Student Loan Debt Lawyer Nashville, TN

Long, Burnett, and Johnson, PLLC

A college education can get you ahead in this world, but the student loan debt you build up in the process ends up holding you back. These days, college is EXPENSIVE. The price of college has soared in recent years, causing students to have higher levels of student loan debt. You may anticipate that you’ll be able to pay back your debt once you get a good job with that fancy new degree, but many students are finding it increasingly hard to get a job that pays enough right out of college or trade school. Is that what happened to you?

Student loans are overly complex.  From the types of loans, Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized, FFEL, Plus Loans to the ways of repayment, Standard, Extended, Income Contingent Repayment to various means of forgiveness, Total and Permanent Disability, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and Income Contingent Payment forgiveness.  It seems you need a separate college degree just to understand the loans you took out to get your college degree.  The skilled attorneys at Long, Burnett, and Johnson know student loans and the options for dealing with them.

What can be done about your current debt situation? Instead of defaulting on your debt, which can cause extra problems for you, talk to a Nashville student loan debt lawyer about options available, including bankruptcy.

 

Don’t Default On Your Loans

Whatever you do, don’t end up defaulting on your student loan debt. It might seem like the easiest or best solution at the time to reduce the burden on you, but it’s not. The rate of default on these loans has skyrocketed right along with the student loan debt levels. But this course of action can cause you to lose your tax refunds, lose your professional licenses and even have your wages suddenly seized. As you can see, that’s not the way to go. But you can get help with student loan debt, so don’t despair. Contact us at Long, Burnett and Johnson to talk to a Nashville bankruptcy lawyer about student loan debt assistance.

What if you are already in default?  There are several ways including a rehabilitation payment plan and loan consolidation that can cure a default.  Curing default will stop wage garnishments, tax intercepts, and put you back in positive standing with your student loans.

 

What Student Loan Debt Help Is Available through Bankruptcy?

Maybe you’ve heard that you can’t turn to bankruptcy to eliminate student loan debt. But filing bankruptcy will STOP collection efforts on your student loans, allowing you the chance you need to pay at the pace you can afford. This relief can last for up to five years, which gives you the ability to focus on your career and pay back the debt slowly. Many students find that they don’t actually need to get rid of student loan debt, but that the opportunity to pay the loans back at an affordable pace and a reasonable schedule is enough to get back on track.

Perhaps you feel this result wouldn’t help you much, and you would need complete student loan forgiveness to be able to deal with your debt. While you can’t count on it, there is also an undue hardship exception that exists, which can forgive student loan debt for Nashville citizens who are able to show the court that paying the loans would be an undue hardship on them. So whether the court agrees to discharge the debt or takes the pressure off to pay so quickly, bankruptcy can help the situation you’re in.

In addition, maybe you’re having trouble paying your student loans back because you are haunted by other debt, such as credit card debt. Filing bankruptcy can help you get other types of debt under control, so you can focus more of your budget on paying back your student loans. Talking to a student loan debt attorney can help you see how bankruptcy would help your specific situation.

What Student Loan Debt Help Is Available outside Bankruptcy?

There are several programs available through the Department of Education to help borrowers address student loan debt.  These can include extended repayment plans, pay as you earn plans, income based repayment plans, and several forgiveness plans.

In an extended repayment plan, the amount of monthly payments is reduced and you are given longer than the standard 10 years to repay your debt.

In a pay as you earn plan, the monthly payment starts small and increases each year as your earnings increase.

In an income based repayment plan, the amount of your monthly payment is determined by your ability to pay based on your income and living expenses and can be as low as $0.00.

There are several forgiveness plans offered by the government.  In a total and permanent disability forgiveness, the balance owed is wiped out if you have become totally and permanently disabled.  If you have certain types of loans, enter an income based repayment plan, and work for a government or not for profit, you may be able to have low monthly payments and have the remaining balance owed forgiven after 10 years.  if you are in an income based repayment plan, with payments that could be as low as $0, and you this for 20 to 25 years, depending on type of loan and plan, the balance is forgiven.

Rely on Long, Burnett, and Johnson, PLLC

At our laid-back yet professional law office, we help clients on a daily basis who are facing the burdens of debt. We have helped many people gain student loan debt relief and assistance with other types of debt, and we’re here to give you the guidance you need. Call us to arrange a FREE, no-stress consultation with a bankruptcy attorney.