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Bank loans come in handy for students

More and more students are turning to bank loans to finance their education in the UK, the most expensive country in Europe to study at university according to a new report.
The report shows Britain in the top three most expensive countries in which to study, following only Japan and New Zealand - shockingly, it is even more expensive than the US, where tuition fees are considerably higher than here.Written by the US Educational Policy Institute, the report reveals the degree to which students are relying on bank loans and credit cards to get by.”Evidence shows that students are having to turn to commercial borrowing, such as credit cards and bank loans,” National Union of Students (NUS) vice president of education, Hannah Essex, told Life Style Extra.”While more students will receive financial support next year when variable tuition fees are introduced the majority will not have enough money to cover their basic living costs which are rising well above the rate of inflation.”The news follows Barclays’ revelation last week that the average UK student is graduating with debts worth £13,501.

Posted in student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, loan calculator, college student loan, loan rate, bank loan | Comments(0) August 2007



Student Loan Consolidation Limits Eased

The Education Department agreed yesterday that student borrowers who are still in school may consolidate their government-guaranteed loans — a step that clears the way for students to lock in today’s low interest rates. The guidance sent out by Assistant Education Secretary Sally L. Stroup put the department’s seal of approval on a legal interpretation that a small number of lenders had adopted in response to fears of some college seniors and others nearing completion of their education that they would miss a chance to capture rates that are near historic lows Students who have already graduated or left school have long been allowed to consolidate their loans, or even a single loan, into a single, fixed-rate note, and there has been a rush to do so this spring, before the deadline. Most federally guaranteed student loans carry a variable rate tied to the three-month Treasury bill. The rate is adjusted annually based on the rate on the last T-bill auction each May. Last year, that rate translated to a 2.77 percent interest rate for the student borrower still in school or a recent graduate. But with interest rates rising, the new rate July 1 is expected to be nearly two percentage points higher. When a student consolidates his or her loans, the new note will carry a rate that is a weighted average of the rates on all the loans included in the consolidation.

Experts cautioned students to think things over before rushing to consolidate.” This is one of a lifetime of financial decisions that students will face. Students must weigh their options — a grace period or the opportunity to fix a low interest rate,” said Martha Holler, a spokeswoman for Sallie Mae, the big education finance company. For example, students are entitled to a six-month grace period after they leave school before they have to start making payments. Consolidation eliminates that. Also, some lenders have been willing to take consolidation applications and in effect sit on them until the end of the grace period, thus giving the student the benefit of the grace period and the previous year’s rate. With in-school consolidation, which the department dubs “early conversion to repayment,” that will not be allowed.” A lender may hold an application only for the period of time necessary to receive and process” the necessary loan documents, the department said. However, a borrower may request an in-school deferment, so that he or she does not have to start making payments until after graduation or leaving school.The governments own Direct Loan program had no bar to in-school consolidation, and thus is not affected, a department official said.

Posted in Uncategorized, student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, debt consolidation loan, consolidate loan student, loan calculator, consolidation loan, college loan, college loan consolidation, college student loan, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation | Comments(0) August 2007



Student loan consolidation deadlines loom

A federal consolidation loan is a new fixed-rate loan that pays off your existing variable-rate student loans. By applying to your lender for loan consolidation before your grace period ends in June, you have the opportunity to lock in at a fixed rate of 4.75 percent, potentially saving you thousands of dollars in interest costs over the life of your loan. While it’s possible that Stafford loan rates will drop back down in future years, most forecasters are not expecting that to happen anytime soon. Anyone with Stafford loans already in repayment status is eligible to lock in at 5.375 percent before July 1 with a consolidation loan. A borrower still in school can grab the lower 4.75 percent fixed rate through consolidation, but only by first requesting that their loans be put into repayment status by the lender.

 The student should also request deferment so that the start of repayment can be delayed until graduation. (The grace period will be lost, however. Another advantage of loan consolidation is that you can reduce your monthly payments by extending the repayment period to anywhere from 10 to 30 years depending on the size of the loan. A $26,000 consolidation loan qualifies for a 20-year repayment term.To apply for a federal consolidation loan, contact the lender on your current Stafford loans. If you obtained your Stafford loans through the federal government’s direct loan program, you should visit http://loanconsolidation.ed.gov/to investigate the loan consolidation process. Parents with outstanding PLUS loans should also consider the benefits of loan consolidation. Certain other types of federal student loans are eligible, as well. When a consolidation loan replaces an assortment of student and parent loans, the interest rate on the consolidation loan is based on the weighted average of the existing loan rates. For new Stafford and PLUS loans taken out after June 30, 2006, consolidation will no longer offer a rate advantage for most borrowers.

