Balancing Life and Personal Finanace
It is never easy to balance needs and wants in personal finance. It is even harder to balance needs when we are faced with mounting debt, accumulating interest and unstable income. There are times when each of us may face these types of challenges, and balancing responsibilities becomes overwhelming.
There are many resources available to help with budgeting or managing debt with numerous sites are available at the Road to Money Management tab on this site.
If you find that you have become late in making payments, this WILL affect your credit. If you are unable to pay your student loans, there are many alternatives to permit you to postpone making payments (deferments and forbearances). Visit the Who to Call for Help tab for useful contact information. It is never an option not to pay or process something in lieu of payments. If this occurs, you will enter default and experience damaged credit, wage garnishment and your income tax refunds may be seized.
You should check your credit once each year to make sure that there are no errors which will negatively affect your future.
Visit https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp or http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/freereports/index.shtml to read more from the Federal Trade Commission about the importance of checking your credit.
You should turn to this resource to help balance student loans, consumer credit, and to understand your rights in a consumer lending environment.
Consider this publication with five helpful hints for improving your credit score...
http://www.federalreserve.gov/consumerinfo/fivetips_creditscore.htm