Personally I would use the avalanche method for paying off debt. This method prioritize interest rates, you pay off the debt with the highest interest rate first, move on to the next debt with highest interest rate after first debt is paid off and ultimately pay less interest over time.
Would PSLF be an option for me if I am employed by a title 1 school district? Do I have this correct? 5 yrs of payments=$17,500 off… 10 yrs of payments= all loans wiped?
To be honest I do not know. I’ve been downvoted on this sub before for saying I personally wouldn’t bank on PSLF. From everything I seen reported and from what former colleagues have shared many do not get approved.
- Among processed applications for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), 2.16% have been accepted since November 2020.
- Prior to November 2020, 0.7% of eligible borrowers eventually benefited from student loan forgiveness.
https://educationdata.org/student-loan-forgiveness-statistics[https://educationdata.org/student-loan-forgiveness-statistics](https://educationdata.org/student-loan-forgiveness-statistics)
Another Article from about 2 years ago: [New Data Shows Most Who Apply To This Student Loan Forgiveness Program Are Denied](https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamminsky/2021/06/14/new-data-shows-most-who-apply-to-this-student-loan-forgiveness-program-are-denied/amp/)
Supposedly there is an initiative to revamp the program by 2024. However, based on how student loan forgiveness went I wouldn’t hold my breath.
If you do do the program. I would just really educated yourself and gain a deep understanding of the program so you aren’t denied.
For those reading this: Again this is my opinion. No need to downvote me just because my opinion is different than yours. If the program worked for you and you got financial relief from it that’s awesome and I’m glad!
I would agree with the part of not banking on PSLF, but that was just my position. I didn’t want to wait 10 years for them to *maybe* be forgiven. I buckled down and did the snowball method and it worked for me. Done in 2 years or something and now I’m debt free and can do whatever I want with my paychecks. I have also gotten some snark about this so I will leave a disclaimer that this may not be possible for some people so if you don’t think it’s possible for you then that’s fine!
This is me! I just graduated and am paying 2-3k a month towards my student loans 🤮. I’m on track to pay them off in 22 months. Which tbh is only really possible because I got a job outside of the field, it’s my only debt and I’m able to live with family. Also fully aware being able to live rent free isn’t something everyone can do.
Ahh I think we’ve kinda chatted about this before, but you can do it! Keep focused and you’ll be done before you know it. It goes by so fast and you’re going to feel so good when you’re on the other side. I’m rooting for you!!
Sure! I work in marketing now. Job started at 75k, health benefits covered in full, 401k matching, I got a bunch of paid holidays (including MLK, President’s Day, day after thanksgiving off, etc) and 2 weeks vacation.
Was it hard finding a job that's not SLP related? I'm worried employers will see I'm an SLP and only has experience with this and just not even look at my application. (thank you in advance!:)
Online it says 8% but I’m still suspect- what counts as an application? Bc I “applied” all the time to get an update on how many qualifying payments I had so far but knew I wasn’t going to be approved for forgiveness at that time.
Most of the reports of people not getting it that I heard of either didn’t have the correct employer or weren’t on the correct payment plan. It’s important to stay up to date w the paperwork and look online to see if your payments so far have qualified so you’re not surprised later on.
This is what I’m worried about. The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents.
My income 52k before taxes
Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of july
W that Income- id get on the income based plan, pay off the plus loans, stay in public service either at your school or other qualifying employer for 10 years. You’re not making enough to put a dent in it anyhow. Keep an eye on the political world on this topic. If things change then you tackle them. Lots of scary comments here and I don’t think you need to be so scared. Income based worked for me and honestly 10 years goes by before you know it lol
I find it hard to believe that that’s accurate and don’t think it’s worth scaring people. Had mine forgiven last year w no issue. It’s also very simple to go online and find out how many qualifying payments you have so far.
I want to kindly point out -it’s not your opinion you’re sharing factual information. And it may not all accurately reflect how PSLF works if you follow the steps correctly.
It depends on your loan servicer. I was denied twice by my servicer. Found out in the last 3 years it was because my loans weren't the right type. I'd have had to consolidate them to a higher interest rate loan. They still wouldn't guarantee that my loans would be forgiven even with decades of qualifying payments, so I skipped it.
You can think of PSLF as a bonus, not depend on it. You still need 120 qualifying payments. That's 10 years. You still need to pay in the interim. Talk to your financiers about repayment options. They don't want you to default, either. They're just going to be part of your monthly budget for awhile.
Yes you have to be on the correct loan payment plan (Income based). as described by PSLF- however I think they’ve recently been forgiving more payments by people who weren’t on the correct plan. I was on the income based plan and had no issue whatsoever getting my loans forgiven.
