“Dear Steve,
In 2006 I made a loan with Sallie Mae to go to Kartherine Gibbs School in Norristown, PA. Around April 2007 my father got very ill and I had to discontinue with my education to help my father.
My father’s wish was to die in his native land, so we packed up and moved to Puerto Rico. Once I got situated on the island, I decided to call the Gibbs School to transfer over my credits to continue my education. But there was no response!!
I called a fellow classmate of mines who told me the school was closed down without letting anyone know. So, I pushed the situation to the side and forgot about the ordeal. About 6 months later I began receiving bills that I had to pay for the loan, but I couldn’t!
I wasn’t working due to the fact my father had got worst. In 2010, my aunt had decided to move to Puerto Rico and thank goodness she began helping me with my father, so I began to work. Once I began working I found out I was pregnant with my baby boy.
I decided to call the collection agency which at the time was NCO financial and I came to an agreement with them, about a month later I received a phone call from this other agency saying I had to pay them $10,000. At that moment I called NCO and asked them what was going on, they were confused as well, so NCO sent me a very fat envolope with all my information to show me that they were ligit with everything so I kept paying them.
Around September 2011, I was let go from my job due to a new law passed in Puerto Rico (Ley 7). I had my son and my ill father with no job. I spoke to the personnel in NCO which told me about the William D. Ford program and so I accepted it because they told me I would be paying approximately $5 a week.
At this time my father passed away and I had to cover the funeral expenses all by myself. Once my father died, my child’s father had gotten very abusive with me and I had to run. Once the William D. Ford starting sending me the bill s they wanted $560!!!!!! I am a single mother with no work, and the chances to find a job in Puerto Rico is 1-700. I’m raising my child by myself, no help from his father what-so-ever, and the money I receive from cash assistance($60) I use it towards my child and the house.
So, there is nothing left to even try and pay the loan. I’ve been wanting to go back to school for my child’s sake, to receive an education and actually find a job so I can be able to overcome everything but no school wants me due to the default. What can I do to pay this off or get this off my record? And why do I receive different bills from different collection agency if I’m with William D. Ford? Please help me, because I’m really confused with all these bills.
I’m a single mother with no job, how can I pay this student loan??
Christina”
Dear Christina,
I’m so sorry to hear about the loss of your father and the struggles you’ve been facing.
However I may have a bit of good news for you. I would suggest you look into the Income Contingent Repayment program in conjunction with your William D. Ford loan. Based on your situation this should give you just about a $0 payment.
Use the links below.
Please post your responses and follow-up messages to me on this in the comments section below.
You are not alone. I'm here to help. There is no need to suffer in silence. We can get through this. Tomorrow can be better than today. Don't give up.
Do you have a question you'd like to ask me for free? Go ahead and click here.
- Plastic Pandemic: US Credit Card Debt Surges Nearly 20% in Q1 2021! - May 12, 2023
- The IRS Resumes Collections Notices: What You Need to Know Before It’s Too Late - May 12, 2023
- How Can I Deal With Payday Loan Debt? - May 12, 2023