student loan bankruptcy Archives - Page 5 of 8

Lawsuit Filed Against Betsy DeVos for Failure to Cancel Defrauded Students’ Debt

Posted on June 28, 2019by Admin

More than 150,000 student loan borrowers have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Dept. of Education and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos alleging they are being deprived of student loan debt forgiveness they are rightfully entitled to. The lawsuit accuses the Department of Education of failing to implement an Obama-era regulation known as “borrower defense, ” which allows students to have their federal student loans cancelled if their school misled them or engaged in other misconduct.

The attorney representing the Plaintiffs in the case say, “The law is clear: Students who experienced fraud should not be required to pay back federal loans that should never have been made by the Department in the first place.”

Borrower Defense Applications continue to pour in, but it has been reported that the Dept. of Education has not approved or denied a claim since June 2018. The majority of the complaints concern “for-profit” schools, of which there are some 7,000 around the country, which take in around 15% of government financial aid.

Last year, a federal judge ruled that DeVos’ delays of the borrower defense protections were unlawful. Still, the agency continues to neglect the applications.

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For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. There are ways to file for bankruptcy with student loan debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade Garcia McMaken has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade Garcia McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Debt Relief, student loan debt, Student Loans, Uncategorized

$5.3 Million in Student Loan Debt Canceled as Part of the ITT Tech National Lawsuit Settlement

Posted on June 19, 2019by Admin

Hundreds of Pennsylvania students who attended the now-bankrupt ITT Technical Institute will receive $5.3 million in student loan debt relief as part of a national settlement. Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shaprio said 570 former ITT students will have their student loan debt canceled as part of a multi-state settlement.

“With the private student loan program that ITT and CUSO established, ITT Tech was able to take advantage of thousands of hardworking students who were simply trying to complete their education,” Shapiro said in a statement.

The national settlement provides $168 million for more than 18,000 students harmed by abusive lending practices. ITT Tech targeted “low income” students who could not afford to pay tuition out of pocket and relied on federal loans to pay for school, according the settlement. A coalition of 44 states reached a settlement with Student CU Connect CUSO LLC, which was managing the loans for ITT.

ITT Tech had more than 136 campuses in 38 states when it shut down in September 2016. This $600 million settlement cancels all the student loan debt owed to the school.

The agreement specifically deals with student borrowers who attended ITT Tech between the years 2006 and 2016. The settlement also returns $3 million to students who made payments on their loan to the school after the school’s parent company, ITT Educational declared bankruptcy in 2016.

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student loan debt

Why Student Loan Debt is Worse for Women

Posted on June 7, 2019by Admin

An estimated $1.46 trillion is owed nationwide in student loan debt, affecting nearly 44 million borrowers. However, nearly two-thirds of those borrowers are women, owing a collective $929 billion of the total student loan debt, according to a recent report issued by the American Association of University Women (AAUW). Of these female borrowers, a large percentage of them are women of color.

The AAUW report also showed that the amount of student loan debt women graduate with is more than the average debt carried by their male counterparts. A woman graduating with a bachelor’s degree leaves with $21,619 in undergraduate student loans while a male student leaves with $18,880 in student loans. The AAUW report also showed that it takes women two years longer than men to pay off their student loans. Black and Hispanic women were reported as taking longer to pay off their student debt.

One of the reasons given for the disparity in time it takes women to pay off student loans has to do with the gender pay gap, as well as childcare issues. A female borrower may have to take time off work after having children or work only part-time, which would make it understandable if she took longer to pay off student loans than a male borrower. These issues of pay and childcare also seem to affect minority women more than others, which could also be a leading cause for why this group of borrowers takes even longer to pay off their loans.

According to figures from PayScale.com, women make 79 cents for every dollar a man makes. Even if a female borrower does not take time off to have children, she is at a disadvantage to her male counterparts when it comes to paying off loans. The lack of affordable, quality childcare also presents an issue, especially for minority women, which also contributes to the disparity in how long times these borrowers to pay off their loans.

To help offset these issues, many grants and scholarship programs are available for female undergraduate students. However, these programs only go so far and will only help those students who are either aware of these programs or have the resources to apply for them.

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Credit Card Debt

More Than One-Third of College Students Already Have Credit Card Debt

Posted on June 6, 2019by Admin

A significant number of college students report that they have accumulated credit card debt while attending school. According to a recent report from AIG and EVERFI, 36 percent of all college students have a credit card with a balance of over $1,000 on it. This is on top of the student loan debt they are carrying.

Many of these students are using credit cards to pay for groceries, books, or entertainment expenses. Of students surveyed, some say they choose to use their credit cards over debit cards for the benefits the cards include, such as travel miles. These students are following a nationwide trend when it comes to using credit cards to pay for everyday expenses. A recent survey showed that 23 percent of Americans use their credit cards for necessities, including rent, food, and utilities.

