Why did great lakes transfer my loans to Nelnet (2024)

FAQs

Why did great lakes transfer my loans to Nelnet? ›

Great Lakes and Nelnet were previously separate loan companies. But later they collaborated with each other and both of them merged. Now all the loans taken by both of them were arranged serial wise and divided into two parts. This is the reason why many Great Lakes loans were transferred to Nelnet.

In February 2018, Great Lakes was acquired by Nelnet Diversified Solutions, LLC, the parent company of Nelnet Federal Student Loan Services. In the summer of 2023, Great Lakes' student loan servicing portfolio was transferred to Nelnet Federal Student Loan Services.

To qualify for Great Lakes/Nelnet student loan forgiveness, you'll need to switch from your current repayment plan to an IDR plan. Under an IDR plan, your monthly payments will be capped at 5% to 20% of your discretionary income for 10, 20 or 25 years.

Lawsuits against Great Lakes

The servicer paid $1.275 million in a class action lawsuit after it reported loan payments incorrectly during the automatic federal forbearance period that began in March 2020. Some payments were reported as “deferred” but should have been coded as if the borrower made them.

Once you've taken out a federal loan, that loan is assigned to a loan servicer. Nelnet is a federal student loan servicer working on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education (ED), the government agency that lends you student loans.

You may be eligible for forgiveness of the remaining balance of your Direct Loans after making 120 qualifying payments on those loans while employed full time by a qualifying public service employer(s).

Great Lakes is in the process of transferring its portfolio to Nelnet, another federal student loan servicer. Nelnet acquired Great Lakes in 2018, but the two entities handled servicing separately. Loan transferring from Great Lakes to Nelnet started in March 2022, and it is expected to continue through June 2023.

If you have loans that have been in repayment for more than 20 or 25 years, those loans may immediately qualify for forgiveness. Borrowers who have reached 20 or 25 years (240 or 300 months) worth of eligible payments for IDR forgiveness will see their loans forgiven as they reach these milestones.

Along with its parent company Nelnet, Great Lakes is one of the largest federal loan servicers, managing over 40% of the outstanding debt held by student loan borrowers.

To date, the Biden-Harris Administration has approved $146 billion in student debt relief for 4 million Americans through more than two dozen executive actions. That includes fixing Public Service Loan Forgiveness and Income-Driven Repayment plans, so borrowers finally get the relief they are entitled to under the law.

Is there a class action lawsuit against Nelnet? ›

Stevens v. Nelnet Servicing, LLC

A class action lawsuit alleges Nelnet has repeatedly miscalculated student loan borrowers' monthly repayment amounts.

Great Lakes Educational Loan Services was a Wisconsin-based loan servicer for both federal and private student loans. In 2018, the company was acquired by Nelnet, which, as of July 2023, services all outstanding Great Lakes student loans.

Detroit and the Great Lakes Water Authority haven't admitted any wrongdoing in the case but agreed to pay a combined $11.5 million to resolve the class action lawsuit. Under the terms of the settlement, class members can receive a refund of the IWC charges they paid on their sewer bills.

Why do loans get switched or transferred to a different servicer? Sometimes, we need to transfer loans from one servicer to another—for example, when a servicer's contract with us ends. Even if we transfer your loans to a new servicer, we (the U.S. Department of Education) still own your loans.

Major Student Loan Servicer Nelnet To Pay $1.8 Million For Alleged Failure To Sufficiently Communicate With Borrowers About Maintaining Access To Affordable Payments.

Why did my student loans disappear from my credit report? Your student loan disappeared from your credit report because your loan servicer made a mistake, or you fell into default more than 7 years ago. Remember, even if your loans no longer appear on your credit report, you're still legally obligated to repay them.

' Many mortgage lenders routinely transfer loans to other companies who have the capability to better service the loan over its lifetime. Your mortgage isn't being singled out, but more likely is simply one among many in a very large transaction.

No, we do not own your federal student loans. We're servicing them on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education.

Student loans disappear from credit reports 7.5 years from the date they are paid in full, charged-off, or entered default. Education debt can reappear if you dig out of default with consolidation or loan rehabilitation. Student loans can have an outsized impact on your credit score.

Nelnet reports credit information monthly to the four consumer reporting agencies (Innovis, Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax). Until an account reaches 90 days past due, it's reported as up to date. When an account reaches 90 days past due, it's reported as delinquent.