<prompt> Human: I am between jobs right now and have NO money. Im just curious if paying 25 on my bills with payments 100-400 is better than nothing, or if I should just keep my 25 until I can pay the bill in full. Mostly concerned about my credit taking a nose dive. Assistant: I would call them and explain the situation. They dont want you to default on the debt, and they may be willing to work with you to temporarily suspend payments not interest accrual though! or lower your minimum payment if this is a short term gap in employment. There are people on the other end of the phone, and they want to get paid more than they want to send your debt to collections. What gets you into trouble is ignoring it until youre being sued, then they have literally no incentive to work with you. Human: My 2 larger ones are both private loans with big banks. They really dont care if I cant pay. Last time I was short on funds they told me there was nothing they couldwould do. My federal loans have already been consolidated and I dont technically qualify for any of their deferment terms.  <response>: You should still call, because we cant really help you. Explain you can pay a little, and that you want to pay and make good on the debt.Youre just trying to avoid defaulting on the loan, so while they may not like it they may agree to keep you out of default status as long as you pay something. Even if it hits you with fees. 