However, problems arise when these cardholders are not able to pay down the balance every month. The situations can get even worse if the cardholder falls behind on payments, pushing the accounts into delinquency. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that more than eight percent of balances held by young cardholders between the age of 18 to 29 were seriously delinquent. Being seriously delinquent means that the accounts are at least 90 days overdue with no payment made.

The EVERFI and AIG survey found that 15 percent of college students took a hit on their credit scores because of being behind on their credit card payments. Missing a credit card payment will not only cause the card’s interest rate to skyrocket, but it will also seriously affect that person’s credit score. The higher the interest rate is, the harder it is for the person to pay off the card over time.

It can be a definite struggle for the student to handle both a credit card and student loan payment after graduation. Students should put together a plan to pay off the credit card debt as quickly as possible by setting a deadline and a goal on how quickly the person can handle paying off the card. The plan only works if the student does not continue spending on the card and makes more than the minimum monthly payment on the card.

As bankruptcy attorneys, we see credit card debt as one of the most common problems facing those with serious financial challenges. It is not surprising with the high interest rates, unreasonable fees, and never-ending minimum payments that do not even make a dent in your actual debt. We offer additional tips for eliminating credit card debt on our blog.

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If you have questions on this topic or are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade Garcia McMaken has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade Garcia McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Debt Relief, student loan debt, Student Loans

Possible Solutions to the Student Loan Debt Crisis

Posted on June 5, 2019by Admin

With more than $1.5 trillion in student loan debt owed nationwide, it can be safe to say that the student loan crisis has reached a breaking point. For lawmakers, one solution to bring change to this problem is allowing student loan debt to be discharged in bankruptcy court.

Another measure that has received a great deal of public support is Senator Elizabeth Warren’s proposal to completely wipe out the majority of America’s student loan debt through a loan forgiveness program. Her proposal has received support from other presidential hopefuls, including Senators Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris, and Amy Klobuchar, as well as Representative Eric Swallwell, all of whom are co-sponsoring it.

Recently, the American Bankruptcy Institute’s recommendations to allow student loan debt to be discharged in bankruptcy were published.

The average college student graduates with about $30,000 in student loans. This number does not include those students who pursue a master’s or post-graduate degree. Many of those students end up owing six figures in student loan debt.

The burden these loans present to young graduates is intense and can even follow them into retirement. Outstanding student loan debt can affect a person’s job in 13 states. To keep up with loan payments, many borrowers have accumulated credit card debt, just to be able to afford basic living expenses.

Student loans, while not impossible to discharge in bankruptcy, are extremely difficult to eliminate in a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. Other obligations may be eliminated at the end of the case, but the student loan ones will stay with the borrower even after other obligations are discharged.

Bankruptcy courts use the “undue hardship” test to determine whether a filer should have his or her student loan debt discharged, but no set standard has ever been made on what qualifies as an undue hardship, making it very difficult to ever receive relief. New bi-partisan legislation has been introduced and proposes regulations that ensure student loan debt is treated like other forms of consumer debt in bankruptcy, meaning it can be easier to discharge.

Without the ability to discharge the largest amount of debt many bankruptcy filers are carrying; these individuals will never be able to receive the fresh start bankruptcy is meant to give them. While this change may not completely solve the student loan crisis, many financial experts are hopeful it can be a catalyst for change.

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Bankruptcy Law, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Possible Changes Ahead for Student Loan Debt in Bankruptcy

Posted on May 16, 2019by Admin

Student loans have traditionally been very difficult for borrowers to discharge in bankruptcy, but this fact may soon change with legislation proposed this week in the U.S. Senate. Lawmakers have introduced a bill that would make it easier for student loan borrowers to cancel their debt in bankruptcy. The measure has been titled the “Student Borrower Bankruptcy Relief Act of 2019” and has the support of 14 Democrats, one Republican, and one Independent Senator.

This legislation marks the first time that the Senate has proposed giving student borrowers the ability to discharge their federal student loans.

The average student will end up taking out $33,310 in 2018 to attend college, according to data from the Institute for College Access & Success. The total amount of student loan debt in the country is approximately $1.5 trillion. It is estimated that the country’s student loan balance will reach $2 trillion by 2022. Financial experts believe that a significant portion of the total debt will never end up being repaid. In fact, more than one-fourth of all student loan borrowers are either in delinquency on their student loan debts or are in default.

For people carrying federal or private student loans, their debts can only be discharged in a bankruptcy case if they can prove that the loans pose an undue hardship. However, no definite test has ever been given on what qualifies as an undue hardship, leaving it as a matter of interpretation for the bankruptcy judge to decide.

