This whole thread is incredible - I feel like I've found my people! 😭 I've been trying to reach MOHELA for over a month about a payment allocation error and was starting to lose my sanity. The fact that we're all here sharing phone system "hacks" like we're trying to break into Fort Knox just to talk about our own loans is absolutely wild. I'm definitely going to try the 8 AM sharp strategy and that * then 0 trick tomorrow. Has anyone had success with their callback feature? I requested one last week but I'm not holding my breath. It's honestly comforting to know I'm not alone in this nightmare, even though it's terrifying that this is just... normal for them apparently. Thank you all for sharing your hard-won wisdom - you're literally lifesavers! 🙏

Reading through all these comments as someone who just got transferred to MOHELA from Nelnet - I'm genuinely terrified now! 😰 But also incredibly grateful that you all are sharing these strategies. I had no idea it was this bad. Just wanted to add that I work in customer service for a different company, and from an insider perspective, the reason a lot of these "hacks" work is because most call centers have poorly designed phone systems that were never updated. The * then 0 trick, calling at specific times, and using alternate department numbers are all ways to bypass their queue management system that's probably from 2005. It's not your fault that basic customer service is this hard - their infrastructure is just broken. Definitely saving this thread as my MOHELA survival guide! Thanks everyone for turning this nightmare into a community effort 💪

This is such a common problem with MOHELA - you're definitely not alone! I had a similar issue where their system couldn't find my account even though I was getting bills. What finally worked for me was calling and asking them to check if there are multiple accounts under slight variations of my name or SSN. Sometimes when loans get transferred between servicers, duplicate or partial records get created. Also, try logging in using any old account numbers from previous statements if you have them - sometimes that bypasses the SSN lookup entirely. In the meantime, make sure to send them written notice (email is fine) that you're trying to pay but can't access your account due to their technical error. This protects you from late fees and credit damage while they sort it out. Keep all your documentation and don't let them make this your problem when it's clearly their system glitch!

I've been in a similar situation before! One thing that really helped me was calling MOHELA and specifically asking them to do a "three-way verification" of your personal information - they'll go through your name, SSN, date of birth, and address to make sure everything matches exactly in their system. Sometimes there are tiny discrepancies (like a middle initial or apartment number) that cause the online portal to fail but aren't obvious to you as the user. Also, if you have any old loan documents from when your loans were first disbursed or from previous servicers, bring those with you when you call - the original data entry might have had errors that have been carried forward. While you're getting this sorted out, definitely ask them to put a "system access hold" on your account so you won't get dinged for late payments while their technical issue is being resolved. This is totally their problem to fix, not yours! Stay strong and keep advocating for yourself.

This is happening to so many people right now! I've been having the exact same login nightmare for the past week. Based on all the advice in this thread, here's my game plan: 1) Try SSN with absolutely no formatting (just 9 digits), 2) Clear everything and use incognito mode, 3) Try logging in super early morning when servers aren't overloaded, 4) If all else fails, call for that manual account reset. It's honestly insane that we need a whole strategy just to access our own accounts! The phone payment backup at 1-888-866-4352 is a lifesaver though - at least we won't get hit with late fees while dealing with their broken system. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences, this thread is better than MOHELA's actual customer support! 😅

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! Been trying to log in for the past two hours and getting nowhere. Reading through all these responses is both helpful and terrifying - how does a major loan servicer have such a fundamentally broken system? 😤 I'm going to work through the SSN formatting suggestions first (no dashes, just 9 digits), then try the early morning login approach since their servers are probably getting hammered during peak hours. The phone payment backup at 1-888-866-4352 is clutch - thanks everyone for sharing that number! It's honestly wild that we need a whole community troubleshooting guide just to pay our loans, but I'm so grateful for all the detailed advice here. Once I finally get back in (fingers crossed), autopay is happening immediately so I never have to deal with this login nightmare again! Has anyone tried reaching out to them on social media? Sometimes public complaints get faster responses than their actual customer service 🤔

This thread is absolutely amazing! I've been trying to reach MOHELA for over 3 weeks about a payment processing error and was honestly starting to lose hope. Reading through all these brilliant strategies has completely changed my approach - you all are geniuses! I'm definitely trying the 7:00 AM sharp strategy tomorrow (already set three alarms to make sure I don't miss that exact timing), and the Spanish line hack is pure brilliance @Landon Flounder! I also had no idea about the callback feature or the payment line workaround - this community has basically created a better customer service manual than anything MOHELA provides. It's both frustrating and oddly comforting to know so many of us are dealing with the exact same runaround. We're literally just trying to be responsible borrowers and manage our loans properly, but they make it feel like we're asking for the impossible! Thank you all for sharing these battle-tested tactics. This thread should honestly be pinned as the unofficial MOHELA survival guide because you're all doing more to help borrowers than their actual customer service department! Wish me luck for tomorrow morning's mission 🤞

I've been dealing with MOHELA for the past 6 weeks trying to get my income certification updated and this thread is like finding a secret vault of actually working strategies! Reading through everyone's creative solutions has given me so much hope after literally dozens of failed call attempts. The 7:00 AM sharp timing seems to be the magic bullet that multiple people swear by - definitely setting my alarm for 6:57 tomorrow to be ready! The Spanish line hack @Landon Flounder is absolutely genius, and @Emma Wilson the payment line workaround is brilliant lateral thinking. I never would have thought to approach it from those angles! It's honestly both hilarious and infuriating that we've had to become customer service ninjas just to manage our own loans. Like, we're literally trying to give them money and they make it harder than solving a Rubik's cube! But this community has turned complete chaos into an actual battle plan. One thing I'll add from my failed attempts - avoid calling on Mondays if possible. Seems like that's when everyone else has the same "I'll call first thing this week" idea and the lines are extra jammed. Thanks to everyone for sharing what actually works - you're all doing more to help borrowers than MOHELA's entire customer service department! This thread should be required reading for anyone dealing with them 💪

I'm so sorry you're going through this stress! This exact scenario happened to me about 2 months ago and I was absolutely panicking. Here's what I learned: your payment is almost certainly not lost, it's just stuck somewhere in MOHELA's processing system. I ended up calling them at exactly 8 AM (seriously, set that alarm - the wait times are dramatically shorter first thing in the morning) with all my documentation ready: bank statement screenshot, transaction reference number, exact payment amount and date. The rep I got was super helpful and found my payment sitting in their "pending electronic transactions" queue within minutes. She explained that this happens fairly regularly due to processing delays between different banks and their system. She manually pushed it through and it appeared on my account the next day. My advice: call tomorrow at 8 AM sharp, have everything documented and ready to go, and also send a secure message through their website with the same info as backup. Don't panic - this is definitely a known issue on their end and gets resolved once you can get someone on the phone to look into it. You've got this! 💪

This is such a nightmare situation but you're definitely not alone! I went through this exact same issue about 3 months ago and it was incredibly stressful. What ended up working for me was calling MOHELA right at 8 AM when they open - the hold times are so much better in the morning. I had everything ready: bank statement screenshot showing the deduction, transaction reference number, exact date and amount. The rep was able to find my payment stuck in their "unprocessed payments" system and got it manually applied within 48 hours. A few tips: definitely send a secure message through their website portal too with all your documentation - having multiple touchpoints helps. Also, make sure to ask for a case number when you call so you can reference it if you need to follow up. Don't worry, your payment isn't lost - it's just caught up in their processing system somewhere. This seems to happen way more often than it should with MOHELA, but they will track it down and get it sorted! Hang in there! 💪