Even though the national average increased, the New Hampshire Higher Education Assistance Foundation (NHHEAF), a NH student loan guarantor, maintained one of the best default rates in the nation. Dropping to 2.2 percent from the previous year's 3.2 percent, NHHEAF ranked fifth in the nation for student loan default rates among guarantors. The national average stands at 5.2 percent.

"This is a true testament to the dedication our default prevention team has to our customers," said Ren A. Drouin, president and CEO of the NHHEAF Network Organizations. "As families are struggling to meet their financial responsibilities, our team has been providing them the counseling and services they need to successfully manage their student loans."

NHHEAF's default aversion team works one-on-one with students and families to develop working relationships with borrowers that may be struggling to maintain their student loan payments. Defaulting on a student loan can have negative repercussions for students and for the colleges and universities they attend. A NHHEAF spokesperson says it is committed to working closely with borrowers and providing default prevention education at NH colleges and universities. "Our continuous low default rate speaks to the importance of our life-of-loan servicing model," said Christine Williams, vice president of guarantor services. "Our staff members are committed to working with our customers and counseling them to successful loan repayment."

The default aversion team assists borrowers in managing their student loan debt and utilizes a number of borrower payment options including deferment, forbearance, flexible repayments and consolidation to assist the customers in managing their student loan obligations. NHHEAF has also created the Campaign for Financial Literacy, through a partnership with Consumer Credit Counseling Services of New Hampshire and Vermont, to educate students at NH colleges and universities about the importance of being responsible with their finances. To learn more, visit www.nhheaf.org
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