Don't Pay for Student Loan Help You Don't Need

Recently, a consumer sent a message asking us what we knew about a company called MoneySolver. MoneySolver seemed to offer a way out of his student loan debt, but he wanted to double check with us before giving them his money.

Unfortunately, this was no golden key to get out of student loan debt. Student loans are notoriously hard to get out of. Not even most bankruptcies cancel student loans. There are some exceptions, though. Certain professions that are considered public service may qualify employees for loan forgiveness after working for a specific length of time. There are also some exceptions for extreme hardship, a school that shutters immediately after you graduate or leave, total disability, and death.

What MoneySolver is actually doing is nothing more than filling out forms. As their own disclaimer says, “MoneySolver helps prepare and process the application for student loan consolidation and repayment programs offered by the DOE. You can apply for loan consolidation or other repayment programs without paid assistance at no cost through the Department of Education (DOE) at www.ed.gov.” They are not doing anything you couldn’t do yourself for free.

So why do companies like MoneySolver exist? It’s not just to get the little guy. It’s because some cases really are complex, such as cases involving taxes or complex loans.

But student loans are not particularly complex, and your lender can help. So before you go paying someone to fill out forms, take a look at the website provided by MoneySolver themselves. Chances are you don’t need anyone’s help, and you certainly don’t need to pay anyone.