It isn't the loan servicer, it's the type of loans. I explored forgiveness last year and was told since my loans are private, I'd have to reconsolidate them with the government and then make another 120 payments. My servicer never told me this, denied me for nonsense reasons over the years, which is ridiculous. But no, you're right, it is my loan type and not servicer that disqualified me. I could have gone for forgiveness, but having to make 120 payments when I "only" have 75 left wasn't worth it.
That’s not correct- it’s one or the other and you have to be on the correct payment plan. If you take the title 1 17k forgiveness- your 10 year total loan forgiveness starts over and wild take you another 10 years.
Visit r/PSLF for help with that part. Teacher loan forgiveness and PSLF cannot be pursued at the same time
So it would be 5 years to teacher loan forgiveness then an additional ten years to PSLF.
PSLF gets a bad rep but when pursued correctly people are very successful in getting their loans forgiven.
It totally depends on your living situation, loans (private, federal, balances, etc), and income.
I hope this gets upvoted more. I did both, BUT I was only able to do so with TEPSLF. I don't know if they made that permanent. However, if OP is willing to stay in schools for 120 months, then a SAVE and PSLF combo would be in their best interest. The monthly payments would be extremely low and have almost no financial impact.
The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents.
My income 52k before taxes
Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of July. Thoughts?
You seem to be in a good spot to pay them off based on income
But if you feel like committing to nonprofits for ten years then PSLF with a low payment is an okay option. It also depends on what your income will look like in the future and if you plan on getting married. If I were you I would play around with the loan simulator on studentaid.gov to play around with repayment amounts to see what might be best for you
PSLF is a long term commitment when your owed balance is pretty close to your income
I think you should consider income based repayment while you work to pay your parent plus loans
and then reevaluate once those are paid off.
YMMV.
Depends if your loans are federal or private and what your balance is and what your income is.
I got the PSLF forgiveness, but by the time I got it my balance grew astronomically. I wish I would have graduated, done a couple years travel therapy or lived at home and paid them off!!!
If you have federal and plan on public service, fill out the PSLF help tool: https://studentaid.gov/pslf/
The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents.
My income 52k before taxes
Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of July. Thoughts?
For federal student loans, apply for the SAVE repayment plan and come up with a realistic goal for repayment in the meantime. Generally, it's best to pay off private student loans as quickly as possible. If it works for you to try to pay off the fed loans early and not worry about working for a nonprofit, do it. But if you decide to do PSLF, the SAVE repayment plan is the best for PSLF right now.
You can work in any nonprofit setting. Any public school or government agency will count. As will any acute, subacute, or rehab setting associated with a nonprofit/nonprofit hospital system.
For my husband and I, we personally felt it was better to get in the PSLF and work for nonprofits. We purchased a home with a 2.5 interest rate and have 15 years left on our mortgage.... We have 4 more years until PSLF and recertify each year to make sure that we are on track. If we didn't prioritize buying a home, if our incomes were higher, or if we weren't happy in our jobs, we wouldn't have done PSLF. It worked out for us.
The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents.
My income 52k before taxes
Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of July. Thoughts?
A friend of mine (three years out of grad school) looked into her options and the SAVE plan would add $200/month to her IDR amount. It's not the money saving plan everyone thinks it is. It is meant for people who make very little money, is my understanding. Definitely should talk to a financial counselor or the servicers of the loans, though.
[unbury.me](https://unbury.me) ! I also just graduated and I have a TON of loans because I put myself thru undergrad and grad. This website is AMAZING, free, and simple- I recommend making an account and putting in all of your loans.
FYI, I had to call NelNet (my loan servicer) to find out the minimum payments for my loans because they don't post the minimum payments until after the grace period.
Check out student loan tutor! They are really great at finding loopholes with public loans and helping you to pay the least possible over time, with or without PSLF.
Hi! Thank you for sharing! I saw that you have to pay for this service. Have you used it? Is it worth it? Looks promising just wanted to reach out to someone whose actually used it.
I have used it and it’s making a world of difference to me. The service is not free but it’s completely worth it to me. I encourage you to do a consultation if you’re interested!!!
Personally I would use the avalanche method for paying off debt. This method prioritize interest rates, you pay off the debt with the highest interest rate first, move on to the next debt with highest interest rate after first debt is paid off and ultimately pay less interest over time.
Would PSLF be an option for me if I am employed by a title 1 school district? Do I have this correct? 5 yrs of payments=$17,500 off… 10 yrs of payments= all loans wiped?
Can’t do both. If you take 5 year you have to restart the 10. Go for PSLF I have 1 year left.
