave. I’m going back to school next semester. I’m enrolled in a grad program. I didn’t tell my current grad program, but I’m actually transferring to a different school for the same program. I’m hoping I can call back and talk to a different customer service representative about this. I understand that I’m not enrolled in any courses this semester, but I am still part-time at work because I am going back to school in January. I am still a grad student. I even uploaded my leave of absence form with my advisor signature stating I am on one semester leave of absence. I can’t afford these payments, because I’m part-time. What should I be telling them specifically? Has anyone else gone through this? Please help!

I submitted my info for my IDR recertification in September and it was due in November. I got a notice that says I don’t need to recertify until December next year now. Is there any way to cancel my current application? It says it’s still under review.

hi i will be starting community college in january for an asn in nursing. i get a pell of $450 and student loans of $1,424. so im $974 short. i know thats not a lot, but i got bills to pay lol. is there any way for me to get more loans? is getting a private student loan for $1,000 my only option? i’m an independent student because im married

Does anyone know why Nelnet does not state how much you will pay monthly after the freeze is over?

It is my last year of obtaining a bachelor of science in biology and I might need to drop out my last (next) semester. Even with grants/financial aid, I am short $2,478. I was short over 5,000 but was able to cover some it from working. Next semester, I will not be able to work as much because I am taking 18 credit hours. I tried College Ave loans and others, but I do not have a cosigner that could help. Does anyone know what I could do? I am freaking out because I might have to drop out of my last semester (Spring 25'). I am so close

I was on REPAYE plan but was notified in Aug 2023 that my plan switched to SAVE. I didn’t initiate this plan change. I haven’t paid on my loans since before COVID. I am paycheck to paycheck. In Aug 2024, I was placed in forbearance because of fed court issuing a stay preventing the dot of ed from operating the SAVE plan. This is where I’m currently at. What is the smartest move for me? I have tried calling 3x, placed on hold for over an hour. I can’t talk to anyone nor do I trust them. Should I apply for REPAYE plan? Will that start my 20 year count down all over?

Like for those of you who filled it out online and checked off the option to communicate by email, did you get any sort of reminders mailed to you? I spoke to an FSA agent through chatting on their website and they said reminders should be digital if I start it online, but I want to hear from experiences of people who’ve gone through the process.

I live in an emotionally abusive household and want to apply for FAFSA behind my parents’ backs, so I need to be very careful.

I’m also looking to get qualified for direct unsubsidized loans only.

I just found out today that there is program in which your student loans may be forgive if you attended a school that closed but need help fully understanding.

For the full picture, I attended a school freshman year that closed going into my sophomore year, I didn't use the teach-out program instead I just transferred and later finished my degree. Am I eligible for forgiveness even though I transferred and completed my degree but did not use the teach out program?

I noticed that the feature on federal student aid.gov that allows them to pull your income information off the IRS website has been down since at least the early summer. I want to switch my income driven repayment plan, but it is making me input all my information manually because it says it can’t pull the information from the IRS website. I never had this issue before. Does anyone know when this feature will be back up?

I received 13 emails from Mohela today. One of them said something about a payment being due soon. I thought it was odd so I logged in to see what was going on. To my surprise, it showed that they added 3 loans to my account that were not previously there (I have not added any loans and have been out of school for almost 9 years). They were for small amounts of money $52.89, $2.81, and $0.00 (yes that says $0.00). The two without a zero balance said a past due balance was due from back on 8/6/2021. Listen, I check my Mohela account fairly regularly because of all the current uncertainty with student loans. These did not exist before. They were not there when I logged in at the beginning of November. I am currently on the phone with Mohela waiting for an advance specialist (it says it will be a 104 minute wait until they answer). Did anyone else have an issue with random loans you never took out popping up with a past due balance? The best part is that they say they are direct consolidated loans, one sub and one unsub.... I don't even have any consolidated loans. Why is is so hard for them to keep track of things properly?

Hi all

Got an email from Nelnet this morning. I am under the SAVE forbearance situation. It is saying my student payments will resume Jan 2026…..

This feels very far away? Does this mean no interest will accrue until then? Thanks!

My wife has been teaching for 9 years in three different schools two of which are title 1. She has been applying for the forgiveness for over 2 years now 3-4 times week give or take, and aidvantage keeps rejecting her applications for insane reasons such as "SSN missing from document"...on a document that doesnt have a space to put the SSN. On and on, missing signature, for document that CLEARLY has the signature. A never ending litany of bullshit road blocks. Its gotten to the point where she resubmits without even changing anything and they reject it for an entirely different reason. Their favorite is "MISSING PAGE X" where they just remove a page from the application and say it was missing, or redact information with a black box and say she didnt put it on there. There is no way any of this is legal, but we cant afford a lawyer.

My question is there, other than CFPB, which she is currently filing a complaint with, any recourse for this obvious stonewalling. We are getting desperate as the new clown coming in will most assuredly squash any chance we have of forgiveness.

I have about $55k in federal (Nelnet) student loans. Realistically, couldn’t I refinance a couple small loans that make up that 55k at a time for a lower interest rate, and pay them off while keeping the federal in case anything helpful happens in the future? (Lol)

Meaning - what if I refinanced like loan AC and AD, each of which are 8,000 - and worked on paying those two down, while keeping the 55k minus 16,000 so 39k in the Nelnet and making the normal payments. Is that possible? Hope I’m being clear 😭 for a lower interest rate on the higher % loans?

Hi all, I am an NP considering a new position at a site with a high HPSA score that would basically guarantee me loan repayment through NHSC. I am worried that with the change in administration, that funding for this program will be slashed but I can't really find anything specific in the news that talks about NHSC. Anyone in a similar situation or read anything about this? Thanks!

