Consumer complaint received 2023-10-19
Company: MOHELA
State: TX
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Trouble with how payments are being handled

Complaint:
09/27/23 : Income-Driven Repayment Application submitted with spouse 's financial information. The online form versus the PDF " copy '' included different questions and information. 

XXXX  : Mohela sent a billing statement for {$2400.00} on Standard Level Plan. My IDR application is still pending. 

XXXX  : Dear Mohela, My husband and I submitted an IDR application last week via your website. My payment currently states that it is due on XXXX for approximately $ XXXX. We are concerned about the time it will take to process the application because we can not pay that amount. We are trying to get a mortgage and have been denied due to the current monthly amount Mohela states I am required to pay. We are further worried that non-payment of the {$2500.00} will go on our credit report, causing further challenges in our ability to have a home and start a family. We are also concerned because the application that was filled out online vs. the PDF " copy '' had different questions. In fact, there were many questions that were on the PDF " copy '' that were not asked in the website version. This also concerns us in that it may lead to an unjust denial of other repayment options, at no fault of our own. My husband put in his information regarding the approximately {$160000.00} in loans he owes and his income, given that I am currently unemployed. XXXX. What is the estimated timeframe for application decisions? XXXX. If the application either isn't reviewed in time or there are complications with the application by XX/XX/XXXX, how will Mohela address this? We sincerely hope it won't just continue charging us while these very important things are held in limbo. Thank you for your time. XXXX XXXX XXXX : Received a generic and confusing correspondence from Mohela that stated, " WHY WE ARE CONTACTING YOU Your recent request has been received and is expected to be processed within the next XXXX business days. 
ACTION BY MOHELA We will review your request and the details of your loan information to determine if the request will be approved, denied for reasons such as not meeting eligibility requirements or the information provided to us is incomplete, or if the request required further review by Federal Student Aid ( FSA ). Notification will be sent to you after your request has been processed. 
ACTION BY YOU If your loan ( XXXX ) are suspended through another forbearance or deferment and you are not due for payment, no action is required at this time. However, if your loan ( XXXX ) are in repayment, payment ( XXXX ) remain due, and if you are participating in Auto Debit, this remains active. 
Should your request be denied due to incompleteness, provide the necessary information to us by mail, fax, or upload on mohela.com. If the denial is due to ineligibility and you believe your eligibility has changed, you may reapply by completing and submitting a new request. Please be on the look-out for notification from us for the approval, denial or if the request has been forwarded to XXXX for review. '' My application is still pending and actively due. 

XXXX XXXX Dear Mohela, I am writing to you today to request administrative forbearance for my loans due on XXXX XXXX XXXX  days from today ). I am requesting this because on XXXX  I submitted an IDR application, which included my husband 's loan and income information. Since then, the only correspondence I've received from Mohela was a message stating that it would take XXXX ( XXXX ) days to process. Despite this, my account still states that a whopping {$2500.00} is owed on XXXX  This will not be paid because we can not afford it. Because of this, I request to be placed on administrative forbearance until the application is successfully processed and a feasible monthly payment is determined. Thanks. Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX  : I logged into my account where there was a generic/unaddressed window that said : Prepare for Student Loan Payments to Restart " You are currently on an income-driven repayment plan. If your payment is not affordable, you can have your payment recalculated or switch to a different IDR plan at any time. '' This was not an official message to me, so I checked my Mohela account and it still stated that I was on the Standard Level Plan with {$2400.00} due on XXXX XXXX Dear Mohela, I'm writing to you again because my IDR application is still pending and I have not been placed on administrative forbearance, despite payment being due on the Level Plan in XXXX ( XXXX ) days for {$2500.00} on XX/XX/XXXX. This is very concerning. I'm asking again, please place me on administrative forbearance. There was a message when I first logged in stating I was on IDR, yet none of my repayment information is consistent with that. I have received nothing. I understand Mohela is bogged down, but this is ruining lives. Please place me on administrative forbearance while the application is pending. Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX : Dear Mohela, I submitted an IDR application in XXXX and it is pending, yet my account still states I must pay {$2500.00} on the Level Plan in XXXX DAYS. I have requested administrative forbearance multiple times, in addition to the Department of Education advising student loan lenders to place pending applications on administrative forbearance. I demand that action be taken on this matter. If it is not taken prior to being charged the current egregious amount on XX/XX/XXXX, I will seek legal counsel. This will arbitrarily ruin my credit and place even more financial stress on me and my family. Please place my account on ADMINISTRATIVE FORBEARANCE. Sincerely, XXXX XXXX

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation