Sunday 23 October 2011

Top Student Loan Consolidation Companies

Top Student Loan Consolidation Companies

When you consolidate student loans, you can lower your monthly student loan payment by as much as 60 percent. The key is to find the right lender and the right interest rate.

When comparing lenders, you should consider payment fees, interest rates, and loan terms. If you are looking for reputable student loan consolidators online, there are three companies that I highly recommend. These companies can offer you the best rates and save you money by consolidating your student loans.

1. Loan Approval Direct

With a student loan consolidation loan, this company can reduce your monthly student loan payments by as much as 60 percent. Loans as high as $125,000 can be approved and there is no collateral required. Loan Approval Direct also offers interest rates as low as 3 percent.

2. Next Student

If you have not consolidated your loans previously, Next Student offers student loan consolidation services. If you are out of school or if you will be graduating in six months or less, contact this company to find out how you can reduce your monthly student loan payments by as much as 60 percent.

3. DebtConsolidation.com

This online debt consolidator is the parent company of StudentLoanConcolidation.com and can save you a great deal of money on your monthly student loan payments. Their online application is easy to fill out and they can let you know almost immediately if you are eligible for student loan consolidation.

 Resource:     businessmajors.about.com

Thursday 13 October 2011

Current Student Loan Consolidation Rates

 Current Student Loan Consolidation Rates
Despite what many people think, student loan consolidation rates are not that different than what a graduate is already paying. In fact, the new rate on a student loan consolidation is simply the weighted-average of someone's current loan rates, rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of a percent (.125%).

For example, if three-quarters of your loan is at 8%, and one-quarter is at 6%, the new rate would be calculated as the follows:

8% x .75 = 6.00%
plus
6% x .25 = 1.50%

Total New Rate = 7.50%

Essentially, this is the same overall rate the borrower was paying prior to consolidation across all their loans, but it's now been combined into one loan.

The only major potential drop in rates comes when the borrower has government PLUS loans. Since many of these loans have rates that exceed the maximum student loan consolidation rate of 8.25%, this portion of the weighted-average is capped at 8.25%. Thus, if you have multiple PLUS loans at 8.50%, these could be consolidated into a new loan with a maximum rate of 8.25%.

Keep in mind that Federal student loan consolidation rates only apply to Federal loans such as Stafford, Perkins, and PLUS loans. Private student loans may also be consolidated, but not under the Federal consolidation program. Be sure to talk to your private lender to explore the available consolidation options.
sources: collegesavings.about.com