Repaying Your Student Loans
Repaying your student loan is not an obligation to be taken lightly. It could affect your future financial health.
When it’s time to start making payments, you should evaluate your situation and options. Your future financial health depends on understanding your options, the hazards of default, and how to resolve federal student loan disputes.
You will be obliged to begin repayment when you:
- Graduate from school
- Withdraw from school
- Drop below half-time enrollment
Make certain you have all the facts:
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Identify Your Lender/Servicer
The first step to repaying federal student loan(s) is to know who the lender and servicer are for each loan. (They may not be the same.)
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Evaluate Your Repayment Options
There are several flexible repayment options available for borrowers with federal loans. The Federal Student Aid website provides more information and calculators that can be helpful when assessing your options.
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Know How to Resolve Disputes
Do you and your loan servicer disagree about the balance or status of your loan(s)? The Federal Student Aid (FSA) Ombudsman Group of the U.S. Department of Education is designated to help students resolve loan disputes with Federal Direct/Perkins loans.
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Avoid Default
If you fail to make payments on your loan(s) as scheduled, you are considered to be in default, according to the terms of the promissory note that you signed at the time you took out your loan(s). The consequences of default can be severe.