Get free student loan information and help from your school counselor, the financial aid office at the college or career school you are planning to attend, or check with the U.S. Department of Education (ED) at www.FederalStudentAid.ed.gov.
You can also call 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243). Free help is available at any time during the application process. You should never have to pay for help.
Student loan debt is at an all time high and many are having a tough time paying off those loans. In particular if there is more than one loan. Consolidating your student loans is an option you may find will benefit you.
By acquiring a student loan consolidation you can evade a bad credit record due to your inability to make their monthly debt payment on time. By using a loan consolidation program your monthly payments can be considerably reduced and the student is left with more money at the end of the month to cover other living costs.
This is no different from any other loan in that you will want to compare what is out there and make certain your loan costs and interest rates give you an advantage over your current student loans.
A very good source of college funding is known as Pell Grants, which are available to students based purely on their need for financing.
Every college receives a limited amount of money every year to use in this way, so don’t procrastinate on this as it is a case of first come first served. Once you know you are definitely going to be attending college in the near future, it only makes sense for you to apply for your share of this money as quickly as possible.
When you take out student loan, you will be required to complete student loan counseling sessions. This is often considered when you first obtain the loan and upon graduation.
It is also worth noting that some schools these days offer this on-line and the sessions will not require a great amount of your time. However, they will provide you with a great deal of information on your right and responsibilities as a borrower.
Student loans need to be applied for now. There are deadlines on many of these and procrastination on your part could end up delaying you from attending college when you plan to.
Student Loans Digest keeps you informed of the various types of student loans. I recommend you visit that site immediately and take some time to read what is available there.
I can’t tell you how many times I get an email from someone saying they were late applying for a student loan and asking what they should do now.
Unfortunately sometimes it means you need to delay your college education.
A Federal Perkins Loan is a low-interest (5 percent) loan for both undergraduate and graduate students who have exceptional financial need.
Federal Perkins Loans are not made directly through the federal government but instead are made through a school’s financial aid office. Your school is your lender, even though the loan is made with government funds. Your obligation is to repay this loan to your school.
Your school, once your loan has been approved, will either pay you directly (generally with a check) or they will apply your loan to your school charges. You will receive the loan in at least two payments during the academic year.
Other than the interest charges or possible late charges should you miss payments once they become due, there is no other charges for this loan.
If you’re attending school at least half time, you will have nine months after you graduate, stop going to school, or drop below half-time status before you must begin repayment.
Can student loan forgiveness work for you?
President Obama is expected to announce that millions of borrowers will be eligible to lower their payments and consolidate their loans.
First off the plan passed by Congress that reduces the maximum repayment on student loans from 15 percent of discretionary income annually to 10 percent will be accelerated to go into effect in 2012 instead of 2014.
It sounds politically motivated to the upcoming presidential election but I doubt any of the borrowers who save money will care.
As to the student loan forgivensss, student loan borrowers remaining debt will be forgiven after 20 years instead of 25.
You can read more on this at Student Loan Relief Plan
This is quick and to the point and very important if you are planning to apply for a student loan . . .
Pay attention to the deadlines! There are federal and state deadlines, and your colleges may also have a deadline.
Trying to decide which types of financial aid to apply for when getting ready for college can get confusing with all the information out there. So keep a few things in mind.
Federal, subsidized loans are only available up to a certain limit. If you can do your education for less than 10 grand a year, you should be able to get by with just government loans. Now I don’t know if this is feasible but if you have a part time job while attending school, you may be able to get by with a smaller student loan.
It’s worth considering because you gain the advantage of being fixed rate interest, and a lower rate of interest than you would normally pay with a private institution. Not to mention pay back after you graduate is easier and faster.
Cosigners generally are not needed, and the application can be filled out online in just a few minutes.
If your college expenses are going to be more than 10 thousand a year, you will probably need to obtain private student loans to fund the cost. Applying for tthis type of financial aid isn’t a heck of a lot different than the process of financing a house or car, with a few notable differences.
For larger private student loans, you will probably need a cosigner who has good credit in order to get your loan approved. You will need to provide references and past tax return information in many cases; although not always.
You will likely need to list other schools you have attended and employment info, if applicable, when you are completing the online application process.
Getting financial aid is not a simple walk in the park but if you do your homework, there’s no reason you can’t get the loan you need.
I made use of the G.I. Bill when I got out of the service to go to college. I actually didn’t go until I had been out of the service for about 5 years.
What a help that was! I still needed to get a student loan but was able to get by on a small loan so paying it back once school was over was not a financial strain.
If you have been in the military you should take advantage of the bill and attend college. You can also use it for a technical school. Depending on your situation, you may not even need a student loan.
