Consolidating my federal student loans – looking for a fair rate. Help please.?
I currently have 8 federal student loans open through AES. I have been very good at making payments on time, however I realized that many of my peers have consolidated these loans. I believe the federal interest rate is around 6.85% fixed. Most my loans are higher than that. I am carrying about $29,000 in federal loan debt.
GATE 03′: 8.02%
STAFFORD 04′: 7.22%
GATE 04′: 8.02%
GATE 05′: 8.02%
STAFFORD 05′: 7.22%
STAFFORD 06′: 6.80%
GATE 06′: 8.02%
I also noticed that my current balance on about half my loans is higher than my original balance, meaning I have been set up to not even cover just interrest accrued. Anyways, I am looking for a fair interest rate to consolidate these loans and equally a reputable company.
Are there any things I should be cautious with in deciding to consolidate? Should I wait for the federal rate to go down? Any recommendations of solid loan consolidators would be appreciated. Thank you.
If you consolidate, the interest rate will be the average of all your rates, +1/8%. So you’d be looking at roughly a 7.6% fixed rate. The terms for deferment and forbearance remain the same as the Stafford loan. Also you can take up to 25 years to pay a consolidation loan.
So if you think that interest rate is attractive, then start researching lenders to see who offers the best incentive package. Many offer things such as interest rate reductions for on-time and electronic payments.
This only applies to Federal Student loans, you cannot consolidate private and Federal loans.
