Grants To Pay Off Student Loans
Grants are a great way to pay off your student loans, usually with money that does not need to be repaid. There may, however, be eligibility requirements as well as service or employment requirements.
Student loan grants are issued by the federal government, state governments, and nonprofit organizations.
Grants are often used as an incentive to entice graduates to work in fields experiencing staffing shortages. For example, there are lots of grants available to doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals.
Student loan grants are oftentimes limited to certain fields and particular geographical regions.
Below we go through some of the options available to you when it comes to grants to pay off student loans.
Close Accounts On Debts You Have Paid Off
Once a debt is paid, consider closing that account. Only keep what you need and can manage responsibly. However, you should keep an older account open as your credit score is based partially on how long you have had credit, also known as your credit history. Closing all of your older credit accounts can make your credit history seem shorter than it actually is and can hurt your credit score.
You may also want to consider using a secured credit card instead of a regular credit card. A secured credit card requires you to leave a deposit with the credit card issuer as a guarantee and you can only spend to that limit.
What Are Personal Grants
You may have heard of forms of government assistance like small business grants and subsidized healthcare. But did you know that the government offers personal grants for individuals, too?
If you meet eligibility requirements and you need the money for one of a set of approved expenses, you could be in luck. Unlike loans, grants dont need to be paid back. That makes them a powerful tool for those facing financial hardship.
Most government grants are given to institutions like universities, hospitals and non-profits. There are a few personal grants available at the federal level and a host of other government benefits that dont need to be repaid. Well refer to all government money that doesnt need to be repaid and is available to individuals as personal grants.
Keep in mind that the government doesnt offer grants to help Americans pay off consumer debt from things like . It does, however, offer financial support for Americans struggling with a range of tough financial situations.
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Loans With Variable Grace Period:
- PLUS loans
When it is time to begin repaying your student loans, you should explore your payment plan options and choose the one that best fits your needs. You should direct any student loan payments to your loan servicer, who will handle your loan while it is in repayment.
Tip: To find your federal student loan servicer, visit the National Student Loan Data System .
Try to stay current on your payments. If you have difficulty making your scheduled payments, you have other options to explore.
Tip: You may be eligible for an income-based repayment plan or employment-based loan forgiveness.
Economic Injury Disaster Loans
SBA recently made changes to the EIDL program, increasing the maximum loan amount. To learn more, view the SBA press release: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USSBA/bulletins/2f0af10?reqfrom=share
In response to the Coronavirus pandemic, small business owners, including agricultural businesses, and nonprofit organizations in all U.S. states, Washington D.C., and territories can apply for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan. The EIDL program is designed to provide economic relief to businesses that are currently experiencing a temporary loss of revenue due to COVID-19.
View Frequently Asked Questions:
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Managing Debt Collectors And Scammers
The most helpful government debt relief programs cant immediately fix your credit issues, especially if your finances put you in the lower end of the low-income household category.
Even your best intentions to pay off debt probably wont spare you from debt collection, and the scammers it attracts.
You should know your rights with debt collectors and even more importantly you should be on high alert to avoid debt settlement and debt elimination scams.
You may not instantly know them when you see them. But there are indicators when a debt relief service is offering you something it cant deliver:
Establishing And Maintaining Credit
Two of the many challenges for low-income families are establishing a solid credit history and maintaining good credit when you do.
Equifax, one of the three major credit bureaus in the U.S., estimated in 2020 that there were 25 million consumers who were credit invisible. That means they have not used a credit card or taken out any loans that would tell lenders how good they were at paying things off. Equifax judged another seven million people to be credit unscorable meaning they had used so little credit that there wasnt enough information to give them a credit score.
Lacking a credit history, low-income consumers either wont get approved for a loan or, if they do, they face much higher costs to use credit to purchase a home, car or any big-ticket item.
Higher-income consumers obviously possess more money, better lifestyles and more luxury items, but they also have more ways to get and keep good credit.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said low-income consumers are 240% more likely to start their credit history with negative records, such as a debt collection. Higher-income consumers start with positive records, such as opening a credit card or getting a co-signer who has good credit.
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Federal Loan Payment Plans
You have the following general options once you default on your federal student loans:
- PAY IN FULL: If you can afford to repay your defaulted loan in full, you have the option of doing so. The loan debt will be fully wiped out, but your credit report will still reflect that you paid off a defaulted loan. Paying the loan in full will also restore your eligibility for federal aid.
