Student loan repayments set to resume with CARES Act deadline looming

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – The CARES Act is set to expire on December 31st. When it does, so will student loan repayment relief.

As part of the coronavirus aid legislation, borrowers had their payments and interest rates temporarily suspended.

Kayleigh Mazon graduated from the University of Utah in May. She shares with ABC4 the frustration she’s experienced surrounding her scheduled repayments.

“I went online and looked and I saw that my repayment date wasn’t until April,” said Mazon.

She says her April 2021 payment was scheduled to begin six months after the initial September 30th deadline for the CARES Act.

“Then once the CARES Act was extended to the end of this year I went back on to just check and everything had changed,” she says.

Now, payments on her $30,000 student loans kick in next month.

“I called my service provider and asked if there was anything that could be done,” said Mazon. “They said this is how it’s been all along. I was mistaken.”

“It’s okay if you can’t pay them,” says Leslie Tayne, Esq, the Founding Director of the Tayne Law Group based in New York. “That’s why there are programs available. So, it’s important to have that dialogue with the creditor 100%. Don’t agree to programs or repayment schedules that you can’t meet and you won’t be able to complete because that will eliminate the credibility you have with your servicer.”

Tayne recommends finding out if your loans are private or federal. She says it can dictate what programs are available to you.

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