Investopedia examines the state of student loans as the countdown to payback starts.
Gaelle Gilles anticipated suffering a significant financial setback at the start of the summer.
Payments on student loans will resume on October 1st.
Many debtors are now in a different financial position than they had before the three-year payment suspension started.
Many people have received a reprieve from their required monthly payments thanks to the recently launched SAVE repayment plan.
Gilles is a 28-year-old software engineer who holds a master's degree from Pace University and resides in Scotch Plains, New Jersey.
She was on schedule to make a $900 monthly student loan payment.
Her first professional job pays her $70,000 a year, which is a significant reduction.
Beginning in July of next year, borrowers who combine their loans into a SAVE plan won't revert to the previous consolidation state where they lose their progress toward forgiveness.
Education Department. What the New SAVE Plan Will Do to Change Loan Repayment and Protect Borrowers,"
They will instead receive credit based on a weighted average of the aggregated loans.
Reyna Gobel, a student debt expert and author, advised borrowers thinking about the SAVE plan and wanting to consolidate to wait until then to do so.