Student loan advocates have called for Congress to force the U.S. Department of Education to establish clear rules on when student loan debt can be discharged in bankruptcy. Many argue that the interpretation of what is an undue hardship depends on that specific judge’s interpretation of the law, which can be very unfair to the borrower if the judge hearing his or her case happens to be tough on discharging certain debts.

By making it easier to discharge student loan debt in bankruptcy, it is a distinct possibility that lenders will be more willing to work with a borrower who is struggling to pay on his or her loans. If the borrower is not able to work out a payment plan with the lender, he or she should then have the option to discharge that debt just as easily as other debts in a bankruptcy case and receive a fresh financial start.

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Source:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/lawmakers-plan-would-let-borrowers-cancel-student-loans-in-bankruptcy-11557440856

Bankruptcy Law, Debt Relief, Student Loans

Another Broken Promise to Student Loan Borrowers: Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Posted on May 8, 2019by Admin

Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program Proves Unforgiving for Borrowers

A program that was once promoted as a way for student loan borrowers to receive forgiveness for their student loans is now coming under fire after it has been discovered that 99 percent of its applicants have been rejected.

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program was created in 2007 and promised to cancel any remaining student debt for those who work government jobs or for non-profit organizations and have been making continuous payments on their student loans for 10 years. Many teachers, public defenders, Peace Corps workers, and law enforcement officers have applied for the student loan forgiveness offered by the program.

It is estimated that over 73,000 borrowers have applied for debt forgiveness as of March 31, 2019, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education. However, only 864 of these borrowers have had their loans forgiven. In fact, only one percent of all Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) applications submitted were approved for loan forgiveness. This rate of approval leaves borrowers frustrated and confused as to why they worked so hard to qualify for a program that is now failing them.

Consumer advocates claim that the legislation was poorly written while others claim that mismanagement by loan servicers has led to the issues these borrowers are now facing.

According to the breakdown from the U.S. Department of Education, 16 percent of the denials were due to the borrower having the wrong type of loan while 25 percent were due to information missing in the applications. In addition, 53 percent of applications were denied due to the borrower not making enough payments.

One of the major issues that borrowers are discovering is that while their loans are federally-guaranteed, they are actually privately owned. Many law schools have been accused of offering only private student loans in their financial-aid packages but not clarifying this fact to the borrower. Congress has fixed this issue by eliminating federally-guaranteed private loans as of 2010, but if you are a borrower who took out one of those loans before that time, this fact may hurt your chances of qualifying for the loan forgiveness.

Government officials have also been accused of not properly educating borrowers on the requirements of the program or publishing clear guidelines on which employers qualify as a public-service organization and which do not, another issue that has resulted in denials for many borrowers.

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Bankruptcy Law, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

99 Percent of Public Service Student Loan Forgiveness Applicants Rejected

Posted on May 7, 2019by Admin

According to recent U.S. Department of Education statistics, more than 99 percent of people who have applied for available public service student loan forgiveness have been rejected. As of December 31, 2018, it was reported that 65,500 total applications for the public service student loan forgiveness program had been submitted. However, of this total, 58,000 applications had been processed with the majority of them resulting in denials. An additional 7,200 applications were marked as pending.

The program’s requirements are complicated, and not well-explained to qualifying borrowers. Approval requires more than simply working in public service. The Public Service Student Loan Forgiveness Program is offered through the federal government and requires the borrower work full-time, meaning more than 30 hours per week, in an eligible federal, state or local public service job. The borrower can also work for a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so long as the position is a full-time, eligible one. The borrower must make 120 eligible on-time payments to qualify.

Several different reasons were given for these denials. Seventy-three percent of these rejected applications were denied due to the applicant not meeting the “program’s requirements.” These requirements could mean either the borrower did not have student loans that were eligible for forgiveness, did not have qualifying employment, or did not make the 120 consecutive required qualifying student loan payments. Another 25 percent of these student loan forgiveness applications were denied because the applications were incomplete or had missing information on the employment certification form.

The report indicated that only 610 applications for student loan forgiveness had been approved and that 338 borrowers had received a collective amount of $21.1 million in public service student loan forgiveness. Less than 0.5 percent of the applications submitted were successful.

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Student Loans

ABI Releases Key Recommendations on Discharging Student Loan Debt in Bankruptcy

Posted on May 1, 2019by Admin

Student loan debt can be particularly challenging to discharge in bankruptcy. The current undue hardship standard can be difficult for most borrowers to meet. However, that doesn’t mean student loan debt is any less burdensome than other types of debt that are discharged in bankruptcy. Borrowers can spend years struggling to make payments on student loans, only to see thousands of dollars in interest and fees added to the total if they default on a payment or have to go into forbearance. Most borrowers do not see bankruptcy as being a viable option to discharge their student loan debt.

However, this may soon change thanks to the recommendations made by the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI). How student loan debt is handled in bankruptcy is just one of issues being reviewed by ABI and discussed in the final report made by the Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy.

