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SAVE is the difference between crushing student loan debt and hope for many Mainers.
About 180,000 people in Maine have student loans. They are our neighbors, teachers, recent graduates, nurses and even our grandparents. Life doesn’t always work out the way we plan it. A lot of people, throughout their lives, struggle with student loan debt.
One lifeline for people with federal student loans is called income-driven repayment. There are a couple of different income-driven repayment plans, which calculate your monthly student loan payment based on your income. The idea is that your payment is affordable, even if you have a high balance. Otherwise, people would fall behind on their loans and into default because the monthly payment amounts are just way too big. Such plans have been around since the 1990s, and there have been new income-driven repayment plans introduced over the years.
You may have heard about the newest income-driven repayment plan called SAVE. SAVE is much, much more affordable than the other income-driven repayment plans that came before. For example, say you’re a single mom of one, who graduated from college, now makes $50,000, and has $33,000 in student loan debt ( the state average). On an old plan, you may have had a monthly payment of between $170 and $255. SAVE brings that payment down to just $23 per month.
But SAVE is in jeopardy — there are lawsuits challenging the SAVE plan. Overturning it would mean that many Mainers would no longer have access to an actually affordable repayment option. And in the meantime, people are being put into forbearances and have limited options or guidance on how to manage their loans.
SAVE is the difference between food on the table and a hungry kid, the difference between saving an emergency fund and struggling the next time a big life expense comes up.
Pine Tree Legal Assistance provides information and legal help to student loan borrowers. Learn more about your rights and get answers to common student loan questions at ptla.org/student-loans#.
Sophie Laing
Student loan attorney
Pine Tree Legal Assistance
Portland
