ERIKA IN THE NEWS

Debtors staring down their balances received news of the decision in an era of high interest rates and looming economic uncertainty, said Erika Giovanetti, a loans expert at US News & World Report. “This is going to be a big adjustment for people financially for the average American borrower,” she said. “If they were making payments these past few years, it was zero interest. Now they’re probably looking somewhere between 3 and 5.5 percent.”

“The worst thing you can do right now is think, ‘Well, you’re not going to give me forgiveness, so I’m just not going to pay my loans back.’ This could be catastrophic. It’s a misconception that you can just not pay — payments are resuming.”

“If you’re unemployed or going through cancer treatments or have a health condition, there are different types of hardship forbearance, you can apply for. But keep in mind that with most types of forbearance and deferment — unlike the freeze we saw during COVID — interest may accrue.”

“Mortgage rates are about twice as high now as they were a little over a year ago, which has exacerbated housing affordability challenges ahead of the spring 2023 homebuying season. Today’s homebuyers are extremely sensitive to fluctuating interest rates, and a significant drop in mortgage rates would likely make the market more competitive.”

"ARMs can still be a great tool for the right buyer. Especially now, they are a really good way for people to be able to afford those monthly payments, but people need to be aware of the exact terms they are agreeing to in the loan agreements. They also need to be able to have a plan in place to afford higher monthly payments.”

"It really makes sense why some people might be going toward ARMs instead," Giovanetti said: A percentage point may not seem to be much of a difference, but homeowners potentially could shave hundreds of dollars off their monthly payments.

Patients should also ask about financing plans offered by many medical providers, said Giovanetti: "Most medical offices know that people can't afford an unexpected expense of a couple hundred or a couple thousand."

“The goal of our survey was to find out how this pandemic is affecting parents in a financial sense and the results were pretty shocking. Since this pandemic first started, one of the groups that have been really affected is parents and their young children. In addition to parents having to be teachers and caregivers and also work at the same time, they also have to worry about how they’re going to afford to make distance learning happen.”  

“Point-of-sale financing companies like Affirm and Quadpay are popular among consumers. Nearly four in 10 (37 percent) of all Americans surveyed used ‘buy now, pay later’ financing for at least one holiday purchase this year."

"I think that the more frustrating part about this whole experience is knowing that somebody who might not have the same knowledge set as me of these topics is just going to see a bill and pay because they don't feel like they have a choice."

“Despite financial advancements, Black Americans are still seeing less economic prosperity than the nation as a whole. What we found was pretty alarming only because the data is really compelling and you just can't argue with it.”

“It really helps you to analyze your finances without having to do the deep digging. As long as you're checking in on your finances once a month and maybe doing a deep dive once a quarter, these budget apps can be a really good tool to help you do that.”

“The COVID-19 pandemic is weighing down the American health care system. The life-saving medical care that’s being administered by front-line workers like nurses and doctors comes at a high cost, and often that price tag is passed on to the patient. I wouldn’t be surprised to see medical debt continue to rise as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.”