student loan q&a

Student Loan Debt – Ron Paul Q&A in Derry, NH

student loan modifications

can I ask for a student loan modification?

I have close to $50,000 in separate student loans and I can’t keep up with payments. I want to work out a deal with the banks and try to modify the loan…is that possible? I know it’s sometimes possible with mortgage loans, etc?

Gabriel:

The closest thing to a student loan modification is a loan consolidation. A loan consolidation is really a new loan that pays off all of your old loans. The consolidation loan will have its own new terms and conditions.

One of the chief selling points of a consolidation loan is that you can choose a new loan with a longer repayment term. A longer repayment term will cut your monthly payment obligation – perhaps considerably, depending on the length of the new loan.

Keep one very important thing in mind. When you extend a repayment process, you generate a large amount of interest. You will be given longer to repay the loan – your monthly payments will decrease – but you will wind up paying a LOT more to the lender than you would have under the original loan. Make sure you understand exactly what the long-term financial ramifications of any consolidation loan will be. Don’t just get caught up in the “Wow!” factor of “look how much I can save every month!”

Right now, finding a lender to consolidate your existing loans will be somewhat challenging. If any of your loans are federal student loans, your luck will be considerably better. Here’s some information, from the US Department of Education on their own consolidation program: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/DCS/consolidation.html and http://www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov/

Private loans and federal loans can not be consolidated together – you would need separate loans.

Several lenders are still making consolidation loans for education – other lenders are not. If you are interested in consolidating non-government loans, I would recommend that you use http://www.bankrate.com/brm/rate/college_home.asp for an up-to-date list of lenders who are still making consolidation loans to borrowers in your area.

Good luck – I hope this information helped.

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