In the United States, there are more than 44 million borrowers who owe $1.5 trillion in student loan debt. In Wisconsin, the average student loan debt exceeds $29,000.
Milwaukee area financial expert, Melanie Eden with Eden Financial Services, has advice for college kids and their parents. She says students should be making their own money.
“The best thing that they can do is to work when they are in school, when they are in high school and when they are in college,” said Eden.
For parents of college-aged kids, if you yourself have good credit, Eden has a tip for you.
“One of the great things parents can do for their kids when they're young is to help them with their credit score,” she said.
Eden encourages parents to add their children onto their credit card as an authorized user.
“It doesn’t mean they get a card," she said. "It doesn’t mean anything except they get our credit score."
She explained that way, when they go to apply for student loans, they can get a loan at a lower interest rate.
She added, if your college student is bad with money, it won't hurt your credit.
“Everything tracks to your social security number, so it has no effect on you," said Eden. "It has a huge impact on them. It has none on you."
If you are employed by a government or not-for-profit organization, or take a teaching job, you may be able to receive loan forgiveness.
Check out the following link for that information.
