Some very shady stuff can happen.

Forbes reports.

College Loans: How To Avoid “Relief” Scams

When you are deep in debt due to college loans, you want one thing and you want it fast: relief. Because they are unregulated and un-policed, an unknown number of online firms have sprung up to charge desperate borrowers for their “debt relief services.

As my mother once told me, whatever you need to do, don’t take the first offer that comes along. It may not be a good idea.

When it comes to student loan consolidation and repayment, some shady firms are offering paperwork processing for free federal loan consolidation and offer little or no counseling. They should be avoided because they will charge hundreds of dollars for something you can do yourself for free.