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Can I start paying NOW toward forgiveness?
Mrs. Jarvis,
Thanks so much for taking time to come to TU to speak with us today. Your presentation was the highlight of the day.
I am currently a full-time firefighter in TU law school part-time. Since I have already accrued some debt, and am already employed in the public sector, can I begin paying payments that qualify toward debt relief before I graduate (i.e. now)?
Much thanks.
TU! Thanks for having me. BTW, just had dinner here in downtown Tulsa at Elote, YUM!
You ought to be able to get an undergraduate Stafford loan that has exhausted its grace period out of in-school deferment, choose IBR, and start making payments. I recommend you call and write your loan servicer and ask to end the post-grace, in-school deferment. Same goes for your Grad PLUS loans since they enter repayment upon full disbursement. Since these loans are automatically placed into an in-school deferment, your request will not by typical and will probably take a bit of work on your part to communicate what you need.
If you went straight from undergrad to graduate school, you might still have some eligibility for a six-month grace period. You can’t “enter repayment” until the end of grace, so that could be a potential road block.
The Stafford loans you are borrowing now cannot enter repayment until after the grace period is exhausted. But bear in mind that if you consolidate your loans, the grace period will end upon consolidation. For that reason, if you’re in full-time service, you might want to consolidate as soon as you are out of school. Unfortunately, you can’t consolidate while you’re in school.
Complicated enough for ya?
If you get a chance, I’d appreciate it if you’d Like Me on Facebook.
And thank you for serving as a fire fighter. I’ve been thinking a lot about the sacrifices fire fighters make, especially now during the 10th anniversary of the World Trade Center attack. Thank you and be safe.
Thanks, Heather for the fast reply. That’s exactly what I needed to know. Liked you on Facebook. Also, thanks for your well-wishes.