How Can I be Removed as a Student Loan Cosigner?

Q: About ten years ago, a family member asked me to cosign a private student loan for their last year of college. They graduated and managed to get a job, and have never been late or missed a payment on any of the loans they took out to get themselves through school. However, I have become disabled, my income is limited, and want to be off the hook for this debt. Recently, my family member has been looking at consolidating the remainder of the balances so that there will just be one low payment. It will significantly reduce their expenses each month – of which the private loan is a major part. The servicer for the private loan says that this can’t be done and that the loan has to be paid in full before a cosigner is released. Is this true?P.S. There have been problems with the servicer before this, and that’s one of the reasons for consolidation.

A: The person on the other end of the phone may think that it’s true – or not – but there are ways to get removed as a student loan cosigner. The thing is, that with consolidation, the loan would be repaid in full – so what they’re saying makes no sense at all. I’d like to know the name of the servicer, too, if you’re inclined to tell me.You are right to be concerned about being on this loan when you are ill and/or in a precarious financial situation. Sometimes when a cosigner dies or files for bankruptcy, the servicer puts the loan into default automatically. If, for instance, your loan servicer was Navient – there’s a form to download and conditions to be met for release of cosigner. In fact, it takes only twelve on time payments of principal and interest in a row to meet the conditions.

You and your family member seem to have been in touch with the servicer, and now need to go to the next level. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau provides sample letters for the student borrower and cosigner to send to the loan servicer. These letters request release, or an explanation of why the cosigner is ineligible for release at this time, and when that threshold of eligibility will be reached. After ten years, your family member has been making on time payments on interest and principal, you should be eligible for discharge by even the strictest standards. You’ll need documentation of employment, credit reports, and proof of those on-time payments, and to wait it out.

I still think that because of the refinancing angle, that no release is needed. Once the loan is paid off, it doesn’t matter if the money came from a consolidation or hitting the Powerball – paid is paid. If you and your family member want to consult with me about this, I can offer a free consultation, and maybe some words to the servicer about being truthful and aboveboard with their clients.