Paying off your student loans can be a challenge, especially if you’re trying to pay them off in a timely manner. But it’s important to keep an eye on your total loan balance so that you don’t run into trouble later on. What is your total loan balance? How do you know? Here are some common causes of rising loan balances:
Not being timely with the recurring payments
When you postpone or skip payments, the principal loan balance will keep increasing.
If you postpone or skip payments, your principal loan balance will keep increasing. The principal loan balance is the amount you have left to pay on the mortgage principal. You can calculate it by subtracting your total payments from your original mortgage amount.
When you make a payment and it goes toward paying down the principal balance, that’s called making a “principal payment.” When you make only interest payments, that’s called an “interest payment.” An interest-only mortgage has no principal payments; all of its monthly payments go toward paying off interest owed on the loan until its term ends and any remaining balance becomes due in full as part of a balloon payment.
The most common causes of a rising loan balance are:
- Skipping or postponing payments. This includes making partial payments, which may be made more difficult by the fact that there is a fee associated with each discontinuance of payment.
- Deferments and forbearances. If you’re granted a deferment or forbearance on your federal student loans, the lender can’t charge interest during those periods. But while they’re in effect, they will continue to accrue interest on your behalf—and will increase your balance accordingly when they end.
- Defaulting on loans or missing payments without getting into arrears first (for example by making sporadic payments). The default rate varies from lender to lender but is still high enough for most lenders not to allow any missed payments at all unless you’re experiencing financial hardship or military service duty leave (in which case you might want to consider enlisting someone else’s help with managing things like this).
Deferments
Deferments are temporary time-outs from student loan payments. They’re usually granted to students and parents of students who qualify, but there are a few exceptions. If you’ve already graduated and have been offered a job through the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), for example, you might be eligible for a forbearance instead.
A deferment is typically granted for up to three years at a time and will allow your loans to continue accumulating interest while they remain deferred (that is, unpaid). If your income falls below the poverty line due to unemployment or underemployment during this period, some federal student loans may qualify for forbearance instead of deferment—but keep in mind that interest still accrues on these loans during deferment or forbearance periods.
Forbearance
Forbearance is an option for borrowers who can’t make their payments due to a financial hardship. Interest on your loan continues to accrue during forbearance, but you’re not required to pay it unless you choose to do so. If you decide to pay the interest that has accrued, check with your loan servicer first—they may have a different process for making payment than what is described here.
If you don’t pay the interest that accrues during forbearance, it will be added onto your loan balance at the end of the forbearance period (and potentially capitalized).
Defaulting on loans
If you decide to default on your loans, you’ll be charged a fine and fees. You’ll also have to pay back the entire amount of your loan. Defaulting on loans can lead to higher interest rates and fees on future loans, as well as a damaged credit score that could make it more difficult for you to get approved for new credit cards or even find an apartment. In extreme cases, your wages may be garnished.
Even making sporadic payments can contribute to rising total loan balances.
Even making sporadic payments can contribute to rising total loan balances. Some loans may have a lower interest rate than others, and payments are applied to the highest interest rate loans first. So you might end up paying more in interest over time because your payment was not enough to cover all of the loans at once.
Payments are applied according to these priorities:
- Unpaid principal balance (first).
- Interest due on all outstanding loans (second).
- Late fees or other charges (last).
How can you know your total loan balance?
You can find out your total loan balance by checking your monthly statements. The statement will have a list of all the loans you have, including the amount that is due each month and how much interest you owe. You may also want to check with your lender or servicer to see what they say your total loan balance is.
If your loan servicer provides you with one, you can use a paper statement to find out your loan balance. You can also go online.
If you have a paper statement, it’s easy to find out your loan balance. You can also go online and check it at any time.
If you don’t have a paper statement, call your loan servicer and request one. If they tell you that they don’t send statements anymore, ask them to send a free copy of your credit report instead (it will include all of the same information). If this still doesn’t work for some reason, there are several online tools that will give you an estimate of what your balance is:
- https://www.myloanconsolidationdebtconsultant.com/free-credit-report/ – This site offers a free credit report from each major credit bureau as well as other useful information about how much money is owed on various loans and debt types across all three bureaus. It also provides an estimate of how much money could be saved by consolidating loans into one payment plan.
- https://www.creditkarma.com – Credit Karma allows users with or without accounts open with their service to access their credit reports which include info on how much money has been borrowed through various loans and lines of credit (e.,g., mortgages). The site also shows whether or not there are any late payments listed on these reports, what percentage rate each type of loan has been charged with, etc…
What if you can’t pay back your loans?
If you find yourself in serious financial trouble and unable to pay back your loans, don’t panic. There are options available for student loan forgiveness and repayment.
First, assess the situation: how much do you owe on your student loans? Once you know this number (and can verify it), it will help determine what kind of loan you have and what options are available to you. Next, call your lender or servicer if necessary and ask them to clarify anything that may be unclear—for instance, if there’s a balance listed but no interest rate attached or vice versa—and make sure that all fees were accounted for in the amount owed as well.
Let’s say that after figuring out your total debt load has increased due to recent events such as unemployment or illness. Now comes the tricky part: figuring out exactly how much income will go toward paying back those loans while still making ends meet each month. The best way is usually by using an online calculator; however, this isn’t always possible depending on where one lives (if they’re not living at home with their parents) because many banks require proof of income before providing any services related directly towards paying off debt such as credit cards or auto loans etcetera…
Rising total loan balances are not inevitable.
You can help keep your loan balance down by making payments on time and paying more than the minimum monthly payment. If you are struggling to make payments, you should consider asking for a payment reduction because your student loans will be paid off faster if you pay more than the minimum amount due each month.
If you’re worried about your rising total loan balance, try to stay calm. Remember that it is possible to get out of debt and keep your loans from getting any worse. Take the steps above to start working on paying off your loans.
