need boring RL help/advice

[jaina]

Hey there savvy flist, I could use some Grown-Up Real Life Advice, if you've got it. Basically, we need to consolidate our student loans, cause rates are gonna go up like crazy come July 1. But we're kind of confused about how to do it-- namely, which company/organization we should go through, cause there's a million of them out there. Have any of y'all done this, and if so, do you have any words of wisdom? Googling yields mostly results from the various companies, and I don't trust any of their "advice."

If you'd rather not discuss it in the comments, you can always email me at jainamsolo AT livejournal DOT com.

Thanks guys!

Comments

[sabrinanymph.livejournal.com]

I'm not certain how much help this is. When I consolidated last year, I just consolidated them within the company that was already managing them. It's possible I could have done better if I'd gone elsewhere, but I was trying to keep it simple. It has been really nice to consolidate them though, as it's knocked about $20 off what I have to pay every month - definitely recommend consolidating.

Like I said, I don't know how much help this is cause I didn't do a lot of research on it, but if you want to know what company that is, I'll be more than happy to email it to you.

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Thanks! It's actually really helpful to hear what other people have done. :)

[econopodder.livejournal.com]

I did the same thing as sabrinanymph, though I did it a million years ago (circa 1994). I used the same bank from which I'd originally taken the loans.

[econopodder.livejournal.com]

Sorry, hit post too soon. What I meant to say is, I don't think I even knew you could shop around for a consolidator. Duh.

My best guess is that who you consolidate with doesn't really matter -- go for a good rate. Realistically they're going to sell your loan anyhow, & you have no way of knowing at the time you pick a lender to whom you'll actually be writing a check every month. That said, I think I'd look at reliable sites like Motley Fool and Bankrate to see if they have any words of wisdom.

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I hadn't even thought abou trying the Motley Fool for advice, but I will now!

[rosiewook.livejournal.com]

Per my favorite geek consumer reporter's website (www.clarkhoward.com) here are the best sites to visit:

http://clarkhoward.com/shownotes/category/1/350/

Here's a consolidation site if you have any federal loans:
http://www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov/borrower/borrower.shtml

And a general info page:
http://clarkhoward.com/shownotes/category/1/34/282/412/

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Ooh, thanks!

[mspooh.livejournal.com]

My advice isn't any better. I just did it through Sallie Mae since the majority of my loans were already there. I was too lazy to do research, which was probably bad, but I figure consolidating with anyone right now has got to be better than not doing it at all.

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Yeah, seems that way to me, too. Some of the loans are through Sallie Mae, so they're one of the ones we're looking at.

[spccadet.livejournal.com]

Also look at how many loans you're consolidating and what the amounts are - some of the lenders have a minimum amount that you have to owe in order to consolidate. Both times I/my family have tried to consolidate the two small ones I had we were told by the lenders that we didn't owe enough to consolidate.

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Oh, believe me, we owe more than enough. Won't be a problem. *g*

[knitress.livejournal.com]

Good advice here: http://www.pirg.org/consolidation/index.html and http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/consolidation.jsp?tab=repaying
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/MellodyHobson/story?id=787082&page=1 and http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12835297/

I'd probably check out motleyfool.com as well, they are generally full of good decent advice.

Sallie Mae handled my student loans back in the day and the service was fine.

[padmeamanda.livejournal.com]

I think rates go up every July. You could try ACT, pretty sure that's who I went with.

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Some of the loans we have are through Sallie Mae. They've been fine so far but I'm kind of frustrated with their web/email policies.

[koshka-the-cat.livejournal.com]

I'm another who didn't do any research and went with Sallie Mae, but it was very convienent, and I'm happy with what I have. If you're curious, I owed about $35,000 and went on a 20 year plan. The first two years it was $150 or so, now I think it's $228 a month. Not that bad, considering :)

Only 17 years to go, I think it is. I kept putting things off after college as much as I could :)

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Thank you! That's really helpful, and gives me hope that we can reduce our current payments pretty substantailly, cause we owe a little bit more than what you do.

[anirt.livejournal.com]

Mine were all direct loans, so I consolidated them through the lender, that is the Dept. of Education. Pretty straightforward -- did it all online.

But I have no clue about loans that are not direct loans. Tom has Nelnet, although he hasn't consolidated, and they seem to be reputable.

I would ask your financial aid office from either your most recent school or MIT for advice.

My gut feeling is to avoid all the companies that send me unsolicited mail.

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

Some of the loans are direct, and then some are with Sallie Mae, so yeah, it's kinda confusing. Hopefully they can all just go into one big lump.

Yeah, the companies that send us mail, I'm pretty much ignoring. I did check out Nelnet though, thanks for mentioning it!

[mainframe76.livejournal.com]

Hey, jaina. I used Nelnet to consolidate my loans. With an automatic monthly withdrawal plan from my checking account, I got an interest rate less than 3% annually. It's extremely easy to budget for it month to month because the payment is relatively low and, of course, that interest rate is outstanding. I consolidated back in 2004 and it's been easy since then. No hassle whatsoever. The tax info concerning interest payments arrived way early so I didn't have to rush that part of my tax return. All in all, I'd say it's been an easy and a good experience.

I hope this helps you out some.

- merc

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

We really should've consolidated last year, when rates were lower, but I wasn't paying attention, and-- oh well. Hindsight, right?

Thanks for the Nelnet info!

[hollywdliz.livejournal.com]

I believe I did mine directly through the Department of Education, and that's what I'd recommend. If yours are all through the government, you should be able to do it here. It's pretty idiot-proof.

[brightcupenny.livejournal.com]

One set of loans are direct through the DoE, but the others are through Sallie Mae. Not sure how that affects things. :-/ Thanks for the info!