You need a good education to get anywhere in life. Still, the cost of going to college is overwhelming for many. If you are scared just thinking about the outrageous costs of attending school, you should feel better knowing that the following article was written to help you understand how getting a student loan is possible for you. Read on to make going to school easier.
Keep in contact with the lender. Notify them if there are any changes to your address, phone number, or email as often happens during and after college. Also, make sure that you immediately open and read every piece of correspondence from your lender, both paper and electronic. Follow through on it immediately. If you miss something, that can mean a smaller loan.
Don’t forgo private loans for college. There are plenty of public student loans to be had, but the competition to get them is fierce. Private loans have a lot of advantages that public loans do not. Ask around your city or town and see what you can find.
Keep in mind the time that’s allotted to you as your grace period from when you get out of school until you have to start paying back the loan. For example, you must begin paying on a Stafford loan six months after you graduate. Perkins loans give you nine months. Other kinds of loans may have other grace periods. Know exactly the date you have to start making payments, and never be late.
If you have a large loan, try to bring down the amount as soon as you can. This will reduce the principal. You won’t have to pay as much interest if you lower the principal amount. Pay off the largest loans first. After you’ve paid off a large loan, you can transfer your payments to the second largest one. When you make minimum payments on each loan and apply extra money to your biggest loan, you get rid of the debts from your student loans systematically.
Making monthly payments is often difficult for those whose budget is tight. Rewards programs can help. For example, check out the LoanLink and SmarterBucks programs from Upromise. These allow you to earn rewards that help pay down your loan.
To get more from student loan money, try taking as many credits as you can. Sure a full time status might mean 12 credits, but if you can take 15 or 18 you’ll graduate all the quicker. The will assist you in reducing the size of your loans.
Too often, people will accept student loans without contemplating the legal implications. Asking questions and understanding the loan is essential. If you do not do this, you may end up paying more than you should for your education.
Fill in all of the spaces on your application, otherwise, you may run into delays. You might find your paperwork in a stack waiting to be processed when the term begins.
Perkins Loan
The Perkins loan and the Stafford loan are the most desirable federal programs. These are both safe and affordable. These are good loans because the government pays the interest while you are still in school. Interest rates for a Perkins loan will be around 5%. Subsidized Stafford loans offer interest rates no higher than 6.8 percent.
If you apply for a private student loan and your credit is not that great, you are going to need someone to co-sign for you. Keep your payments up to date. If you don’t, the person who co-signed is equally responsible for your debt.
PLUS loans are something that you should consider if graduate school is being funded. They bear an interest rate of no more than 8.5%. It’s higher than public loans, but lower than most private options. This makes it a great choice for more established students.
Do not think that you can just default on student loans to get out of paying them. The government has many ways to get the money. For example, it can step in and claim a portion of your tax return or Social Security payments. The government also has the right to claim 15 percent of all your income. Usually, you will wind up being worse off than you were previously.
When you are filling out your financial aid application, make sure that you are positive there are no errors on it. One mistake could change how much you are offered. If there is any doubt in your mind that you filled it out right, you should consult a financial aid rep at your school.
To stretch your student loan money as far as it will go, purchase a meal plan by the meal instead of the dollar amount. This allows you to not worry about what’s on your plate each time you eat because each meal is a flat rate.
As stated in the above article, many people would love to get a quality education but it becomes difficult due to the high costs involved. Now that you have more information, you don’t need to fret about how you are going to afford college. Take this advice to heart, and use it when you apply for a student loan.
This is a limited-time offer. We are not able to guarantee availability if you wait!
