Believe it or not, the debt collection industry is growing. As it grows, such entities continue to hire more employees to track down people who owe money. According to a report by the New York Times, the number of people taking out government-backed student loans has exploded. Consequently, so has the number who have fallen at least 12 months behind in making payments up about a third in the last five years.

Some people cannot pay back their loans now due to the poor economy; they change their phone numbers to not get calls from debt collectors. “I keep changing my phone number,” said Amanda Cordeiro, 29, from Clermont, Fla., who has $55,000 in overdue loans. “In a year, this is probably my fourth phone number.”

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