All about consolidation

PLUS Loan Consolidation

2009-02-25T12:31:00.000-08:00

PLUS Loan Consolidation

Consolidating Federal PLUS Loans is a practical, debt management tool that enables you to bundle all of the federal loans you received to finance your child's college education into a single loan. Consolidation can significantly reduce your monthly payment burden by allowing you to stretch your repayment period from the standard 10 years to up to 30 years (depending on the amount of your education debts). Having a lower payment means you'll have more money available to meet other household expenses, like your mortgage, car payments, and career-related necessities.

Benefits of Federal PLUS Loan Consolidation

Improve your credit rating by consolidating several open loan accounts into a single loan
There are no credit checks and no application fees or origination charges associated with your consolidation

Requirements to Consolidate PLUS Loans

You must have a minimum of $20,000 in PLUS Loans
You must have received the final disbursement for the current academic year; you do not have to wait until your child has graduated.

Apply now for a free information packet and you could secure a low fixed interest rate for the life of the loan! Rates are variable based on existing PLUS Loans.

All new Parent PLUS Loans disbursed since July 1, 2006 have a fixed interest rate of 8.50%. New federal consolidation loans are capped at 8.25%. Because Parent PLUS loans can be consolidated upon final disbursement, PLUS loan borrowers who take advantage of federal PLUS Loan consolidation can lower their interest rate to 8.25% immediately!

Private Graduate Loan Consolidation

2009-02-25T12:26:00.001-08:00

A Private Consolidation Loan from GradLoans.com is a great way to significantly lower your monthly loan payments by combining all your private graduate loans into one manageable loan.

Lower Monthly Payments: Most borrowers can reduce their monthly payment by extending the repayment term of their private student loan debt
Conditional pre-approval decision within minutes online or by phone

Get The Lowest Rate Possible - Apply With A Co-Signer

Applying with a qualified co-signer can greatly increase your chances for approval. A co-signer with great credit could help you get a better interest rate.

Here's a quick chart showing how much you could save on your monthly payments:

Loan Amount	Assumed Current Payment*	Initial Monthly Payment**	Monthly Savings	Annual Savings
$30,000.00	$269.00	$180.13	$88.87	$1,066.44
$50,000.00	$448.33	$300.21	$148.12	$1,777.44
$75,000.00	$672.49	$450.32	$222.17	$2,666.04
$100,000.00	$896.65	$600.42	$296.23	$3,554.76

*Assuming a 15 year loan term, with an original rate of 6.8%
**Assuming extended term of 30 years at same rate of 6.8%
***Interest rate and the resulting monthly payment(s) contingent upon borrower and/or co-signer credit

Other Benefits of Private Graduate Loan Consolidation:

Reduced Interest Rates: Borrowers with improved credit may often lower their interest rate. Existing loan holders will not reduce your interest rate if your credit has improved.
Rate Reductions: Borrowers may apply on their own or with a credit-worthy co-signer. Borrower and Co-signers with superior credit will receive lower APR loans.
Internship/Residency & Military Deferment: A 48 month deferment for medical/dental residents and a 36 month deferment for all active-duty military personnel is available through the Graduate Leverage Private Consolidation Loan Program.
Up to 30 Year Repayment Term: Borrowers may receive up to a 30 year repayment term which offers the lowest possible monthly payment.
No Prepayment Penalties: All payments in excess of scheduled payments go directly to principal.

Apply with a co-signer

We always recommend applying for a private loan consolidation with a qualified co-signer - it will greatly increase your chance for approval, and could provide you with a lower interest rate on your loan.

Applying is Simple

College graduates with any existing, nationally-marketed, private student loan can be eligible for the Student Loan Consolidator Private Consolidation Loan.

Direct Student Loan Consolidation

2009-02-25T12:25:00.000-08:00

Direct Student Loan Consolidation

Federal Direct loan consolidation is a practical repayment tool that enables you to combine all of your federal Direct student loans into a single loan. In addition to reducing your monthly payment up to 53%, federal Direct consolidation provides flexible repayment plans, interest rate reductions, and deferment and forbearance options.

How do you know if you have federal Direct student loans? Below is a detailed list of the different types of federal Direct student loans.

William D. Ford Stafford and PLUS Loans
Direct Stafford Loans and PLUS Loans
Direct Consolidation Loans
Your loan bills come from the Direct Loan Servicing Center
Your loan bills bear the name William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program
Your school is a Direct Lending School

Apply Today for Direct Student Loan Consolidation

Apply now for a free information packet, or call toll free 1-877-328-1565 to speak with one of our student loan consolidation counselors. Or you can read some frequently asked questions about Federal Direct Loan consolidation.

