Federal Student Loan Consolidation
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Federal Student Loan Consolidation
Through federal student loan consolidation you can extend the repayment period from the 10 year standard to as much as 30 years, reducing your monthly payment by up to 50 percent. There are no credit checks or fees required to consolidate your federal loans.
The loans that qualify include Stafford and Perkins, HEAL, FFELP, PLUS and Direct loans. Federal loans tend to have the lowest interest rates. By consolidating you are taking multiple federal loans and combining them into one under a great interest rate that will be locked in for the remainder of your repayment period.
This will protect you from increased rates in the future and make it easier to repay the loan before accruing too much interest. By the end of your college career you will probably have multiple federal loans. Consolidation is the simplest way to keep track of what you need to pay each month, what you have already paid and what you still owe.
When comparing lenders examine the borrower benefits. If your individual loans have better benefits than those offered through consolidation, see if they will sweeten the deal or try some other lenders. The whole point of this is to get a better deal than the one you already have. Make sure consolidation improves your situation.
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