what to do if you can't afford to pay student loans
no shame for procrastinating here ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
5-minute slow read. There is also a recording of this newsletter above for accessibility. Please let me know if you have any other access needs.
Hello to the 558 hotties who subscribe to this newsletter!
Special shout-out to my old boss, Libby Kane, for pledging $150. Thank you so much!
Federal student loan payments resume on Saturday, October 1, and this is the one corner of the internet where you won’t get shamed for procrastinating on your student loans 🤑
When I posted this graphic on Instagram, many of you said you’ve been avoiding tackling student loans just out of sheer anxiety. I get that, and I’ve been there.
In the first three years after graduating from college with six figures of student loan debt, I couldn’t even look at my student loan balance. My mom cosigned my student loans, and she even took out Parent PLUS loans of her own so that I could go to one of the best art schools in the country. Unlike becoming a nurse, engineer, or lawyer, there are no guaranteed career paths, and I felt like a colossal dumbass for pursuing what I love and putting my mom’s finances at risk.
It took a decade of tiny actions, tears, and difficult conversations with my mom to finally reach radical acceptance: I’m not a bad person for having student loan debt, and I won’t be a “better” version of myself for paying them off.
The inability or refusal to pay your student loans is not a moral failure. Having student loan debt doesn’t make you a bad person, and paying off your debt doesn’t make you any better than the rest of us.
According to budgeting app Cleo, 55% of borrowers will need to take on a second job to afford the return of federal student loan payments. If you don’t wanna do that, or if you already work multiple jobs and still can’t afford your monthly payments, here’s what you need to know:
There’s a one-year “on-ramp” period with little to no penalties for missed payments.
Between October 1, 2023 and September 30, 2024, late or missed payments will not be reported to credit bureaus. Missed payments during this time will not result in delinquency or default.
It’s important to note that interest will continue to accrue on your student loans during this “on-ramp” period.Single borrowers who make $32,800 a year do not have to make monthly payments.
Under the SAVE Plan, monthly payments are exempt for people who earn 225% or less than the federal poverty guidelines.
If you make less than the amount listed below for your family size, your monthly payments are automatically $0.
Family size — Annual gross income
1 — $32,800
2 — $44,370
3 — $55,935
4 — $67,500
5 — $79,065
6 — $90,360
7 — $102,195
8 — $113,760You can join the national debt strike organized by The Debt Collective.
A debt strike recontextualizes our inability or refusal to pay student loan debt. It only takes 10-20 minutes to sign up at www.debtcollective.org.
I hope this gives you the permission you need to stop beating yourself up for procrastinating, or not being able to afford your monthly payments. <3
Thank you so much!!!