Question:
Dear Steve,
I am a mother of 3 girls. They do have student loan debt but are in the process of setting up payments for that debt. My oldest daughter has just gotten married to a guy and he has around 200,000 in student loan debt through parent plus loans and about 20,000 in debt from his own student loan debt.
My question is the payment for the parent plus loans is around $1,500 per month and they are struggling to afford that payment. I know they cannot consolidate into their names, but is it worth trying to get their payments lowered? Do they have any options? Does consolidation of the loans help in any way?
Are there any companies that you recommend for consolidation? They are currently with FedLoan.
I really appreciate your email and wealth of information you have provided to others and I thank you in advance for your help to me.
Lisa
Answer:
Dear Lisa,
I don’t know how old your son-in-law is and it’s not safe for me to assume this $200,000 in Parent Plus loans was for his education or he took this out for his children’s education.
If you can update me in the comments below I can guide you in the right direction.
And yes, the best company to consolidate federal student loans with is the Department of Education. They don’t charge to do it and you still retain your repayment flexibility.
