Struggling With Student Loans

Student loans were one thing I never had to worry about. My goal was not to borrow money for my education. I saved money for tuition, worked a part-time job and was allowed to live at home until I no longer went to school or got married. But thousands of people do borrow for their education and then have to pay back their loans for years. I was reading my weekly copy of dollar stretcher this morning and saw this article about “Struggling with Student Loans”. I couldn’t help but read it. It reminded me of a friend of mine who couldn’t even buy a house until all his loans were paid off. He was married and already had children to support. He had used these loans to get through law school. I don’t know how much he owed but it was a considerable amount. It took him years to pay off the loans and get enough credit to buy his first house. Here is the opening paragraph of the article:

"I am a middle-age single mom who has gotten herself into a mess with student loans. I took out loans to support my children and myself while I was in school. I was the first person ever on either side of my family to finish high school and go to college. I thought I was doing the right thing. Now I am stuck with a debt that I will never be able to pay off in the next 30 years. I am default. I have gotten deferments before, but the interest just keeps making the amount of my loan go up. The amount of my loans is over three times more than I make in a year. I will never be able to buy a house for myself. Does anyone have any suggestion, besides prayer or moving to another planet? " H.

There were some excellent responses from various readers. I couldn’t paraphrase it any better. Go take a look for yourself if you need help with student loans.
http://www.stretcher.com/stories/04/04jun21a.cfm