Delivered from College Debt & Given a 2nd Chance
Mike graduated from law school and passed the bar, excited to start his new future as a criminal defense attorney. Unfortunately, fate had other plans for Mike and six months after his graduation, when his student loan debt deferment ended, he suddenly found himself responsible for paying on nearly $100,000 of student loan debt and only a full-time job working as a clerk in a law office to help him pay for it.
Mike struggled for many months after his loan payments began, trying his best to cut out any extra expenses, but his loan payment was nearly $1,000 per month, more than the mortgage he was paying on the small home he'd bought earlier. Eventually Mike came to the conclusion that he needed help with his debts and feeling hopeless, he turned to a debt counselor to help him find relief for his situation.
Exploring the Options
Once the counselor had thoroughly evaluated Mike's income level, his debt burden and his monthly expenses, he formulated a few plans to offer to Mike to help him out. During a phone conversation, Mike's options were laid out for him:
1. Increase his income: Though Mike was looking diligently and constantly for a job with a firm as an attorney, his debt counselor suggested that until he found that job, Mike might want to add on a 2nd, part-time job in the evenings and weekends that would bring him the $1,000 a month he needed to round out his budget and pay the student loan debt.
2. Use the equity in his home: Since mike had purchased his home and almost paid it off completely using money from an inheritance he'd received years ago, his house had plenty of equity in it. As an option to manage his debt, Mike's counselor suggested taking out a home equity loan, and then using it to pay off the small mortgage he had remaining on the home and pay off the student loan debt, keeping some of the extra and using it to make his new mortgage payments until he managed to secure a better-paying job as an attorney.
3. Seek loan forgiveness: Exploring Mike's options thoroughly, his counselor knew that there were options for attorneys to do certain types of pro bono or low-paying work in certain neighborhoods and areas where the government sought help with the indigent and receive, in return, partial loan forgiveness and/or deferment for paying on loans.
Mike Slept on it and Made His Choice
After spending a few days thinking about the options presented to him, Mike made the decision to seek the loan forgiveness first, and then, if it proved to be too trying or not sufficient enough, to get the 2nd mortgage on his home. A year after his decision, Mike had been working as a defense attorney for the state and in doing so had gained enough of a reputation to impress a law firm to hire him. Nearly 1/3rd of his student loan had been forgiven for his work and the payments once he moved to the private sector were smaller and much more easily managed by his new salary. Mike paid off his small mortgage and was able to sell his home, taking the full profit and using to pay for his wedding and buy a bigger home for him and his new bride to enjoy.
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