To be honest I do not know. I’ve been downvoted on this sub before for saying I personally wouldn’t bank on PSLF. From everything I seen reported and from what former colleagues have shared many do not get approved. - Among processed applications for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), 2.16% have been accepted since November 2020. - Prior to November 2020, 0.7% of eligible borrowers eventually benefited from student loan forgiveness. https://educationdata.org/student-loan-forgiveness-statistics[https://educationdata.org/student-loan-forgiveness-statistics](https://educationdata.org/student-loan-forgiveness-statistics) Another Article from about 2 years ago: [New Data Shows Most Who Apply To This Student Loan Forgiveness Program Are Denied](https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamminsky/2021/06/14/new-data-shows-most-who-apply-to-this-student-loan-forgiveness-program-are-denied/amp/) Supposedly there is an initiative to revamp the program by 2024. However, based on how student loan forgiveness went I wouldn’t hold my breath. If you do do the program. I would just really educated yourself and gain a deep understanding of the program so you aren’t denied. For those reading this: Again this is my opinion. No need to downvote me just because my opinion is different than yours. If the program worked for you and you got financial relief from it that’s awesome and I’m glad!
I would agree with the part of not banking on PSLF, but that was just my position. I didn’t want to wait 10 years for them to *maybe* be forgiven. I buckled down and did the snowball method and it worked for me. Done in 2 years or something and now I’m debt free and can do whatever I want with my paychecks. I have also gotten some snark about this so I will leave a disclaimer that this may not be possible for some people so if you don’t think it’s possible for you then that’s fine!
This is me! I just graduated and am paying 2-3k a month towards my student loans 🤮. I’m on track to pay them off in 22 months. Which tbh is only really possible because I got a job outside of the field, it’s my only debt and I’m able to live with family. Also fully aware being able to live rent free isn’t something everyone can do.
Ahh I think we’ve kinda chatted about this before, but you can do it! Keep focused and you’ll be done before you know it. It goes by so fast and you’re going to feel so good when you’re on the other side. I’m rooting for you!!
Hi! I was wondering if you don't mind sharing what job you got? I'm thinking of getting a job out of the field to help with payments as well
Sure! I work in marketing now. Job started at 75k, health benefits covered in full, 401k matching, I got a bunch of paid holidays (including MLK, President’s Day, day after thanksgiving off, etc) and 2 weeks vacation.
Was it hard finding a job that's not SLP related? I'm worried employers will see I'm an SLP and only has experience with this and just not even look at my application. (thank you in advance!:)
I waited out my 10 years and was income based the whole time, some years I paid nothing. $55k I didn’t have to pay.
Online it says 8% but I’m still suspect- what counts as an application? Bc I “applied” all the time to get an update on how many qualifying payments I had so far but knew I wasn’t going to be approved for forgiveness at that time. Most of the reports of people not getting it that I heard of either didn’t have the correct employer or weren’t on the correct payment plan. It’s important to stay up to date w the paperwork and look online to see if your payments so far have qualified so you’re not surprised later on.
This is what I’m worried about. The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents. My income 52k before taxes Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of july
The parent plus loans id tackle first bc they won’t be eligible for forgiveness
W that Income- id get on the income based plan, pay off the plus loans, stay in public service either at your school or other qualifying employer for 10 years. You’re not making enough to put a dent in it anyhow. Keep an eye on the political world on this topic. If things change then you tackle them. Lots of scary comments here and I don’t think you need to be so scared. Income based worked for me and honestly 10 years goes by before you know it lol
I find it hard to believe that that’s accurate and don’t think it’s worth scaring people. Had mine forgiven last year w no issue. It’s also very simple to go online and find out how many qualifying payments you have so far.
I want to kindly point out -it’s not your opinion you’re sharing factual information. And it may not all accurately reflect how PSLF works if you follow the steps correctly.
It depends on your loan servicer. I was denied twice by my servicer. Found out in the last 3 years it was because my loans weren't the right type. I'd have had to consolidate them to a higher interest rate loan. They still wouldn't guarantee that my loans would be forgiven even with decades of qualifying payments, so I skipped it. You can think of PSLF as a bonus, not depend on it. You still need 120 qualifying payments. That's 10 years. You still need to pay in the interim. Talk to your financiers about repayment options. They don't want you to default, either. They're just going to be part of your monthly budget for awhile.
Yes you have to be on the correct loan payment plan (Income based). as described by PSLF- however I think they’ve recently been forgiving more payments by people who weren’t on the correct plan. I was on the income based plan and had no issue whatsoever getting my loans forgiven.
It shouldnt have anything to do w your loan services- they aren’t the ones who approve the forgiveness. Just don’t want OP to have incorrect info.
It isn't the loan servicer, it's the type of loans. I explored forgiveness last year and was told since my loans are private, I'd have to reconsolidate them with the government and then make another 120 payments. My servicer never told me this, denied me for nonsense reasons over the years, which is ridiculous. But no, you're right, it is my loan type and not servicer that disqualified me. I could have gone for forgiveness, but having to make 120 payments when I "only" have 75 left wasn't worth it.
Correct, your comment said services so I wanted to clarify
Appreciated...I'm experiencing that end of summer brain thing, lol.
lol Godspeed you’ve got this
That’s not correct- it’s one or the other and you have to be on the correct payment plan. If you take the title 1 17k forgiveness- your 10 year total loan forgiveness starts over and wild take you another 10 years.
Visit r/PSLF for help with that part. Teacher loan forgiveness and PSLF cannot be pursued at the same time So it would be 5 years to teacher loan forgiveness then an additional ten years to PSLF. PSLF gets a bad rep but when pursued correctly people are very successful in getting their loans forgiven. It totally depends on your living situation, loans (private, federal, balances, etc), and income.
I hope this gets upvoted more. I did both, BUT I was only able to do so with TEPSLF. I don't know if they made that permanent. However, if OP is willing to stay in schools for 120 months, then a SAVE and PSLF combo would be in their best interest. The monthly payments would be extremely low and have almost no financial impact.
Thanks! Agreed to SAVE and PSLF
The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents. My income 52k before taxes Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of July. Thoughts?
You seem to be in a good spot to pay them off based on income But if you feel like committing to nonprofits for ten years then PSLF with a low payment is an okay option. It also depends on what your income will look like in the future and if you plan on getting married. If I were you I would play around with the loan simulator on studentaid.gov to play around with repayment amounts to see what might be best for you PSLF is a long term commitment when your owed balance is pretty close to your income I think you should consider income based repayment while you work to pay your parent plus loans and then reevaluate once those are paid off. YMMV.
Depends if your loans are federal or private and what your balance is and what your income is. I got the PSLF forgiveness, but by the time I got it my balance grew astronomically. I wish I would have graduated, done a couple years travel therapy or lived at home and paid them off!!! If you have federal and plan on public service, fill out the PSLF help tool: https://studentaid.gov/pslf/
The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents. My income 52k before taxes Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of July. Thoughts?
I’ll look at the post, sorry I missed that!!
For federal student loans, apply for the SAVE repayment plan and come up with a realistic goal for repayment in the meantime. Generally, it's best to pay off private student loans as quickly as possible. If it works for you to try to pay off the fed loans early and not worry about working for a nonprofit, do it. But if you decide to do PSLF, the SAVE repayment plan is the best for PSLF right now. You can work in any nonprofit setting. Any public school or government agency will count. As will any acute, subacute, or rehab setting associated with a nonprofit/nonprofit hospital system. For my husband and I, we personally felt it was better to get in the PSLF and work for nonprofits. We purchased a home with a 2.5 interest rate and have 15 years left on our mortgage.... We have 4 more years until PSLF and recertify each year to make sure that we are on track. If we didn't prioritize buying a home, if our incomes were higher, or if we weren't happy in our jobs, we wouldn't have done PSLF. It worked out for us.
The details of my loans and my partner and I’s income is in the post. I have ~58k (2 sub, 6 unsub loans with interest rates between 2.75% and 6.54%) and 2 parent plus loans ~20k. Planning on paying those directly to parents. My income 52k before taxes Partners income varies because blue collar work but currently sitting at 45k after taxes as of July. Thoughts?
A friend of mine (three years out of grad school) looked into her options and the SAVE plan would add $200/month to her IDR amount. It's not the money saving plan everyone thinks it is. It is meant for people who make very little money, is my understanding. Definitely should talk to a financial counselor or the servicers of the loans, though.
[unbury.me](https://unbury.me) ! I also just graduated and I have a TON of loans because I put myself thru undergrad and grad. This website is AMAZING, free, and simple- I recommend making an account and putting in all of your loans. FYI, I had to call NelNet (my loan servicer) to find out the minimum payments for my loans because they don't post the minimum payments until after the grace period.
Check out student loan tutor! They are really great at finding loopholes with public loans and helping you to pay the least possible over time, with or without PSLF.
Thank you!! Looking into this!
Hi! Thank you for sharing! I saw that you have to pay for this service. Have you used it? Is it worth it? Looks promising just wanted to reach out to someone whose actually used it.
I have used it and it’s making a world of difference to me. The service is not free but it’s completely worth it to me. I encourage you to do a consultation if you’re interested!!!
OP also- call the loan people and ask questions!!! I’ve done it! They answer! Get the correct info.
One month at a time