The Money Coach
  • About
    • Meet Lynnette
    • Media Kit
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Submit an Article
  • Books
  • Categories
  • Coaching
  • Book Lynnette
  • Money Coach University™
No Result
View All Result
The Money Coach
  • About
    • Meet Lynnette
    • Media Kit
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Submit an Article
No Result
View All Result
The Money Coach
No Result
View All Result

How Can I Get a Lower Interest Rate on my Husband’s Student Loans?

Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach
in Student Loans
Reading Time: 3 mins read
interest rates
8
SHARES
132
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn

Q: “I’m going crazy trying to pay my husband’s student loans off. He got three loans in the 1980s at eight percent. He has done several deferments and has acquired thousands in interest. I was behind several times, but I have everything current now. I consolidated the three loans and want to get a lower interest rate. I have tried everything. The AES told me that, because my husband got these loans in the ’80s, that he can never get a lower interest rate. What can we do? How can we get a lower interest rate on student loans?

A: First of all, I’m a little concerned that you’ve taken on, it seems, almost full and exclusive responsibilities for paying off your husband’s student loans. Not that a wife shouldn’t, obviously, be financially supportive of her mate. I always encourage that. But the level of ownership that you seem to have taken in this issue suggests that your husband has perhaps abdicated some of that responsibility to you, or for whatever reason, you’ve taken it on.

You said, “I’m going crazy trying to pay my husband’s loans. I was behind. I have everything current, I consolidated. I have tried everything.” All of that, to me, indicates that your husband isn’t very active in this process. And I frankly think he should be, considering he’s the one who got the loans.

Having said all that, let me get to the heart of the issue here, which is that you want to get a lower rate. Now, you didn’t indicate whether or not your husband’s loans were federal student loans or private loans, which definitely makes a difference. I’m assuming, however, that he probably got federal loans. I don’t know this to be the case but, again, I’m just making the assumption.

If you want to get a lower rate on those federal student loans, consolidation is one way in which you can do that. However, you’ve indicated that you’ve already taken that step. You’ve already consolidated. If you consolidate again, generally speaking, that’s not a possible process. However, it is possible to consolidate again if you actually acquire a new loan.

I know this seems outrageous. However, sometimes people do, for whatever reason, want to go back to school to take another class, to finish up a degree they hadn’t finished up, to perhaps get an advanced degree, et cetera. So if it’s the case that perhaps your husband is looking to go to school for whatever reason, and he took out another loan, that loan could be rolled into, or re-consolidated again, and you could get a lower interest rate that way.

The representative who told you that, simply because he got these loans in the 1980s, he can never get a lower rate, that’s actually not true. Again, you haven’t told me what types of loans these were. So I’m not at liberty to comment on specifics about whether or not these were Stafford loans, for example, which are some of the more common federal loans that are given to people. Some Stafford loans are subsidized loans, meaning that the government pays the interest on the student loans while the person is in school. Unsubsidized loans are those in which the government isn’t underwriting any portion of it.

The fact that your husband has also already received multiple deferments, you need to be aware that that is also costing you money. You’ve indicated, of course, that those loans have accrued thousands of dollars in interest. Other mechanisms that may be available to you include forbearance, in addition to deferment options. You may be able to get a hardship deferment of sorts from your lender. The best strategy, though, is to contact your lender or your loan servicer, and explain to them in detail your financial situation.

I don’t know the particulars of your and your husband’s income, nor do I know, of course, your expenses. But some lenders and loan servicers will allow you to have hardship forbearances, or hardship deferments, if you’re particularly cash-strapped and can’t pay those student loans. Needless to say, this is something he’s been grappling with for, it sounds like 20 to 25-plus years, so you definitely want to see about knocking out those student loans as quickly as possible.

Finally, you should know that, with federal student loans, there are four different types of loan repayment programs that are available to you. There’s the standard loan repayment program, the income contingent repayment program, the extended loan repayment program is another, and the graduated repayment program is the fourth.

