Federal Agencies Loan Repayment Assistance for Employees

Federal Agencies' Loan Repayment Assistance for Employees The federal government helped repay more than $58.7 million of its employees’ student loans last year, according to a report from the Office of Personnel Management. That’s an 11% increase in what government agencies contributed to employees’ debt repayment in 2013, and 15% more employees received the benefit: 8,469 in 2014, compared to 7,314 in 2013. Those figures have previously been higher â€" 10,543 employees received $70.3 million in 2012 â€" but budget problems reportedly made it more difficult for agencies to offer the incentive in recent years. Still, for the thousands of employees who received loan assistance last year, the perk can be a huge help. The average student loan payment in 2014 was $6,937, down from $7,233 in 2013. Federal agencies have offered loan repayment assistance for more than a decade, but as more and more people take on increasingly large amounts of student loan debt to finance their educations, the program’s popularity has grown (in 2001, only one agency reported authorizing a student loan payment, according to earlier reports from the OPM). The amount of help employees can receive has also increased, and borrowers can now receive up to $10,000 in loan payments from their government employer each year (limited to $60,000 overall) on certain federal student loans. The employee must stay at the agency for three years to qualify. How Can I Get Help With My Student Loans? Given that about 70% of bachelor’s degree recipients graduate with an average of $28,400 in student loan debt, student loan repayment programs are an attractive perk to much of today’s workforce. If you’re among this indebted population, it’s worth researching companies who offer such programs and asking potential employers how they might be able to help you pay down your debt. There are also student loan forgiveness programs for people in certain career fields, so take the time to see if you qualify. You may be able to save tens of thousands of dollars. Whether or not you’re getting help repaying your education debt, it’s crucial to stay on top of your loans. Student loans can affect your ability to buy a car or house, because missing payments will hurt your credit score. Read Next: This Legal Brothel Is Matching Sex Workers’ Student Loan Payments More From Credit.com: What’s a Good Credit Score Range? How to Get a Credit Card with No Credit How to Pick a Good Student Credit Card Video Player is loading.Play VideoPlayMuteCurrent Time  0:00/Duration  0:00Loaded: 0%Stream Type  LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time  -0:00  SharePlayback Rate1xChaptersChaptersDescriptionsdescriptions off, selectedCaptionscaptions settings, opens captions settings dialogcaptions off, selectedAudio TrackFullscreenThis is a modal window. This video is either unavailable or not supported in this browser Error Code: MEDIA_ERR_SRC_NOT_SUPPORTED Technical details : No compatible source was found for this media. Session ID: 2019-12-31:a4b2581e8f3b4e77bb4aa485 Player Element ID: jumpstart_video_1 OK Close Modal DialogBeginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.TextColorWhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentBackgroundColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentWindowColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyTransparentSemi-TransparentOpaqueFont Size50%75%100%125%150%175%200%300%400%Text Edge StyleNoneRaisedDepressedUniformDropshadowFont FamilyProportional Sans-SerifMonospace Sans-SerifProportional SerifMonospace SerifCasualScriptSmall CapsReset restore all settings to the default valuesDoneClose Modal DialogEnd of dialog window.PlayMuteCurrent Time  0:00/Duration  0:00Loaded: 0%Stream Type  LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time  -0:00  Playback Rate1xFullscreenClose Modal DialogThis is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.Close Modal DialogThis is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.