After a quick search of financial sites, it seems that the two main themes of student loan repayment are planning and consolidation.
Several of the student loan sites we visited, such as Access Group, offered information on managing debt, estimating income after college, and the importance of maintaining good credit.
At the Wyoming Student Loan Corporation, you'll find answers to common post-loan questions such as "What if I'm having trouble making payments?" They also offer information on alternate payback plans, such as graduated repayment, where your monthly payment goes up as you get older (and hopefully have a greater earning potential).
Another nice resource for student lenders is the Student Loan Marketing Association, or Sallie Mae. They provide information on interest rates, managing student loans, electronic payments, and "highly indebted" borrowers.
The Sallie Mae site also touts their "SmartLoan" program, which helps graduates consolidate all their separate loans into one refinanced loan, thus reducing their monthly payment. Just remember, this doesn't lower the total amount you'll need to pay. In fact, it most likely raises it slightly, it simply makes your debts more manageable over the long haul.
Finally, if you're on an unavoidable collision course with dire straits, visit the government's Guide to Defaulted Student Loans for some sober talk on your financial options.
Is there any possibility you will work in any type of public-service job (for any government agency, school, nonprofit, etc.)? If so, consolidate your federal loans directly with the federal government first. Those are the only loans that qualify for public-service forgiveness.
Have you been laid off or had a pay cut? Keep good records. The government plans to base the new loan payments on the income debtors report on their previous year's tax filings. Those who want their payments to be based on current, lower incomes will have to provide documentation. Those who get a new job or a raise should plan on higher payments the following year, as debtors have to reapply for IBR, and document their recent income, every year.
Have you been working in a public-service job and been making your payments for the last year or two? Good news: You might qualify for retroactive credit towards loan forgiveness. Anyone who has worked in a public-service job and been making regular, on-time payments since Oct. 1, 2007, can have those payments counted toward the 120 (or 10 years' worth of) on-time payments that are required for the remainder of the loan to be forgiven under the government's public-service cancellation offer.
Confused by similar-sounding jargon? Watch out. There are several sound-alike programs, including "Income Contingent Repayment" and "Income Sensitive Repayment." Remember: the federal government's Income BASED Repayment is generally considered to be the best deal.
Hoping for more relief? Alas, the new IBR applies only to federal student loans. So, parents who borrowed to pay for their kids' tuition won't get any help from the new program. And students who took private, signature, or alternative loans from companies like Sallie Mae won't be helped by the new program. The federal government and private lenders generally do offer other payment plans to help strapped borrowers, however. So, if you're having trouble making your payments, it pays to call them and ask for help.
