Ameritech Financial Suggests That Federal IDRs May Help Student Loan Borrowers on Path to Build Wealth

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May 17, 2018, 08:00 ET

ROHNERT PARK, Calif., May 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Building wealth is one of the main financial goals that Americans strive for. The ability to make more money over one's lifetime is one of the common reasons that individuals attend college. But if they take out student loans to do so, they might start their wealth building years behind as they must contend with their loan payments instead of putting money away in a retirement fund or investing. Ameritech Financial, a document preparation company that assists federal student loan borrowers with federal repayment program applications, reminds borrowers that federal income-driven repayment plans may enable wealth-building practices, starting with keeping up with student loan payments.

"To build wealth, you need money and the ability to set some money aside after paying bills," said Tom Knickerbocker, Executive Vice President of Ameritech Financial. "Some families are simply more able to build wealth than others, and once you have some wealth, it can be easier to build more."

High student loan payments can be a financial barrier for even necessary monthly expenses, let alone wealth-building efforts. Federal income-driven repayment plans (IDRs) are intended to reduce monthly payments to increase affordability and help borrowers pay for their other monthly expenses. Such plans base federal student loan payments on income and family size and might be some households' only option to get on track to build wealth. However, a recent article described that IDRs may not do enough to reduce the racial wealth gap.

While IDRs can make monthly payments more affordable for any household with eligible income levels, the article argues that having financial assets, which is one way to measure wealth, can make IDR payments easier to manage. For example, because of the average amounts of wealthy white families have versus black families, an IDR payment can represent 10 percent of a white household's wealth but 40 percent of a black household's.

Ameritech Financial is a private company that helps struggling federal student loan borrowers apply for IDRs. The company believes that any reduction in payment amounts through enrollment in an IDR can allow families to get on the path to building wealth, whether they choose to focus on eliminating other debt, saving for retirement, or investing any extra funds.

"Building wealth successfully takes momentum, which is hard to gather when you are held back by high student loan payments," said Knickerbocker. "Often the first step to building wealth is freeing up money in the budget to allocate to savings or investments. At Ameritech Financial, we aim to help borrowers find those funds through reductions in student loan payments in an IDR. We assist in applying for such programs."

About Ameritech Financial

Ameritech Financial is a private company located in Rohnert Park, California. Ameritech Financial has already helped thousands of consumers with financial analysis and student loan document preparation to apply for federal student loan repayment programs offered through the Department of Education.

Each Ameritech Financial telephone representative has received the Certified Student Loan Professional certification through the International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators (IAPDA).

Ameritech Financial prides itself on its exceptional Customer Service.

Ameritech Financial Newsroom

Contact

To learn more about Ameritech Financial, please contact:

Ameritech Financial

5789 State Farm Drive #265

Rohnert Park, CA 94928

1-800-792-8621

[email protected]

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