I would encourage you to check out my web site, the blog AskTheMoneyCoach.com, and do a keyword search for student loans. And then you’ll see a wealth of additional information and articles that I’ve written on this topic, including some tips about how to get the federal government to pay off up to $60,000 worth of your federal student loans. That’s through the federal student loan repayment program.

Tags: PLUS LoanStafford Loan
Previous Post

Should I Take a Loan From My 403(b) Savings Plan?

Next Post

When to file for bankruptcy protection

Related Posts

Adult Student Loans

Simple Reasons To Pay Your Adult Child’s Student Loans

by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

If you’re considering paying your adult child’s student loans here are 10 scenarios to consider saying YES, NO or MAYBE to repaying that college debt. 

Question About For-Profit Colleges and Student Loan Forgiveness

by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

After I posted 15 answers to Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan,  I received a lot of questions on my social media accounts about student loan forgiveness. I received the following question about the plan's impact on certain for-profit colleges.

Student Loan Forgiveness

Student Loan Forgiveness: The Biden Plan Explained

by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

Here's what is known so far about the new student loan cancellation program, how you can get student loan forgiveness, the surprising ways that past and future generations of college students will benefit, and what’s NOT included in the Biden plan.

CARES Act: Student Loan Relief

Get Your Employer to Pay $5,250 of Your Student Loans in 2020: FAQs About the CARES Act

by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

I recently posted a student loan tip on social media that went crazy viral! It racked up tons of traditional media coverage, plus many thousands of likes and shares (not to mention comments and questions!) across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram -- far more than any other single post I've shared....

COVID-19 Private Student Loans

COVID-19: Getting Relief From Your Private Student Loans – VIDEO

by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

In this video Lynnette shares good news for people who need help paying their private student loans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Economic Relief Bill

COVID 19: A Good News Surprise in the Coronavirus Economic Relief Bill – VIDEO

by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

In this video Lynnette dives deep into the CARES Act and shares a pleasant surprise in the economic relief bill.

student loan relief covid-19

Are You Eligible for Student Loan Relief Under The CARES Act?

by Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

The CARES Act, which includes a provision that decreases student loan interest to zero-percent, and allows individuals to suspend payments without penalty until September 30, 2020. 

Load More

Popular Posts

  • Car repair

    What to Do If You Can’t Afford a Car Repair Bill

    1388 shares
    Share 555 Tweet 347
  • What to Do if Your Spouse Stole Money From You

    1177 shares
    Share 471 Tweet 294
  • What to Do If You Can’t Afford to Leave Your Spouse

    1114 shares
    Share 446 Tweet 279
  • Here’s Why I Pay My Kids For Good Grades (And Maybe You Should Too)

    1020 shares
    Share 408 Tweet 255
  • What Do All Those Strange Codes In My Credit Report Mean?

    821 shares
    Share 328 Tweet 205
  • Do This Now If Your Wages Were Not Reported

    754 shares
    Share 301 Tweet 188
  • How to Find Out if a Debt Collector is Licensed to Collect Your Debt

    734 shares
    Share 294 Tweet 184

All information on this blog is for educational purposes only. Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach, is not a certified financial planner, registered investment adviser, or attorney. If you need specialty financial, investment or legal advice, please consult the appropriate professional. Advertising Disclosure: This site may accept advertising, affiliate payments or other forms of compensation from companies mentioned in articles. This compensation may impact how and where products and companies appear on this site. AskTheMoneyCoach™ and Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach® are trademarks of TheMoneyCoach.net, LLC.

©2009-2023 TheMoneyCoach.net, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

RSS / Sitemap /Submit an Article / Privacy Policy / LynnetteKhalfaniCox.com

No Result
View All Result
  • Books
  • Categories
  • Contact Lynnette
  • Get Coaching
  • Book Lynnette
  • Money Coach University™
  • Home
  • Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Submit an Article

©2009-2021 TheMoneyCoach.net, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist