Consumer complaint received 2019-01-08
Product: Student loan — Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Struggling to repay your loan — Can't get other flexible options for repaying your loan
Company: AES/PHEAA (TX)

On XX/XX/2018 I was let go of my position so I immediately submitted an income-based repayment to the federal student loan office my payment at the time was {$160.00} a month. Once I submitted my paperwork they took me off of income based repayment and they raise my monthly payment amount to {$260.00} how I was expected to pay {$260.00} a month when I had just lost my job I don't know luckily I have a car so I worked for XXXX in order to make that money I made as many payments as I could in XX/XX/2018 I got a job with the XXXX I worked with the XXXX  for 3 months before putting in my two weeks notice because it was a very toxic environment and it was not the type of environment that I wanted to be working in I was being bullied at work by my co-workers who are in the training and they were saying things like they would kill themselves if they had to sit next to me and making fun of people and talking badly behind other people 's back when I brought it up to my supervisor and management they did absolutely nothing to correct it. So I put in my two weeks notice and I was let go immediately. I got another position with the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX making {$11.00} an hour plus tips. I worked there for three weeks and then I got into a car wreck a deer came out of nowhere and hit the side of my vehicle just as the deer hit me I turned to make a left turn and I stopped to check on the damage will Justice I made that left turn to pull into the church so that I can look at the damage some other vehicle came out of nowhere and hit the back of my car my car had to be taken to the Collision company and I was fired the very next day because I called in because I couldn't get to work I live 45 minutes away from a bus stop. During this time I had applied for income-based repayment three times and they kept raising how much I owed every month first they raised it by XXXX dollars then they asked me to pay {$280.00} a month in XX/XX/XXXX they asked me to pay {$340.00} and right now my father being the generous person that he is assisted me and paid off an entire student loan for me about {$3600.00} he made this payment on the XX/XX/XXXX the payment has not been processed and did not go through until yesterday the XX/XX/XXXX because of this processing of this payment my income based repayment recalculation has yet to be recalculated they want me to pay {$280.00} even though I just made a {$3600.00} payment. I have even written letters to the student company explaining to them that last year had been very difficult for me I had never been fired and yet in one year I was fired twice. I'm pretty much at my Wit 's End and I'm tired of dealing with them not to mention the fact that last year in XX/XX/XXXX when I got fired my took pity on me paid off {$1000.00}. I owed {$22000.00}. He paid off {$1000.00} generously, so I owed {$21000.00} this was back in XX/XX/XXXX I believe. Now because I have been working XXXX  all last year for 6 months I have been making as many minimum payments as I could my Dad paid {$1000.00} and XX/XX/XXXX said I could be a head by three months so I made about {$50.00} payments for XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX. By the end of XX/XX/XXXX had already started my position with the XXXX so I was able to make the {$50.00} payment in XX/XX/XXXX because I was paid ahead. However I still owe {$21000.00}. How is it that I'm making payments and I owe more than what I did since XX/XX/XXXX when my father paid {$1000.00}? Also they raised my interest rate without telling me and without notice. This wouldn't be so frustrating if it weren't for the fact that I have been busting my XXXX to pay off my student loans as fast as possible and yet the price still keeps going up even though I'm making payments and I'm paid ahead so I think there's something wrong with the student loan department and I think they're stealing money from students and I'm lucky that I owe only {$21000.00} because I can just imagine the frustration of people who are paying {$500.00} a month on their student loan payment and yet there's nothing there student loans go up because they asked to be put on an income-based repayment plan it makes no sense to me and so I want to report this to you but I also want to report this and find a pro bono lawyer  because I think they're stealing money from people in this needs to be investigated ASAP. The woman that I talked to even told me she would help me out because I was very nice but she said for other people if they're rude I make it even more difficult for them she told me this over the phone and I'm not sure what her name is but I thought that was extremely unprofessional because it doesn't matter if a person is rude or not student loans are very frustrating and it's no wonder that we are seeing more school shootings we are seeing more people freaking out and doing horrible things to each other and it's because we're constantly under stress from people who just want to take money from you and steal from you like the federal student loans are doing to me so now I'm taking out the measly {$3000.00} I have in savings I'm XXXX years old and I have {$3000.00} in life savings okay because of my student loans and I'm going to take out those measly {$3000.00} so that I can pay off yet another student loan that way that's one less loan to worry about but guess what that leaves me with a XXXX emergency savings that leaves me with XXXX savings XXXX years old, over 15 years of full-time work and I barely have {$3000.00} to show for it. How am I supposed to make it through life how am I supposed to retire and I'm lucky because I don't have kids I'm not married but I can just imagine the people who have children and who are married. Something needs to be done and it needs to be investigated