By: Mevish Jaffer
Once you have graduated from college and settled into a new job, the time comes for you to start repaying all those student loans you took out in order to get to where you are. However, you may find yourself in a situation where you haven’t even found employment yet. Although student loans don’t need to be paid back until a period of 6 months after graduation, the reality of it is that it may take you that long, if not longer to find employment in the first place. Unfortunately, you may not be having such an easy time, even if you do have a job. As the task of repaying your student loans begin to take a toll on you, keep in mind that, depending on your financial situation, student loan forbearance options are available and can help you meet your repayment schedules.
Student Loan Lenders Grant Forbearance
The option of student loan forbearance is granted by your student loan lender and is contingent upon a few factors that must be deemed justifiable. Should you qualify for student loan forbearance, you will be able to temporarily defer student loan payments. Additionally, student loan forbearance may also assist you to renegotiate extended repayment schedules and make reduced loan payments possible.
Types of Student Loan Forbearance Options
- Discretionary
- Mandatory
- Administrative
- Mandatory Administrative
Discretionary forbearance would apply to you in times of financial hardship. Because many people go through a period of financial lows in some point during their life, this type of student loan forbearance is the most common. You may be wandering exactly what types of financial situations would qualify you for discretionary forbearance. The following would make you eligible; being enrolled in school for less than half-time, having become unemployed, but in this event you must have passed the allotted deferment time limit, suffering from poor health conditions or experiencing sudden life altering circumstances which are affecting your income. In the event your financial status allows, discretionary forbearance may be granted to reduce your student loan payments. This allows you to continue making minimal payments on your student loans, instead of fully deferring them and serves to benefit you in the long-run.
Mandatory forbearance would apply to you under extremely specific conditions that would qualify you. These include things such as participation in an internship or residency program, national service positions with the chance to be awarded by the National and Community Service Act of 1993, as well as other mitigating factors as determined by programs such as Teacher Loan Forgiveness, Child Care Loan Forgiveness, and other student loan repayment programs. Administrative and mandatory administrative student loan forbearance options are not as common and are usually applied by the lender under explicit circumstances only.
Student Loan Debt Relief
There is absolutely no denying that making it on your own after graduation is a difficult task, especially with student loans hanging over your head. However, there is no need to admit defeat so quickly if you keep your options open. If you know you have a lot of debt to pay off in the form of student loans after graduation, don’t go at it alone. For example, you can keep your living expenses to a minimum by moving in with a roommate after graduation and if you’re having trouble finding full time employment, you can always consider part time work to compensate in the mean time. Finally, don’t forget your student loan forbearance options. Although it’s a temporary solution, it can help you rise above periods of financial difficulty.
