freshGRAD

cliff notes to getting you in the real world. 


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Student Loans

It's all fun and games until you have to actually start paying for all the fun and games you've had the past four years.  Student loans can be quite the annoyance.  The most important thing is to be informed about how student loans work so you can keep these damn things under control.

Here are your options for loan repayment:

  1. Graduated: payments start lower and increase as time goes on
  2. Income Sensitive: monthly payment amount is created based on your gross monthly income and student loan debt.  The most flexible plan, but can be most expensive overall, and requires annual reapplication

Loan Consolidation

Loan consolidating can extend the amount of time you have to pay off your loan (could be 30 years).  This can lower your monthly payments by as much as 50%.

You can also combine all your loans by having one company take over all them, giving you one bill/monthly payment. 

Beware of consolidating too early.  Once you graduate, you have a grace period of 6 months before you have to start paying off your loans.  Consolidating too early may require you to have to  start making payments before your grace period is over.

With that said, the sooner you start paying, the sooner you are done paying.  Also, paying during your grace period may be beneficial if you have a subsidized loan, as the government pays your interest during your grace period, so the money you pay during this time is applied directly to your principal balance.  If you have an unsubsidized loan, your loan will accrue interest during your grace period, so paying during this time will reduce some interest added, reducing the total amount of interest paid while you are paying off your loan.

 

 


ph: 8603779563
alt: 9785785922