- REHABILITATE: You can rehabilitate your loan by making a series of timely payments that you can afford. By doing so, your loan will be returned to its pre-default status. Loans rehabilitated after August 14, 2008 can be rehabilitated only once – if you default on a loan that you have already rehabilitated, you cannot rehabilitate that loan again. Some considerations when looking at rehabilitation are:
- Affordable Payments: There is no minimum payment required for rehabilitation. Payments are affordable and based on your total financial circumstances.
- Restored Loan Benefits: If you rehabilitate your loan, you can again become eligible for loan benefits that you had prior to default, including deferment, forbearance, loan forgiveness, and federal aid eligibility.
- Increased Cost: After you rehabilitate your loan, collection costs may be added to your loan and your monthly payment may increase.
- If you rehabilitate your loan, the default will be removed from your credit report, but late payments reported prior to your default might remain on your credit report.
Financial Aid For Education
Programs that can help include:
- Federal Student Aid Details the types of grants and scholarships available.
- QuestBridge Provides information on resources for high-achieving, low-income students, plus resources for educators.
- The Education Trust Advocates for students with high academic achievement, especially those in low-income situations, and offers a number of tools. Those include help in choosing a college based on performance.
- Bloomberg Philanthropies Helps high-achieving students who are low- and moderate-income.
- FinAid Provides information on educational loans, scholarships and military aid, as well as several dozen financial calculators. Gives tips on choosing a college, options for online degrees, jobs and internships and more.
- JKCF The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation site has scholarship, grant and other info intended for exceptionally promising students from low-income families.
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The Latest Round Of Ppp Loans: Accounting And M& a Considerations
New PPP Loan considerations for eligible small businesses or parties interested in acquiring target companies with existing PPP Loans.
Jenn Braden
Yelena Svetlichnaya
For businesses financially impacted by the pandemic, a new relief billsigned in December 2020changed the paycheck protection program to allow some businesses to apply for the first time or receive additional funding. A business that already received PPP funding may apply for a second loan if it suffered a decline in revenue in 2020 . The original deadline to apply for a PPP loan was March 31, but it has been extended through May 31, 2021.
Small businesses should understand the changes under the expanded program, appropriate ways to account for the loans, and how to apply and maximize loan forgiveness. Also, any parties seeking to acquire businesses funded by PPP loans will want to understand the impacts of the programespecially related to diligence and accounting matters.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Public Service Loan Forgiveness or PSLF is a program will pay off your student loan balance. This can save students tens of thousands of dollars in student loan debt.
To take advantage of the PSLF program, students must:
- Make 120 monthly payments on their federal student loans
- Pay back their student loans on an income-driven repayment plan such as RPAYE, IBR, or ISR.
- Be employed by a qualifying employer during the 120 months.
Qualifying employers include the government or any 501c3 non-profits. Members of AmeriCorps or the Peace Corps will also qualify for PSLF. This means that teachers, civil servants, non-profit employees, and other social impact professionals can have their student loans paid off.
One of the other big things to mention about PSLF is that it only applies to Federal Direct Loans . This means that private student loans are not eligible.
If you have questions about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program you can check out the PSFL Tool on the Department of Educations website.
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Revised Pay As You Earn
Applies to:
- Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans regardless of when borrower first obtained the loans
- Direct PLUS Loans made to students regardless of when the borrower first obtained the loans
- Direct Consolidation Loans regardless of when the borrower first consolidated the loans
Payments
- Payments change based on the borrowers income
- Maximum monthly payments are 10% of discretionary income and could be more than the 10 year Standard Repayment Plan.
Considerations
Requirements
- Any borrower with eligible federal student loans can make payments under this plan
- The loans must be in good standing to qualify
- No income requirement to enter plan
- The borrower must provide supporting documentation of income and family size to the loan servicer every year
San Diego Region Support
The County of San Diego provides a Coronavirus Disease 2019 webpage with sections on Evaluating COVID-19 Information, Public Health Misinformation Panel, health orders, vaccine sites, testing sites, COVID-19 transmission dashboards, mask guidance, suggested signage, and safe reopening guidance. To visit that page, please click the button below:
- South County Economic Development Council is offering emergency 0% interest loans to restaurants in San Diegos South County. Loans were due for repayment on April 1, 2021.
- Minority Humanitarian Foundation launched the MHF Immigrant Relief Fund to provide grants of $250 for immigrants in San Diego County who have lost all or part of their income due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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Does The Federal Government Provide Debt Relief
Home \ Debt \ Does The Federal Government Provide Debt Relief?