The ABI Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy was created in 2016 with the mission of researching and recommending improvements to the country’s current bankruptcy system. The changes include amendments to the Bankruptcy Code, as well as administrative rules, recommendations on interpreting the current bankruptcy law, and modifications to the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure.

When the Commission began its work, they asked for input on what bankruptcy issues should be reviewed. Student loan debt was one of the issues that received the most recommendations. With consumers holding an estimated $1.5 trillion in student debt, the fact that this issue is an area of focus by the ABI Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy is not surprising. It is also estimated that over 40 million American consumers currently carry some amount of student loan debt.

Bankruptcy is intended to serve as a fresh start for consumers struggling financially, but the tests currently used by bankruptcy courts to determine whether the filer’s student loan debt should be partially or completely discharged makes this fresh start an impossibility for many.

The Commission recommended that the current bankruptcy law be re-written so that student loan borrowers who are no longer able to continue paying on their debts and default on their student loans be allowed to receive this fresh start.

Currently, the law requires that the borrower prove an undue hardship before being able to discharge the debt. However, what qualifies as a hardship is not defined legally. Courts have used various tests to determine what qualifies as a hardship, but no uniform test exists. The Commission recommended that a student loan debt be allowed to be discharged unless certain factors exist including: 1) the debt was made, insured or guaranteed by a government agency; 2) the debt was incurred for the borrower’s own education, and 3) the student loan first became payable less than seven years before the bankruptcy petition was filed.

The recommendations made by the Commission would have the effect of eliminating the protection private student lenders have previously enjoyed. Additionally, it would make it possible for individuals who took loans out on behalf of someone else to get out of the debt, including parents who co-signed loans for their children. These recommendations are being submitted to Congress, and it is hoped that lawmakers will take this report and use it to propel change to the current bankruptcy system.

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Related Resource:

https://consumercommission.abi.org/

Bankruptcy Law, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

How the Student Loan Debt Crisis Got So Bad

Posted on April 9, 2019by Admin

Student loan debt is a problem that plagues over 40 million Americans. It is currently estimated that more than $1.5 trillion is owed in student loan debt nationwide. With an outstanding balance this large, many are asking: how did this problem get so out of hand?

Former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Ombudsman and the current Executive Director of the Student Borrower Protection Center, Seth Frotman, recently gave an interview to Yahoo Finance where he provided his input on the situation. Since he was on the front lines when it came to government protection of student borrowers, Frotman believes that loan balances have gotten out of hand as a result of decades of predatory lending and weak government regulation over the student loan sector.

Frotman resigned from the CFPB in August 2018 in a letter where he accused the current administration of not protecting student borrowers from predatory lending and other similar practices. In his letter, Frotman accused the administration of not enforcing lending violations and protecting bad lenders in the process.

In the interview, Frotman gave some background as to how student loans have been handled in past decades. For the most part, student loans are issued by banks or federally-backed private lenders. Given the fact that someone asking for a student loan normally does not have an extensive credit history, it is important that these borrowers are protected when taking out money to attend college.

However, over time, the cost of going to college began to skyrocket. It is estimated that the average cost of tuition for a private non-profit four-year university is $35,830, which is twice what a college student would have paid two decades ago. As tuition costs went up, the loans students had to take on to pay for going to college also went up. The result of this increase attracted other less-than-reputable lenders who saw a huge money-making opportunity.

In Frotman’s words “no one was minding the store” when it came to student lending, as more and more companies joined the student lending game. Unfortunately, the 2008 recession caused even more problems. Congress ended up bailing out the banks’ student loan arms hundreds of billion dollars to ensure that students still had access to loans to attend college.

As a result, however, the government ended up owning a great deal of student loan debt. The government ended up entering contracts with banks and loan providers that serviced student loans, including Navient, Nelnet, Great Lakes and FedLoan. These contracts are expected to expire this summer, leaving many, including Frotman, to worry about what will happen next. The current Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos, has mentioned that she would consider an exclusive contract to just one company to service billions of dollars of existing student loans, which has raised a lot of opposition. However, until a decision is made, it is expected that the existing contracts will be extended.

Lenders are required to follow a series of rules and regulations when it comes to providing student loans, but it was discovered recently by a government watchdog that the Department of Education was not holding loan providers accountable under these regulations. Some of these violations included misleading borrowers into putting their loans in forbearance, putting delinquent accounts into forbearance without borrower approval, and generally not holding servicers accountable.

The situation is expected to get even worse. It is estimated, as of February 2019, that 11.5 percent of student loans are at least 90 days delinquent or are in default. It is possible this number underestimates just how many borrowers are behind on their payments, including those in forbearance or loans that are deferred, which means the number of loans that are past-due could be even higher.

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