I Can Only Afford to Pay the Monthly Minimum on My Student Loans. How Do I Ever Pay Them Off?

loans

I have 28k in student loans. The minimum payment is 188 a month. Some months I cant even meet the deprivation of that. What will I do? The only excellent news is that I have consolidated them and have a excellent interest rate. Other than that, I dont know what to do. Buy a house and when I sell it in X amount years, use some of the profit to pay it off? Any other thoughts?

How Do I Settle a Bad Debt That Has More Than Tripled Since Going into Collection?

debt

I have been in contact with the collection agency and they said they would settle the $18,000 debt for $11,000. I do not have $11,000 nor am i able to get a loan. Is working with a debt consolidater just as terrible as filing for bankrupcy? I have a family and want to buy a house and this is the only thing standing in my way…what do i do?