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Struggling with debt on a daily basis is an all-to-familiar circumstance for thousands of Canadians. Some can handle it on their own, while others need some help, as the debt they have is simply too large, or they lack the financial knowledge to deal with the debt independently.
One of the first questions that those struggling with debt might ask is, does the federal government provide debt relief? The short answer to that question is no. However, thats not the whole story. This article will explain the reasons why. It will also cover the various alternative options for those who are currently struggling with debt.
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Emergency Financial Assistance For Single Parents
Although everyone should make building an emergency fund a top priority, single parents often find the task extremely difficult. Yet without an emergency fund, a job loss or health problem can create a financial crisis that, in the worst cases, can lead to poor nutrition, eviction and possibly homelessness.
A variety of subprime lenders will lend you emergency cash, but be careful and review the terms such lenders might require. High interest rates, often in the 399% APR range, that frequently compound can make it very difficult to repay these loans. If you decide to pursue an emergency loan, you should have a plan for repaying it quickly.
Single parents should contact their state social services agency to learn more about programs that are available. As mentioned earlier, states administer various federal programs for single parents, so a state office or website is a good place to begin research. You can also visit a local library and ask a librarian for help tracking down relevant information. Churches and charities are also a good resource. They often have funds to aid families with emergencies and can offer suggestions that might guide you through a financial crisis.
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Government Programs For Single Parents
State social services programs funnel money from federal programs to help single mothers and fathers care from their children.
That amount of aid has jumped to historic levels due to the COVID-19 pandemic. President Joe Bidens American Rescue Plan Act, pumped $1.9 trillion into economic aid, on top of the $3.2 trillion from the CARES Act and COVID-19 relief bill passed under President Donald Trump..
The main forms of financial relief for families with children are stimulus checks and an expansion of child tax credits. The American Rescue Plan was the third omnibus relief package from Washington D.C., and it provides a third stimulus check of up to $1,400 per child.
As for taxes, families can also claim up to $3,600 per child under age 6 and $3,000 for children up to age 17 for one year. The previous tax credit was $2,000 per child.
In a new twist, the stimulus bill calls on the IRS to pay the credit in advance to families on a monthly basis. This child allowance provision begins in June 2021.
A good place to become familiar with whats available in your state is Benefits.gov, a comprehensive web site that also tells you how to apply to specific programs.
Some of the most widely available programs include:
Additional Debt Relief For Sba Loans
As a part of the CARES Act, SBA is authorized to pay 6 months of principal, interest, and any associated fees that borrowers owe for all 7, 504, and Microloans reported in regular servicing status . This debt relief to borrowers was originally dependent on the loan being fully disbursed prior to September 27, 2020 and does not apply to loans made under the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program.
These original provisions were amended on December 27, 2020 through the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Non-Profits and Venues Act . The Economic Aid Act revised the eligibility criteria for assistance to include all 7, 504, and Microloans approved up to September 27, 2020 even if not fully disbursed. All other provisions for initial debt relief remained the same.
Borrowers need not apply for this assistance. SBA provides this assistance automatically as provided below:
- For loans not on deferment, SBA will make monthly payments based on the next payment due on eligible loans for a total amount equivalent to no more than 6 months of installment payments.
- For loans currently on deferment, SBA will begin making monthly payments with the first payment due after the deferment period ends for a total amount equivalent to no more than 6 months of installment payments.
Additional Debt Relief Assistance
The initiatives described above are limited to the level of available funding provided by Congress.
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Getting A Debt Relief Order
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: .
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/getting-a-debt-relief-order/getting-a-debt-relief-order
Financial Assistance For Education
While most higher education financial aid programs are open to anyone based on academic qualifications and financial need, a number of grants are earmarked for single mothers and fathers.
One of the best-known programs is Raise the Nation, a scholarship fund from the Raise the Nation Foundation. Another scholarship, the Capture the Dream fund, is available to single parents in the San Francisco Bay area in northern California. Soroptimist, an organization that supports single mothers, offers scholarships though its Live Your Dream, a program that provide $2 million in grants to 1,500 women a year to advance their educations.
Finding scholarships can take time. Some are available to single parents wishing to pursue a degree, others help children of single parents hoping to attend college. Many help both.
Pell Grants are a major source of higher education fund that the federal government provides to low- and moderate-income families based on need. In the 2021-2022 academic year, the maximum grant is 6,495 and the minimum is $650. Students can apply for Pell Grants and other federal financial aid using the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form, which can be obtained through any college financial aid office.
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