If you owe money on federal student loans, you should be wary of sales pitches from companies offering to help borrowers lower their payments, warns KHEAA.

Such companies charge fees—sometimes high fees—for filling out forms that you can do for free. Many will want to charge monthly fees for monitoring your loans. Again, you can do that for free.

The best place to start is the servicer where the U.S. Department of Education (ED) has assigned your loan. Your servicer can tell you what your options are and can help you with the forms you need. If you need help finding your servicer, you can go to www.nslds.ed.gov and retrieve your loan information.

You can also go directly to the ED website at www.ed.gov and click on the link titled “Student loans.” Under that link you’ll find links to detailed information about all of your options.

KHEAA is a public, non-profit agency established in 1966 to improve students’ access to college. It provides information about financial aid and financial literacy at no cost to students and parents.

KHEAA also helps colleges manage their student loan default rates and verify information submitted on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). To learn more about those services, visit www.kheaa.com.