Benefits of Direct Student Loan Consolidation

One of the key benefits of Direct loan consolidation is payment relief. By combining all of your direct student loans into one consolidated loan, you can lengthen your repayment term from the standard 10 years to up to 30 years, depending on the amount of your education debts. With a lower monthly payment, you'll have more money available to meet other living expenses, including car payments, housing expenses, and career-related necessities. Because there are no penalties for overpayment, you can make larger payments and reduce your repayment term when it becomes affordable.

Additional Benefits of Consolidating Direct Student Loans

Reduce your monthly payment up to 53%!
Reduce your interest rate 0.6% by consolidating during your grace period
Simplified finances - one payment per month
Improve your credit rating
No credit checks, fees, or application charges

Requirements for Direct Student Loan Consolidation

Minimum amount of $10,000 in federal student loans
Loans must not be in default
Must be graduated or enrolled less than half time

Understanding Student Loan consolidations

2009-02-25T12:06:00.000-08:00

Understanding Consolidation Loans

A consolidation loan is a type of loan that allows a borrower to combine several individual loans into one new single loan. This can simplify the borrower's paperwork (one loan payment to make instead of several) and may bring additional benefits. For instance, in the federal consolidation program, the borrower can extend repayment from the standard 10-year period to 12, 15, 20 or more years (depending on the amount consolidated). This will lower the monthly payment, but will increase the overall cost of the loan. Some lenders provide additional borrower rewards to offer more savings.

Federal Student Loan Consolidation

Unfortunately, we are unable to show you a comparison of federal consolidation loan offers at this time because of market changes. You still have options, however.

Contact your current lender(s) about restructuring the repayment on your existing loan(s). Federal student loan repayment can be extended and modified in ways to help you attain a more manageable monthly payment.

Consider obtaining a federal consolidation loan from the Department of Education's Direct Loan Program. The interest rate on a federal consolidation loan is fixed, and the length of a federal consolidation loan can be extended up to 30 years which can also help lower the amount of your monthly payments. The interest rate for a Direct Consolidation Loan is the weighted average of the interest rates on the loans being consolidated, rounded to the nearest higher one-eighth of one percent. Use the calculator at the Department of Education's Direct Loan Program site to help you estimate.

Private Student Loan Consolidation

SimpleTuition has partnered with Wells Fargo to offer our users a private consolidation loan option. Learn more. Other lenders may also offer this service.

Consolidation of private student loans is a relatively new option, and many lenders are still fine-tuning offerings. Make sure to do your homework before consolidating your private student loans - be aware of prepayment penalties and monthly payment rates that start out attractively low but increase over time.

Federal Consolidation Loan eligibility

2009-02-25T12:05:00.000-08:00

Eligibility and Terms

Combine one or more existing federal student loans into a single new loan.

Eligibility

Effective June 1, 2008, borrowers must have at least 1 PHEAA/AES-guaranteed loan to be eligible for loan consolidation.
These loans must be in repayment or a grace period.
You do not need a co-signer.
You do not need to be employed.
Your credit rating does not affect your eligibility.

You may consolidate a prior Federal Consolidation Loan if you have acquired additional federal education loans since you last consolidated or did not include all eligible loans in your previous consolidation.

Features & Terms

Features	Terms
FIXED Interest Rate	Standard consolidation loan is available at today's grace rate of 3.61%. Your rate is calculated as the weighted average of all loans being consolidated, then rounded up to the nearest 1/8 of a percent. Statutory interest is used when calculating the weighted average. If you already have a fixed interest rate on all loans, the consolidation loan will have a higher fixed rate than the original loan. Get a .60% rate reduction for consolidation during your current loan's grace period. Get an immediate .25% rate reduction for automatic direct debit payments. Will not exceed 8.25%.
Incentives	Some loans may have incentives that will be lost when the consolidation takes place. If a previous consolidation is included in a new consolidation, current incentives will be lost.
Fees	None
Loan Repayment	Repayment begins within 60 days of the loan fund payout. The loan funds are sent directly to the creditor. No prepayment penalties. No grace period.
Repayment Term	Based on the total loan balance being consolidated, up to 30 years.
Repayment Options	May take up to 30 years to pay with flexible repayment options - level, graduated and income sensitive.
Loan Management	Pay just one bill. Get single-point servicing for the life of the loan with AES. We are with you every step of the way

Apply for this Loan

Submit an online consolidation application.

Note: The consolidation process takes approximately 6-8 weeks. During this time it is important that you continue to pay the student loan bills you receive.

