Senior student loan advisor Lauryn Williams, CFP®, CSLP®, sits down with one of SLP's newest student loan advisors, James Mwombela, CFP®, to discuss the racial wealth divide and how it has impacted Black Americans' ability to create wealth. The basis for today's conversation is a Wall Street Journal article written in August 2021 titled "College Was Supposed to Close the Wealth Gap for Black Americans. The Opposite Happened."

In today's episode, you'll find out:

• Why Black college graduates have a lower net worth in the 2020s than in the 1990s
• What is net worth and why does it matter
• Slow income growth and other causes of low net worth for Black households
• How student loan debt is affecting college graduates now versus 30 years ago
• How this phenomenon has impacted the lives of young Black graduates today
• About the history of the racial wealth gap
• Why homeownership is significantly lower for Black graduates
• The role of homeownership in wealth building
• How the lack of financial literacy stops net worth in its tracks

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I'm breaking down all the fluid elements swirling and often confusing even the most knowledgeable student loan loan experts. There's just so much going on – and the U.S. Department of Education may or may not be concealing a backdoor form of relief via their complex waiver programs. What will happen if cancellation occurs? It's not clear, but it's very likely to end up in a heavy political court challenge just as midterm elections heat up. And we'll be here to help you ride the rapids and optimize whatever opportunities are out there.

In today's episode, we're covering:

• Advice about consolidating Parent Plus loans that parents took out for their two kids
• The first thing you need to know about Parent Plus loans before figuring out your long-term strategy
• Whether it's possible to get credit for payments made during in-school deferment
• President Biden's recent announcement and the pressure he's under with regard to loan forgiveness
• Possible loan forgiveness for under $50,000, including a means testing approach
• Results of our biggest-ever survey of more than 6,200 subscribers and listeners about loan forgiveness
• Why only 47% of borrowers with balances under $50k plan to pursue forgiveness
• The complete breakdown of demographic insights in terms of what population is going for student loan forgiveness
• Debt cancellation for people in default on loans of $10,000 or under

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Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan

Vastly underreported in the media, the IDR waiver is currently being portrayed as an option for tens of thousands who are eligible for PSLF or income-driven repayment. Join me as I discuss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and how I see this as a way to help millions get forgiveness. Listen in as I break down all you need to know about the IDR waiver!

In today's episode, you'll find out:

• What is the IDR waiver
• How it's meant to help student loan borrowers
• Why you need to pay attention to the IDR waiver
• The potential limitations of the IDR waiver
• Who could benefit from this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
• How many people can get immediate cancellation
• The political and legal headlines I think we'll see because of it
• Why the current administration is so keen on promising student loan cancellation

Like the show? There are several ways you can help!

• Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts
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Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan

The temporary PSLF waiver is an amazing opportunity that offers expanded loan forgiveness for a limited time. Learn how you can use your knowledge of this once-in-a-lifetime program to help your friends get forgiveness on their loans before the October 31, 2022, deadline. Plus, I'm answering listener questions to clarify some points of the PSLF waiver, income recertification and Parent PLUS loans.

In today's episode, you'll find out:

• Why you need to take advantage of the PSLF waiver
• How to share the PSLF waiver opportunity with your friends
• Why a student loan consult makes sense for your student debt
• The new income recertification date you need to know for IDR plans
• How consolidation can help you get more qualifying payments
• When consolidation could cause problems
• Whether or not Parent PLUS loans qualify for the PSLF waiver
• When double consolidation makes sense for Parent PLUS loans
• Why being vulnerable when talking about student loan debt matters
• How best to educate your friends on the temporary waiver

Like the show? There are several ways you can help!

• Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts
• Leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts
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Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan

With the student loan pause, it's likely that many of you haven't made a payment in quite some time. So, how does repayment work when you're fresh out of school? What do you need to know before starting to pay off your student loans?

Join us, Lauryn Williams, CFP®, CSLP®, and Dan Rooker, CFP®, CSLP®, as we talk about the basics of student loan repayments while helping you figure out which repayment plan is best for you and how to start paying off your student loans.

In today's episode, you'll find out:

• What you need to know about the grace period of student loans.
• The only reason you should use your loan's grace period.
• How to figure out which loan payment plan is right for you.
• Student loan repayment options
• The 5 types of income-driven repayment plans.
• The 2 most popular repayment plans
• What happens when your income changes? Do you have to update your loan?
• Why you do not want to be late in recertifying your income.
• How to easily calculate your student loan repayments for free!
• When to recalculate your payments and recertify your income.
• When are student loan payments due?
• Should you enroll in autopay for your student loans?
• What is a prepayment and when does it make sense to make a prepayment?
• How do you set up loan exit counseling?

Like the show? There are several ways you can help!

• Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts
• Leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts
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Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan

There are no guarantees when it comes to the future of federal student loans, but there are some clear data points and indicators — and I'm sharing my views on what will happen next. I'll take questions from listeners and deconstruct several scenarios that could impact student loan repayment as we head into midterm election season. Between the political and practical factors that will determine what happens next, I'll explain why my I think the current pause will extend at least through the end of 2022.

You'll also be the first to hear about an exciting new development at Student Loan Planner, which has just expanded its services to offer insurance coverage. With the same ethical approach we've taken to student loan strategies, SLP Insurance LLC will advocate for your best interests, which means providing the best coverage at the best rates.

