When borrowers default on their federal student loans, the U.S. Department of Education (“Department of Education”) can collect the outstanding balance through forced collections, including the offset of tax refunds and Social Security benefits and the garnishment of wages.
Beware: The government can take up to 15% of your Social Security income if you default on federal student loans.
Are student loans forgiven when you retire? No, the federal government doesn't forgive student loans at age 50, 65, or when borrowers retire and start drawing Social Security benefits. So, for example, you'll still owe Parent PLUS Loans, FFEL Loans, and Direct Loans after you retire.
Second, student loan repayments can lower retirement savings. The need to repay student debt may delay or prevent retirement and can negatively impact workers' retirement security. To illustrate these impacts, consider a hypothetical older worker, Chris, who lost his job due to the 2008 financial crisis.
After at least 20 years of student loan payments under an income-driven repayment plan — IDR forgiveness and 20-year student loan forgiveness. After 25 years if you borrowed loans for graduate school — 25-year federal loan forgiveness.
It may take years to reestablish a good credit record. You may not be able to purchase or sell assets such as real estate. Your loan holder can take you to court. You may be charged court costs, collection fees, attorney's fees, and other costs associated with the collection process.
Although your Social Security benefits are indeed vulnerable to garnishment because of unpaid federal student loans, other types of retirement accounts could be immune. You might contact the manager of your pension to determine whether it was established under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
Unaffordable student loans are often seen as a problem afflicting young people, but in 2022, 3.5 million Americans over the age of 60 held $1.25 billion in student loan debt. The number of Americans approaching retirement age with student loan debt skyrocketed over 500 percent in roughly the last two decades.
HOW DOES A LOAN AFFECT MY SSI BENEFIT? If you enter into a valid loan agreement, the value of the cash or item you receive is not income and does not reduce your Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit.
If you default on a federal student loan, then your wages or bank accounts can be garnished without a court order or judgment. The maximum that can be withheld for federal student loan garnishment is 15% of your disposable income.
If your account has more than two months' worth of benefits, your bank can garnish or freeze the extra money. For example: If you receive $1,000 in Social Security benefits by direct deposit each month, and you have $3,000 in your account, the bank can turn over $1,000 of the $3,000 to a debt collector.
Through legislation enacted by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996, the government can garnish up to 15% of your Social Security payments for outstanding debt. The government must leave Social Security beneficiaries with at least $750 per month in benefits if they are garnishing benefits.
Student loans add to your debt-to-income ratio
DTI includes all of your monthly debt payments – such as auto loans, personal loans and credit card debt – divided by your monthly gross income. Student loans increase your DTI, which isn't ideal when applying for mortgages.
Getting a personal loan won't impact your Social Security retirement benefits. However, if you're receiving SSI, it may affect that. That's because SSI has resource limits, and if you don't spend the funds you borrow in a given month, that amount will count toward your resource limit for the following month.
As of May 30, 2023, the average monthly payment for federal student loans was estimated to be about $500 per month when adjusted for inflation. However, the final number depends on the type of loan, loan amount, interest rates, and repayment plan.
Let's say you have $200,000 in student loans at 6% interest on a 10-year repayment term. Your monthly payments would be $2,220. If you can manage an additional $200 a month, you could save a total of $7,796 while trimming a year off your repayment plan.
How student loans affect Social Security. Through a law passed in the mid-1990s, the Treasury Department can work with the Education Department to recoup funds on defaulted federal student loans by withholding borrowers' social security or disability benefits .
While Social Security income can not be garnished by a credit card company to pay a debt, there is one creditor that can garnish it: the U.S. Department of Treasury. Officially called the Treasury Offset Program, Social Security and other federal retirement benefits can be garnished if you owe: Unpaid federal taxes.
Collections (offset and garnishment) on most defaulted loans will stay paused through Sept. 30, 2024, due to the Fresh Start program.
If you default on your student loan, that status will be reported to national credit reporting agencies. This reporting may damage your credit rating and future borrowing ability. Also, the government can collect on your loans by taking funds from your wages, tax refunds, and other government payments.
The Benefits of Fresh Start for Eligible Loans
Restores eligibility to receive federal student aid including Federal Pell Grants and work-study. Protects borrowers from wage garnishments and costly collection fees. Restores eligibility for future loan rehabilitation for borrowers who rehabilitated during the pause.
As a result, student loans can't take your house if you make your payments on time. However, if you miss enough student loan payments, your accounts will first move into delinquency status and then into default status. Once you default on student loans, you're at risk of having your house taken to pay them back.