Can I Just Pay Sallie Mae What I Can Afford To?

“Dear Steve,

I will not lament about Sallie Mae; I think we all know how crooked they are. My question is: I owe around 58k and have recently applied for Income Repayment Sensitivity. They have responded with letting me know my payments will be just under 15% of my disposable income. This is too high of a payment.

My main concern is not defaulting and I am wondering what options I have.

Will they negotitate the payment?

If I pay what I feel like I can afford each month, will they still default me?

If I did default, is this automatic wage garnishment?

Will my husband ever become tangled up with this? (I do not want this to negatively affect his financial affairs)

Thank you for any advice,

I am now going to go take some aspirin and hope to hear some sound advice!

Sincerely,

Kate”

Dear Kate,

I hope you took the aspirin.

My main concern is not defaulting and I am wondering what options I have.

Since it is a private student loan the options are limited to what they agree to provide.

Will they negotitate the payment?

Doubtful but it never hurts to press them.

If I pay what I feel like I can afford each month, will they still default me?

You bet they will.

If I did default, is this automatic wage garnishment?

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Most likely. It’s an easy way for them to collect.

Will my husband ever become tangled up with this? (I do not want this to negatively affect his financial affairs)

If he did not sign the loan or guarantee the loan then no.

If you have other debt what you may have to consider is filing bankruptcy to clear the decks of the other debt and leave room to make the student loan payments.

I would urge you to discuss this with a local bankruptcy attorney. You can click here to find a local bankruptcy attorney.

Please post your responses and follow-up messages to me on this in the comments section below.

Sincerly,

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.