Parent Plus loan disbursed but no loan servicer info yet - normal or concerning?

Thank you! I feel better knowing I'm not the only one. I'll check studentaid.gov tonight. I just don't want to miss any payments and damage my credit score.

wait i thought parent plus loans dont have grace periods? my sons financial aid advisor told me payments start like right away unlike his student loans??

You're right to question this - I should clarify. Parent Plus loans technically don't have the same automatic 6-month grace period that Direct Student Loans have. However, there's still typically a gap between disbursement and when the first payment is due. You can also request a deferment while your student is enrolled at least half-time. Your loan servicer will communicate the exact payment start date once they contact you.

This happened to my sister too! But actually the delay worked in her favor because she was able to save up for the first few payments during that time. I think they're just overwhelmed with processing all the loans, especially with all the recent changes to the federal student aid system.

I had Aidvantage for my son's Parent Plus from last year, but my daughter's got assigned to Nelnet this year. They seem to be spreading them around between the major servicers. If you're having trouble reaching someone at Aidvantage, I used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an actual human. They have this system that waits on hold for you and calls when a rep picks up. Saved me hours of frustration! They have a demo video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ

Excellent! MOHELA is one of the better servicers in my experience. I recommend creating an account on their website as soon as possible. You can set up automatic payments there once they're ready to process them. Glad you were able to find the information you needed!

mohela has my sons loans too and there website is actualy pretty good once you get it all setup. way better than the navient disaster we had for my oldest!!

Wait, Parent Plus loans can be eligible for income-based repayment? I thought those were only for student loans. Is this something new with the Biden changes? How would I even begin to look into that?

It's a bit complicated but yes! Parent Plus loans aren't directly eligible for income-driven repayment plans. However, if you consolidate your Parent Plus loan into a Direct Consolidation Loan, that consolidated loan becomes eligible for Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR). It's not as generous as some of the other plans, but it could lower your payments. You can start the consolidation process at studentaid.gov after you've made your first few payments. The recent changes haven't expanded this much for Parent Plus specifically, but the overall payment calculations are more favorable now.

Yes, most servicers do offer some flexibility with payment start dates! When MOHELA contacts you, they'll typically give you a first payment due date, but you can usually call them to request a deferment or adjust the timing if your student is still enrolled at least half-time. I'd recommend calling as soon as you get your servicer information rather than waiting for the payment notice. That way you can plan around your tuition payment schedule. Also, many servicers offer the option to change your payment due date once you're established - like moving it to later in the month if that works better with your budget.

I don't think they send automatic email notifications when your servicer gets assigned - you pretty much have to keep checking studentaid.gov manually. But once your servicer does get assigned and you create an account with them, then you can usually set up email alerts for payment reminders and account updates. I learned this the hard way with my first Parent Plus loan! Now I just check the federal site every few days until I see the servicer info show up.