Hi, I have a student loan that they are defaulting on. It was from 1996. It has been in defferment most of the past 7 years. Total of the loan now is just over 2k. I have not worked in years and the loan was from before our marriage. My question is this. 1)can they go after our joint tax return even if it show no income from me? 2)can they go after joint bank accounts or the accounts of my children since I am the custodian listed on them? I just want to know if they can take my husbands money for a debt I incurred prior to our marriage? Our home,our cars,everything is in my husbands name.We live in NY. I was 19 when i got the loan and my parents had to fill out a bunch of papers too.I don't remember if the they signed for the loan or not. My father is deseased and my mother is on Social Security.So can they go after her? Please help.I just don't think my hubbie should pay for my stupidity. I will pay back the loan when i go back to work.... Any advice would be appriciated.
Hello,another thought.I have several othe debts sitting on my CR's from prior to our marriage.Can I file bankruptcy on all those debts without my husband? i know this is drastic, but my husband can not afford to pay off my debts. He barely makes the bills we have now.
The IRS can attach your return for student loan repayment if you file jointly with your husband. I had this happen to me in 2002 with defaulted student loans taken by my wife prior to my marriage. We were living in PA and had just moved into NY at the time this happened. I was the only one working at the time. If the IRS is going to pull this on you, you will get a letter from them saying so. Your husband will also have to complete and sign IRS Form 8379. IRS Form 8379 is the "Injured Spouse Relief Form." Doing so will keep the IRS for setting aside tax refunds from his earnings. HTH, John
It's been 7 years how did they find you? I wouldn't suggest paying at this late date. It will fall off your report and all you have to worry about is the IRS attaching your refund. I definitely would not agree to pay anything. Let the IRS take the money out of your refund and let that mess fall off your report.
Thanks both of you for the responses. I am mostly concerned about them attacking the bank accounts. My husband has a little bit in a savings that we keep for rainy days. i would end up paying it if they threated lawsuit or to take my hubbies tax return. I just don't want to use my husbands money to do it. I would prefer to get a job and pay my own bill. Why should he and my children suffer because of a mistake I made before them? I know, i am just blowing steam, but hey,I like to b*tch...lol I was young and stupid. I recall someone refering to student loans as " a contract with the devil" or something like that. I guess they were right. The finacial aid officer made sure i had no clue what i was getting into. Guess i know now...
Re: Re: Student Loan question This is pretty bad advice for a number of reasons: 1. Reporting period - The reporting period on government backed student loans is unique and is extended. 20 U.S.C. 1080a(f) allows the 7 year reporting period to begin after the default is REPORTED. 2. As long as your loan is in default, it's going to accrue interest. In my state, the interest is 12%. If you can't pay the interest, the debt is only going to get bigger. Fast. 3. After you have defaulted, the Fed and your state may seize your tax return. This does not prevent you from being sued for the rest! You could find yourself with a judgment and an attempt to garnish wages, etc. Don't ignore it. Talk to the lender about your options. If you can't get anywhere with them, talk to an ombudsman: http://www.sfahelp.ed.gov/ombudsman/index.html
Re: Re: Student Loan question I can only relate to you my experiences with debt. I had 2 student loans (2 colleges) that went into default. I didn't pay a dime. Today I have no worries and my credit is good because I learned from my mistakes and I now pay all my bills on time. You can worry about a debt underwritten by the same government that gives you another chance by wiping ALL debt off your record in 7-10 years and implementing SOL's that limit the timeframe in which creditors can harrass you. Or you can take that second chance and plan a debt-free future. The choice is yours.
Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question Student loans underwritten by the goverment are not eligible to be discharged in bankrupcy and do not have an SOL for collection.
Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question I'm in agreeance with jm. SLs from the government are a different beast altogether; they aren't just going to "fall off". I have finished my 12-month loan rehabilitation and all of my loans are now in good standing, and I feel great about it. Plus, they are listed as being open since the loans' inceptions, and that's a pretty sweet TL to have. Granted, the defaulted loans are also currently showing on my CRs but there is documentation out there (Higher Education Act) that they should be removed by the OC. Some have been removed already through simple disputes, and I'm in the process of getting the others removed. Yes, it may cost you some money to become current with these loans but I think it is worth the peace of mind. Just my $0.02.... P.S. Is a 2K loan really worth all this headache? I'm sure if you rehabilitated it they would be more than fair on the terms. You're looking at $25-30 a month.
Re: Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question If that's the case why doesn't my SL's show up on any of my reports? Edit: Nevermind. maybe they weren't government-backed loans.
Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question Excellent points, Amish! Rehabbing is a great way to go at this point in time. If a collection agency gets hold of the account, they are permitted to add 25% in contingent fees. If you rehab with the Dept of Ed or the guaranty agency, you're way ahead. If I remember correctly, you need to make 12 consecutive on-time payments of at least 1% of the balance, then your loan is resold. If it goes to collection, add 25% to the balance. If it then goes to judgment, it's 15 payments in excess of the court ordered amount. In my case, that worked out to be about 2%. I learned the hard way and hope you don't have to!
Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question From what I understand there is no limit on how long they can go after you. My husband defaulted on his student loan years ago (like back in 1995) In 2002 NCO called him and told him he had one day to get on a rehabilitation program or have his wages attatched at 10-25% We opted to pay it (had to pay 480.00 a month) instead of having a wage garnishment from the federal government. The 15,000 back in 1995 was now 32,000 (I think they tacked on 5000 for the collection agency) His default for some reason fell off of all of his credit reports so it wasn't hurting him but at the time we didn't know that. In looking for info on the internet everything I saw said that there was no time limit on when they had to go after it. This happened to many people that I know (who they came after years later) so it sort of makes me wonder if they don't wait until the interest increases a good bit before they decide to come after it??? They can come after you years later for this loan after it has become a lot more money due to interest. We were really dumb in the beginning of our marriage.. when we first got married it was only 150.00...we could have had it paid off by now. We just finished our 12 months of payments and they are in the process of buying the loan back. Our payments may drop from 480.00 to 390.00 (if they go by the current interest rate) but we still are going to end up paying back 2 or 3 times more than we would have had we paid this back in the beginning
Re: Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question Hmmm... That's too bad. 2 things went against you here: 1. Your husband took that call 2. You didn't educate yourself on your rights (7 years & delete) You're doing the right thing by paying your debt now that they know where to find you and all.
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question Geez...I think you're pretty lucky your hubby answered the call. It sounds like you were pretty close wage garnishment. And you were pretty smart to do the rehab. SoParkDiva - If you would like to educate yourself on credit reporting as it pertains to student loans, I recommend the following link: Sec. 1080a. - Reports to credit bureaus and institutions of higher education http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/20/1080a.html
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question Jm10101, Thanks for the link. Let's see now According to the information provided in your link, the options are: 1. reenter repayment & have the derog sit on your reports for another 7 years or 2. Don't pay & it falls off your reports now
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question South Park, I don't know what happened in your situation but I think it is wrong for you to suggest that the original poster is not being smart by taking care of the loan. ALL OTHERS REST ASSURED... There is NO SOL on federal student loan collections. You need to take care of this with the lender. The federal government WILL garnish your wages and WILL offset your tax returns for the REST OF YOUR LIFE until the loans get paid off or reinstated. The government is NOT b.s.'ing you.
SoParkDiva - you forgot to show number 1 and 2 from the section: You are correct, that there is still a 7 year reporting period, however, this section allows the defines a number of possible starting dates for the SOL...AND none of those dates have to do with the original delinquency. In fact, all of these dates occur AFTER the default. The language even suggests that multiple parties may report the debt: Secretary, guaranty agency, eligible lender, or subsequent holder.
SoPark, Normally I avoid comment on your BAD advice, but this time it's too much. This is THE WORST ADVICE you've ever given! #1 is assuming that OP DEFFAULTS on the loan again (maybe you should re-read it). Let's assume instead that OP succeeds! Besides, I think OPs bigger concern is the collectibility (new word!) of this debt, not when it will fall off the CR.
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question The have to come off your report after 7 years if they are reporting derogatory information - just like any other derog - however there is no SOL to collect on student loans, and as others have mentioned they are not dischargeable in bankruptcy. They can also garnish your salary without a court judgment, at any time 7, 17, 47 years later..it doen't matter. If they ever find you through your SSN you will be paying them one way or another
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Student Loan question I'm sorry to spark such a debate. I have every intention of paying off the loan before it goes to a collection agency. I hate collection agencies, but then agian,who doesn't. I only suggested bankrupcy because it does state (at least in New York) that if you can show the court that paying off the student loan would create a finacial hardship on the family, then it can be added into the bankrupcy. I am not too concerned about my credit report. Thanks to credit net my hubbie has pretty good scores and can get decent interest rates. I really just think it is wrong that hubbie has to pay for my deal with the devil..lol He works hard for his money ( where have we heard that before..lol) and I don't think he should have to fork it over for my bill. It is my responsibility, not his. If I have to,I am willing to take a part time job to pay off this debt, it would be difficlut with my 3 rugrats, but I would without a second thought. My goal is to maybe rehab it at a lower intert rate if possible. It has not defaulted yet, but they will within the next month or two. Thanks All !!!
