Ready to continue that talk on student loan repayments? 😮‍💨 Don’t worry—Adriana Morga (she/her), a financial wellness reporter who specializes in news that impact communities of colors, is here to help break it down for us. Afterall, what’s more impactful than people’s personal finances? Now to that pesky topic at hand…

How exactly did the debt ceiling deal affect student loan payments, and what should people expect to happen in the following months?
The signing of the debt ceiling deal ended the three-year student loan payment pause that started at the beginning of the pandemic. While the Biden administration has extended the payment pause several times, the debt ceiling deal solidified that it won’t be extended further. Republicans argued that the payment pause has cost billions of dollars in revenue to the federal government.

Before the debt ceiling deal, the Biden admin had announced that payments would resume in the late summer. After the deal was signed though, the Education Department announced new dates for the restart of student loan payments. Student loan interest will now begin accruing on September 1st, 2023, and payments will begin in October.

What are some ways to help us prepare for the return of those payments?
People with student loans can take several steps to prepare for the payment restart. I actually spoke with a few experts about this topic and here are some highlights:

1. Get your info right. Since the start of the pandemic, several loan servicers have now ended their student loan services. So, borrowers want to make sure they know exactly who their servicer is. They can find this information in their account dashboard, or they can contact the Federal Student Aid Information Center. Additionally, borrowers should check if their personal information (see: name, address, phone number, and email) is up to date so they don’t miss any updates.

2. Know your payment amount. In order to start planning for the payments, borrowers want to know how much their monthly payments will be. They can find this info using the “loan simulation” tool at studentaid.gov.

3. Start budgeting. Borrowers need to start adding their repayments to their monthly budget. They will need to take a dive into their current expenses and check where they’ll need to cut costs so they can allocate that money towards their student loan payments.

4. Start saving, as you can. Saving is one of those things, we always say we need to do but actually doing it is another story. However, starting to save right now can save you a headache later. While not everyone is in the position to save the full amount of their first monthly payments, putting aside even a few dollars a week that will go towards your repayments can be beneficial. For those who have a hard time saving, a technique that is my personal favorite is the “cash stuffing” envelope system. This system is based on the idea of saving cash in envelopes (or binders) every month for a specific financial goal.

What’s your advice to those who feel stressed TF out about the restart of student loan payments?
My advice for people who are feeling overwhelmed about the start of payments is that they’re not alone. This will affect more than 40M people in the country and, from the people I’ve interviewed, many are feeling the exact same way. It’s also very important to know that there are a lot of organizations and people that are willing to help you figure out how to navigate this situation. If you’re not in the position of affording your monthly payments, reaching out to financial counselors from non-profit orgs is a great option.