After You Apply

We process your application and contact your existing loan holders, requesting a loan payout.
Your loan holders provide us with the necessary information; the old loans are paid off.
The balances are transferred to a new loan.
We send you a Truth in Lending Disclosure Statement which outlines the term, balance, and monthly payment amount of your new loan.
We send your first billing statement for your consolidation loan.

Check Application Status: Call our automated telephone system toll-free at (800) 338-5000 to obtain loan information, including the application date, estimated processing time, and any information required to process your request.

How to get Student Consolidation loan rates?

2009-02-25T12:02:00.001-08:00

The most obvious way to get the best student consolidation loan rates, is by having great credit. It’s easy to get great student consolidation loan rates with a FICO score over 660. But, there are several ways to get the best student consolidation loan rates.

Know Your Credit Before Shopping For Student Consolidation Loan Rates

By doing a simple Google or Yahoo search on FICO and credit scores to find the information you need to check out your credit score. This really should be your first step to getting the best student consolidation loan rates. With knowledge, you will get the best student loan consolidation rates for your financial situation.

Student consolidation loan rates can vary from person to person. The student consolidation loan rates offered will be based on your financial situation and FICO score. With a FICO score under 600, you will have a tough time getting a good student consolidation loan rate.

Refinancing And Home Equity Loans Used For Student Loan Consolidation

With a home equity loan, you can get the best student consolidation loan rates possible with good credit. Secured by your home, a student consolidation loan can help get rid of your high credit card rates and loans. You will have less bills to pay, with the best student consolidation loan rates to lower your interest on several loans.

Refinancing your home mortgage may be an option to get the best student loan consolidation rates.

The important thing to remember with home equity loans and refinancing, is to be logical and don’t let your emotions get the best of you. You may get the best student consolidation loan rates available, but you still have to pay back the loan over time.

It’s best to take the time to sit down and research all your options that are available to you to get the best loan and interest rate.

Resources Online For Getting The Best Student Loan Consolidation Rates

With today’s Internet resources, you have an advantage when looking for the best student loan consolidation rates online. Take time to get educated on the process of getting the best student consolidation loan rates, and you can save yourself thousands of dollars on the student consolidation loan rates available, with just a few clicks of the mouse.

The idea is to combine all your current debts that you owe into one large debt with the lowest interest rate possible. Instead of making monthly payments on several high interest loans ranging from 12% to 28%, you can make one payment each month to one company.

Today’s career minded students can get help with the burden of having several student loans. You can focus on your career, instead of losing sleep over paying several monthly loan payments. Student loan consolidation can be the solution with many advantages. With today’s Internet technology, you can get a student loan consolidation quickly and easily.

Student Consolidation Loans?

2009-02-25T11:57:00.000-08:00

A student consolidation loan is a loan that consolidates all your student loans into one student loan. You might ask why anyone would consolidate their loans. Well statistically speaking the average American will carry up to 13 credit cards with a debt of over $5,000. If you do the math, having many different loans with different companies, will mean that your interest rates will also be different.

When you consolidate your student loan you're combining all your debts with one lender with a much lower interest rate. The reason for a lower interest rate is that you get to pay off your debt for a longer period, sometimes up to 20 years.

Here's where it can get very tricky, so it pays off to choose the right student consolidation loan company before you consolidate your debts. One of the most common mistakes students can make is consolidating their loans with the wrong lender. If you don't read the fine print carefully you'll end up paying more in interest because all you're really doing is stretching out your payments over a longer period. If you calculate all the interest you're paying it will end up higher than your current loan.

So it's very important that you don't consolidate your student loan with just any lender. You'll need to get smart when selecting a lender because it's your money and you don't want to end up with a 20 year loan that you're unhappy with. Here's a few things you can look out for the next time you're looking to consolidate your student loans.

1. Don't sign up to anyone who asking for large upfront fees. If there's any fees make sure you know what they are for.2. Avoid consolidation lenders who try to rush you into signing up with them. You should take your time, look around and compare rates before you sign anything.3. Get a check list of all the agreements before you sign. Don't take anyone's word or promises. Make sure that everything is on paper.4. When you've found the right consolidation company make sure you check them out on the "Better Business Bureau" and see if they've had any complaints. Nothing worse then a company who never delivers.5. You'll also need to check if the company accredited by the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counselling Agencies. This will ensure that they are allowed to consolidate your loan.6. Last but not least ask if you can get a better rate or any special bonuses or offers available. It never hurts to ask sometimes companies are planing on running specials on the following week. So you don't want to miss out on any savings you can get your hands on.

I hope these few tips will help you choose the right student consolidation loan company. All the best with your studies and hope you do well in class.