Stay Connected

Student loan repayment used to be easier to talk about in broad terms. A borrower could ask about income-driven repayment, consolidation, or forgiveness, and there was often a relatively straightforward list of options to compare. Today, that is much harder. Two borrowers can have similar incomes, similar loan balances, and even similar career paths, and still have very different repayment options. That is because the answer increasingly depends on the history behind the loan

The federal student loan landscape continues to change, leaving many borrowers uncertain about their repayment options and what steps they should take next. Changes to repayment programs, servicing practices, regulations, and implementation timelines have made an already complicated system even more difficult to navigate. During periods of uncertainty, consumers often turn to organizations and professionals for help. That assistance can be valuable, but it also comes with an

Two years ago, we launched the SDS Advisor monthly newsletter to give student loan borrowers something they could count on: clear, practical information to help make sense of an increasingly complicated student loan landscape. Today, we’re celebrating that milestone, and most importantly, we want to thank you for being here. Over the past year, student loan borrowers have faced major changes to repayment plans, forgiveness programs, and federal student loan rules. Through it

This is one of the most common questions borrowers ask, and it sounds like it should have a simple answer. If one repayment plan is $250 per month and another is $500, why wouldn’t you choose the $250 payment? Sometimes you should. But not always. A monthly payment is one part of a repayment strategy. The real question is what that payment does for you over time. When the Lowest Payment Makes Sense If affordability is the your biggest concern, a lower payment can be extremely

For organizations providing financial education, counseling, debt-related services, or other forms of consumer assistance, compliance can no longer be viewed as a final legal review or a set of disclosures added at the end of a process. Effective compliance should be built into the entire consumer experience. That experience often begins well before a consumer signs an agreement. Marketing materials, advertisements, websites, and sales conversations all shape a consumer’s exp