Question:

Dear Steve,

I am the co-signer on my son’s student loans. He has struggled since college graduation and falls behind all the time. I was able to keep him current for a while.

My husband lost his job in August, 2014. He has not worked since. We have been denied disability benefits from our insurance. Needless to say we are struggling.

I received a letter saying one of the loans is now in collection by a law office in OH representing National Collegiate Student Loan Trust. We didn’t have a loan with them. They want the full balance in two weeks $58,670.85. I don’t have anything close that that kind of money.

Can they do that if I was ever notified he fell behind again?

Help! Should I try and refinance my home? That probably isn’t even an option since these loans have dinged my credit bargain and again.

Katie

Answer:

Dear Katie,

I’m so sorry to hear about your struggles. It certainly has not been an easy time for you at all.

As the cosigner on the private student loans there is no obligation I am aware of to inform you about the status of the loans. That would fall to the actual borrower, your son. You are not a party to the loan, just the folks that guaranteed it in case he failed to pay.

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You do have some options now that the loan is in default. But because of the default don’t be surprised if the balance has now grown due to additional legal fees and penalties.

One option would be to talk to the lender of the loan or the law office to bring the loan current again and get back on a payment schedule.

But another option might be to talk to a student loan attorney in your state who might be able to represent you. One place to look for such an attorney is here.

There are some significant issues regarding National Collegiate Student Loan Trust loans. You can read past stories here.

The big issue might be the entity suing you may not be able to prove they actually own the debt. But even if they can, these suits are often the starting point to reducing the amount owed and negotiating a settlement. Just look at the results obtained by this attorney.

Before you rush to try to borrow against the home I would strongly suggest you get legal representation to assist you with this and try, if possible, to reduce the panic level so you can think clearly and take informed action, not reaction.



Big Hug!

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