Hi thank you for all this information and I am happy to know I am not alone. Can someone explain the loophole with the deadline of July 2025? As I will be in the Grace period during that time does that mean I cannot take advantage of this double consolidation? So I’m out of options due to the timing?

I THINK my count has been done and I think it's accurate since been in payment for years...I been using the backdoor method on count and had me starting over I thought. I had given up. All my focus had been on this since June 30th. I had given up since SAVE but knew I didn't need it to get forgiveness and I think IBR will stick around. 

The numbers below are as of update on 11-18 on FSA site backdoor method under pretty-pink. I blocked out the part where has my SS#

I am currently in the "do-nothing" scenario like not call FSA or Aidvantage and trust the process...but also time is of essence before any changes under new administration. I don't want to get ahead of myself. I am rambling here I know and a little shacky...any guidance appreciated and maybe all the people in my shoes should check backdoor method for their update. Thank you in advance. Betsy, I hope you are around and girl-of-squirrels:)




"loanTypeCode": "D6",
    "currentLoanHolderCode": 578,
    "payments": null,
    "paymentCounters": [
      {
        "type": "ICR",
        "borrowerEligibleIndicator": "N",
        "loanEligibleIndicator": "N",
        "qualifyingPaymentCount": 277,
        "eligiblePaymentCount": null,
        "forgivenessRequiredPayments": 300,
        "forgivenessRemainingPayments": 23
      },
      {
        "type": "IBR",
        "borrowerEligibleIndicator": "N",
        "loanEligibleIndicator": "N",
        "qualifyingPaymentCount": 0,
        "eligiblePaymentCount": null,
        "forgivenessRequiredPayments": 300,
        "forgivenessRemainingPayments": 300
      },
      {
        "type": "IBR_2014",
        "borrowerEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "loanEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "qualifyingPaymentCount": 279,
        "eligiblePaymentCount": null,
        "forgivenessRequiredPayments": 240,
        "forgivenessRemainingPayments": 0
      },
      {
        "type": "SAVE",
        "borrowerEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "loanEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "qualifyingPaymentCount": 279,
        "eligiblePaymentCount": null,
        "forgivenessRequiredPayments": 228,
        "forgivenessRemainingPayments": 0
      },
      {
        "type": "PAYE",
        "borrowerEligibleIndicator": "N",
        "loanEligibleIndicator": "N",
        "qualifyingPaymentCount": 277,
        "eligiblePaymentCount": null,
        "forgivenessRequiredPayments": 240,
        "forgivenessRemainingPayments": 0
      },
      {
        "type": "PSLF",
        "borrowerEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "loanEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "qualifyingPaymentCount": 0,
        "eligiblePaymentCount": 203,
        "forgivenessRequiredPayments": 120,
        "forgivenessRemainingPayments": 120
      },
      {
        "type": "TEPSLF",
        "borrowerEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "loanEligibleIndicator": "Y",
        "qualifyingPaymentCount": 0,
        "eligiblePaymentCount": 203,
        "forgivenessRequiredPayments": 120,
        "forgivenessRemainingPayments": 120
      }
    ],
    "earliestEstimatedForgivenessDate": null,
    "updateDateTime": "2024-11-18T13:56:55.093319",
    "startDateTime": "2024-11-18T13:56:55.093319",
    "outstandingPrincipalBalance": 953,
    "outstandingInterestBalance": 12,
    "saveDiscretionaryIncomePercentage": 5,
    "saveSixtyMonthIndicator": null
  }

If private student loans are in default, and have been for about a year.. Are they able to be discharged through bankruptcy?

Any info I find is only relevant to regularly active student loans — which the answer for is no. I assume defaulted loans might be a different story.

During the past year on SAVE with a very low payment and the SAVE forbearance, along lots of frugal living, I have built up ~$50,000 in a HYSA that I want to throw at my loans once the SAVE plan (probably eventually) gets overturned in the courts. My question may be silly, but how do you make this big of a payment? Do you just make it in one huge lump sum, break it into numerous smaller payments, wire it, does it flag your bank for suspicious activity, etc? Sorry, I feel silly for asking about this, but I’ve never had to spend more than a couple thousand at a time and have never had to transfer this much money before, so I just don’t really know the specifics on how to do this. TYIA!

Looking for options on getting a lower monthly payment for parent plus loan.

My mom took out a parent plus loan for me with the agreement that I would be the one to pay it which I have been doing and plan on continuing to do. I’m struggling financially though and it’s kinda tough paying the $400/month on top of all of my other bills and inflation and all that. I know there are like payment plan options and stuff and some of them are based on your income but given the loan is in my moms name idk that that would benefit much bc I think her and my dad combined bring in a pretty decent income. My mom alone doesn’t bring in that much, but my understanding is that since they are married it goes off of joint income??? Or is there a way to get this loan put in my name so that the repayment plan will be based off of what I earn and not them?? Or just any suggestions for getting a lower monthly payment?

Hi,

I have a very dumb question, but I have an already active IBR plan for my undergrad loans (all subsidized) and currently have a PLUS grad loan that will be moved into repayment shortly.

Do I have to recertify or do anything to add that loan to my already existing IBR plan, or does that happen automatically and I just need to remember to recertify at the end of the year/January as normal?

I’m currently on the SAVE plan (which I know is likely to go down, going to make a decision to stick with it or apply for IBR or PAYE or ICR in January). But I’m also in school right now, and want to cut back on accruing interest by moving my grad plus loan into repayment (which has already been approved). Just wanting to know I need to recertify now, or whether once the loan gets flipped to repayment if it automatically gets added to my SAVE plan.

Thanks everyone!