Singletary

default to use this option.

• If these are private loans, he needs to call and talk with the lender about his options. “If he is seeking a settlement, he must make sure that he gets a paid-in-full statement and that the statement lists all of his loans,” Kantrowitz said.

He might be able to qualify for public-service loan forgiveness if he works full time in a qualifying public-service job while repaying the loans in an income-driven repayment plan for 10 years. But again, this option might not be available to him if he is in default.

Once his financial situation improves, he might be able to refinance the debt, says Scott Snider, a certified financial planner based in Florida.

“If he has good credit and gets a job, he may be able to do this on his own,” Snider said.

Here’s the thing: For now, I think their son needs to take ownership of figuring out how to handle the student loans. Since he lives near his parents, he could move back Readers can write to Michelle Singletary c/o The Washington Post, 1301 K St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20071. Her email address is michelle. singletary@washpost. com. Follow her on Twitter (@SingletaryM) or Facebook (www.facebook. com/MichelleSingletary). Comments and questions are welcome, but due to the volume of mail, personal responses may not be possible. Please also note comments or questions may be used in a future column, with the writer’s name, unless a specific request to do otherwise is indicated.