In today's episode, you'll find out:

• Listener questions about pre-paying loans, refinancing in an atmosphere of overall spiking interest rates, PSLF waivers and how to get creative about certification when your employer changes tax status
• Will the current student loan pause be extended through the end of the year
• Why did the Biden Administration choose to extend the pause through August 2022
• What I think about a few election season announcements about $10,000 of debt cancellation, a generous new income-based repayment plan, and an IDR waiver
• What you need to know about Operation Fresh Start
• What might happen if Congress remains under Democratic control after the midterm elections, and what if the Republicans prevail
• Our new Student Loan Planner initiative of SLP Insurance LLC
• How SLP Insurance extends the same ethical approach used to optimize student loan strategies and repayment to grow wealth and security for student loan borrowers and professionals
• How the agency can help people shop for life and disability insurance

Links to topics mentioned:

• Refinance student loans
• Get a quote for disability insurance from SLP Insurance LLC
• Get a quote for life insurance from SLP Insurance LLC

Like the show? There are several ways you can help!

• Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts
• Leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts
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Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan

THIS JUST IN from your favorite pod!

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Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan

Horror stories about out-of-control college debt are familiar to most of us, but there is a flip side to consider. Shying away from student loans can prove short-sighted, especially if it costs you the ability to focus on studies, network with classmates and pursue career enrichment opportunities. The trick is enlisting the right loans for the right reasons – with a carefully considered plan in place. Learn why our student loan advisor, Sim Terwilliger, has some regrets looking back on how she managed the financing of her long-dreamed-of Ivy League college experience. She and Lauryn Williams, our senior student loan advisor, highlight common misconceptions about debt and how to avoid pitfalls both real and imagined. As Sim sums up: "Yes. Be cautious. Be intentional. But don't be fearful. Let knowledge give you clarity and direction."

In today's episode, you'll find out:

• Undergrad price tags are steep and debt is intimidating, but there are options
• Colleges offer all kinds of packages, including work-study programs
• Fear of debt is natural and not a bad thing – but it's important to get educated about it
• Unpaid internships can be out of reach and impractical for lower-income students
• The open mouth gets fed: Never shy away from asking for help
• Only 45% of undergrads at Sim's Ivy League college qualified for need-based grants
• A Factor to Consider: Being the scholarship kid can feel awkward, even demoralizing
• If your living circumstance/home life is stressful or unhealthy, loans can be a worthwhile catalyst to change that pays off in the long-term
• Just $5,000-$7,500 in loans can provide enough flexibility and breathing room to make a real impact on the quality of an overall educational experience
• Parent-Plus loans are another option for students whose family financial picture doesn't fit the standard financial aid calculus
• If your estimated family contribution is unrealistic, ask your financial aid office for a reevaluation of specific facts and circumstances
• FAFSA is the baseline federal student aid application and CSS Profile is for private college consideration
• Liquidating assets to finance college expenses can be ill-advised for parents approaching retirement age
• Top 5 reasons that Sim wishes she would have opted for student debt
• Why federal loans are preferable to private loan options

Links to topics mentioned:

About Parent-Plus Federal Student Loan opportunities An overview of the federal FAFSA application An overview of the private CSS Profile

Like the show? There are several ways you can help!

• Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts
• Leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts
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Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan

The loan servicing structure needs to be fixed, but how and why? Join me as I welcome Bobby Matson, CEO and Founder of Payitoff, to talk about why the state of the student loan serving industry is broken and how we might be able to mend it. Without getting overly cynical, we shed light on the incentive structure of student loan servicers, the problems that can arise when student loans are cancelled, and the changes and opportunities in loan servicing you can expect in the next few years. In today's episode, you'll find out: Servicers get paid $25-30 per borrower. What kind of incentive structure does that create? What does Payitoff do and how does it help institutional customers manage and pay off debt? Why did Navient exit the business of loan serving? Why the politics of student loans are brutally cynical right now. Is there a solution? The frustrating problem with cancelling student loans. How student loans systems are increasing disparities in outcomes and increasing defaults, even for communities that need the programs. What you can expect in the next few years: NextGen servicing contract? Will I need to visit my servicer's website in the future? Will I experience service interruptions? Why the loan servicing structure needs to be fixed. Opportunities in educating senators on how federal loans work. Should I reach out to Payitoff for help with debt repayment?

Do you have kids or are you thinking of having kids? Want to know how you can help your children avoid the student loan mess you've had to deal with? Join me and Mary Morris, CEO of Virginia529, as we talk about the benefits of a 529 plan and how to set up a tax advantage education savings plan for your children, even if they don't exist yet.

In today's episode, you'll find out:

• What is a 529 plan and how does it work? What can I use a 529 plan for?
• How to choose a 529 plan: Cost, investment options, tax advantages, tax deductions, and more.
• Can I use a 529 plan from a different state?
• How to use a 529 plan to start a college savings fund for a child who isn't born yet.
• Can I change the name and the beneficiaries on my 529 plan? How can my friends and family contribute to my 529 account?
• Tips for reducing and paying off large student loan debts (529 matches can be a game changer!)
• Why tax season and holidays are great times to start growing a 529 account.
• Limitations and restrictions of a 529 plan.
• Is a prepaid 529 plan worth it?
• How much monthly savings is realistic for saving for college?
• Stay tuned to SLP to hear from more amazing guests!

Like the show? There are several ways you can help!

• Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts
• Leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn

Feeling helpless when it comes to your student loans?

• Try our free student loan calculator
• Check out our refinancing bonuses we negotiated
• Book your custom student loan plan