Pittsburghers react to Education Department collecting payments for student loans in default
The U.S. Department of Education says that starting May 5, it'll begin collecting payments for student loans that are in default.
It says more than 5 million borrowers are in default and 4 million more could be in the same position in a few months. For those who are behind on their payments, that could mean wages garnished or money withheld from tax refunds and Social Security benefits.
It's been a confusing time in student loan history. First, the original Trump administration paused the loans during COVID. Then the Biden administration repeatedly extended that. Then there was talk about student loan forgiveness, but now that's all in the past and it's time for repayment.
"I think it's gonna make a lot of changes for a lot of people who were kind of hoping that something would maybe happen at the last administration, but unfortunately, the reality is, we're gonna have to start paying things back. I think there's a lot of fear around it," said Mae Cody, a UPMC employee with student loans.
That potential fear is affecting roughly 5.3 million borrowers who are in default on their federal student loans, according the U.S. Department of Education.
"It's unfortunate, for sure, I mean, students, they go through a lot to get to where they need to be and pay tuition, so have some grace and some sort of a grace period, to not be able to pay on time, if they can't," said CMU employee Jeff Stevenson.
The Trump administration says you will get an email if you are in default within the next couple weeks. You can go to the U.S. Department of Education's website for links to find help on stopping any collection efforts.
According to finance experts, if you are in default on a student loan, don't ignore the emails and media reports saying it's time to pay back your student loans. Because if you don't, the U.S. Department of Education says you will end up in collections.
