is there any smart move to make here?

[kate0558]

I made the HUGE mistake of switching which parent took out parent plus loans for me when I was in college So as a result i'm left with
2 federal plus loans one from direct loans and another from sallie mae both under my moms name and total 55k.
Then another Sallie mae plus loan under my dads name totalling 25k

I have to repay them both.
I also have some under my name that are about 22k. It would take every spare penny i have to just make interest only payments (total about 700 a month) I am recently out of college so although I have a good job that I LOVE, i'm not at my full earning potential. Short of getting a second job... is there ANYTHING else that would help me.

Is their ANY student loans that would let me refinance with a better rate and get their 2 loans combined into one with a better interest rate... That 8.5% is killing me. They won't let us consolidate the two together because its under 2 different social security numbers. Even though they have been married for 30 years. I don't understand why they can't get a joint loan.

Before any one says it... getting a second mortgage is simply not an option for either one of us. With this large of debt we'd risk the chance of losing our homes if i couldn't pay.
not worth it.

[disneysteve]

I am recently out of college so although I have a good job that I LOVE, i'm not at my full earning potential

Can you go into an income-based repayment plan?

[kate0558]

its not under my name so no.
its all separate and down to the lowest payments i can get. which is interest only.

[disneysteve]

Short of getting a second job

You have $102,000 worth of student loan debt, at least some of which is at 8.5%. You aren't earning enough to support the payments. Sounds to me like the 2nd job is a necessity here. I'd be looking to cut every possible expense and pounding the pavement to find another job to bring in more income.

Can you at least defer or reduce the payments on the loans that are in your name?

[riverwed070707]

Sure there are options but we need more info if you want specifics. What is your minimum payment on the loans? What other debt do you have? Can you post a budget?

The short answer is the easiest way to take them out is by scaling back your spending to only necessities and making snowball payments until you have them under cOntrol.