Kamala Harris on Student Loan Debt

Kamala Harris on Student Loan Debt By most polls, California Senator and former state attorney general Kamala Harris is currently running third in the Democratic primary. She’s behind former Vice President Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders. She’s ahead of Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren in some polls and behind in others.  We tackled Biden’s track long […]

Senator Bernie Sanders’ Student Loan Plan

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) has rolled out his plan to address student loan debt, and it’s a doozy. First, Sanders proposes we cancel all $1.6 trillion of outstanding student loan debt outright – including both federal and private loans. This would directly affect about 45 million Americans. The direct savings for the average student loan […]

Student Loan Tax Elimination Act Introduced in Senate

A new bill in the Senate, the Student Loan Tax Elimination Act, would eliminate student loan origination fees on federal loans. If approved, the measure could save borrowers billions over the next five years. Supporters say that origination fees on student loans amount to a “hidden tax” on student loan borrowers. And since the Department […]

Joe Biden and His Controversial History With Student Loans

Under current law, federal student loans are generally not dischargeable in bankruptcy. Borrowers have Joe Biden to thank for that. In contrast, most other forms of consumer debt can be discharged through the bankruptcy process.  Only a limited number of debts, such as child support payments, alimony, overdue taxes, and criminal fines, are non-dischargeable. But […]

Renting an Apartment With Student Loan Debt Problems

You want to rent an apartment, but you’ve got oodles of student loan debt. Maybe you’ve been late on some payments. Maybe you’re even in default. Can you still rent an apartment with student loan debt headaches? Probably. But it might not be easy. Here’s the scoop: What landlords want Landlords have two basic priorities: […]

How To Improve Your Credit Score

Good news for the country: The average credit score is at a record high of 704. That’s according to the Fair, Isaac Corporation, the company that produces the most commonly used credit scoring product in the U.S. today, the FICO Score. If you’ve had credit issues in the past, or if you are simply new […]

You Could Soon Use a Section 529 Plan To Pay Off Student Loans. Here’s Why That Might Be a Bad Idea.

You may soon be allowed to use Section 529 plans to pay up to $10,000 in student loan debt. Earlier this month, the House Ways and Means Committee unanimously passed a bill called the SECURE Act. That is, “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement.” Among other things, this bill expands Section 529 plans to include […]

Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s Student Loan Forgiveness Proposal

The student loan crisis is taking center stage in the 2020 presidential election campaign.  The numbers are attention-grabbing: student loan debt is now the second biggest form of outstanding consumer debt. With more than $1.5 billion in student loans debt outstanding, education debt eclipsed credit card debt almost a decade ago. Only mortgage debt is […]

Sen. Marco Rubio Student Loan Plan Benefits Vast Majority of Future Borrowers

Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) has jumped into the student loan policy ring with a series of new proposals, introduced in the Senate as the Leveraging Opportunities for Americans Now Act of 2019 — or the LOAN Act <groan>, for short. Here’s a brief look at the Marco Rubio student loan proposal and how it will […]

Health Professional Student Loan Repayment Programs by State

There has been gallons of ink spilled over the well-known federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program at the federal level. While only a few people have qualified to have their student loan balances forgiven under this program thus far, that will change as the months roll on, and more and more people will have made […]

How To Drop Your Co-Signer From Your Student Loan

According to information from the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, more than 90 percent of student loans are now issued with a cosigner – up from 68 percent in 2008. Lenders love cosigners, of course, because they provide substantial additional security for their loans – at next to no additional cost to them. Most of the […]

Don’t Panic! Here’s How to Get Out of Default on a Student Loan

So you’ve defaulted on a federal student loan. Now what? Well, not too many people default on purpose. The federal government knows that good people can go into default for all sorts of reasons, including layoffs, income instability, medical issues, and poor financial organization skills. The good news is, there are three reliable paths out […]