There are many people that are haunted by past and present student loans. Its no surprise. What other loan do you take out when you dont have a job or other means of repaying the loan?

Luckily, there are numerous options if you are having difficulty paying your student loans. The best thing you can do is stay in good communication with your lender.

If you have decided to return to school, or have recently experienced a major financial hardship, you may qualify for a deferment. Under this scenario, the lender will agree to suspend your payments for a set period of time. Additionally, no interest will accumulate during this time.

Even if you are not approved for deferment, there is still another option. Ask your lender if you can go into forbearance. Although interest will still accumulate, this can help you avoid going into default by lowering or eliminating your payment for a set period of time.

If you are just getting out of school and are concerned about large student loan payments, ask your lender about setting up a graduated payment plan. Under this plan, your payment will start off low and go up over time. You will only want to do this if necessary, because the lower payment means more interest will accrue and you will pay more over time.

If your loans are already in default, you may have heard from one of the private collection agencies that the government has hired. If you have, you probably know how ugly these collectors can be.

Here are some key facts you need to know:

-Bankruptcy does not relieve you from student loan obligations

-Because of this, lenders will almost never negotiate a settlement.

-If you are due a tax refund, the lender will take this money.

Regardless of this, there is some hope for your defaulted loan!

You may be able to rehabilitate your student loan. The government has a program in place that even allows you to remove the negative information from your file! The first step to do this is contacting the lender and letting them know you wish to rehabilitate the loan.

Once you have made acceptable payment arrangements, you will need to make at least twelve payments on time. The delinquent history should be removed from your credit file once this is done.

Regardless of if you are facing default, or have already defaulted on your student loans, the government provides many options to cure your debt. The key is knowledge, communication and action.