Posted in student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, consolidate loan student, loan calculator, consolidation loan, college loan, college loan consolidation, college student loan, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation, consolidate loan | Comments(0) August 2007



Funds for student consolidation loans may be cut

Both the White House and Congress are taking aim at programs that allow students to consolidate their student loans to reduce the costs of paying them back. Consolidation is a big issue,” says Kenneth Redd, director of research and policy analysis for the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. “It’s not something Congress is going to change willy-nilly.” But a couple of new twists could change the terms for students and parents who borrow money. The biggest proposed change: a choice between a variable rate and a fixed rate when borrowers consolidate multiple loans into a single monthly payment. That change is part of the president’s budget, says William Graham, director of cost estimation and analysis for the budget service at the U.S. Department of Education. The president’s proposal also cuts the amount of government money going into student loan consolidation by more than half, while estimating a 25 percent decline in the volume of consolidation loans, Graham says. In addition, the president’s budget would shift some costs, Graham says. The budget asks that the origination fee charged to lenders be increased from one-half of 1 percent to a full percentage point, he says. And a new repayment schedule, which could allow students the option of longer repayment periods at a variable rate, could generate more funds in interest, says Graham. In 2004, the most recent year documented, students and parents took out 1.6 million consolidation loans totaling $43.7 billion, according to figures from the U.S. Department of Education. For 2005, the government estimates spending $5.6 billion to back an estimated $43.8 billion in student loan consolidations, says Graham. The president’s 2006 proposal would cut the government’s contribution to $2 billion, with the estimated loan volume dropping to $32.9 billion, he says. Another new point from the proposal: Students who had received all their loans through one lender would be allowed to shop around when they decide to consolidate. As it is now, only students who borrow from more than one lender — or took all their loans from the Department of Education direct loan program — have that privilege.

Any changes made from the president’s proposal would take effect with loans consolidated on or after, says Graham. In Congress, a piece of legislation aimed at reshaping several aspects of higher education also is calling for changes to the student loan consolidation program. The congressional bill, backed by Rep John Boehner (R-Ohio), proposes that consolidation loans offered for federally backed loans, such as the Stafford and PLUS loans, should offer borrowers the flexibility to choose between a variable rate and a fixed rate, depending on their individual financial needs.” I can’t say that I’m opposed to that,” says Ronald W. Johnson, co-author of “Financial Aid for College: Understand and Plan Your Funding Options and director of financial aid at UCLA. “I’m hoping the variable interest rate does allow the federal government to provide more money for financial aid so that students have the access.” Young people need a break on student loan payments to make ends meet,” says Barry Morrow, president and CEO of Collegiate Funding Services. A variable rate could hurt students because “it takes away some of the certainty” of regular fixed payments, he argues.But Morrow doesn’t believe that consolidation itself is in any danger. If you read the president’s budget, “he certainly is not ending consolidation, by any means,” he says.

Posted in student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, consolidate loan student, loan calculator, consolidation loan, college loan, college loan consolidation, school loan consolidation, college student loan, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation, consolidate loan | Comments(0) August 2007



High schoolers tested higher on economics than reading

Efforts to save up for a first car or stretch an allowance might be helping high schoolers in at least one academic area. Twelfth-graders did better on a recent national economics test than they did on similar math or reading tests, according to results released Wednesday. Forty-two percent of 12th-graders nationwide scored at the proficient level or better on the economics test, meaning they could handle challenging subject matter.In contrast, just 23 percent of 12th-graders hit the proficient mark in math, according to results published earlier this year. In reading, 35 were proficient or better. It is assumed a student needs a strong foundation in math and reading to do well in economics, so the relatively strong economics results are likely to raise questions. One explanation may be that the federal reading and math tests are harder than the economics exam. This was the first time economics was offered as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Arvin Winick, chair of the National Assessment Governing Board, which oversees the tests, said the economics exam included questions about personal finance as well topics such as market economics and international trade.Winick said high schoolers may be picking up lessons about personal finance outside of school — such as at home or at work.Winick called the economics scores encouraging, noting that high school seniors are nearing independence. “It’s comforting that they would know the difference between an asset and a liability,” he said. Economics courses are becoming increasingly common in high school. A 2005 survey of transcripts found 66 percent of high school graduates had taken an economics class, up from 49 percent in 1982.Students who took a high-level economics course, such as one labeled Advanced Placement or honors, were more likely to score high on the national test than students who did not take a similar course, according to the governing board. But high schoolers who took a general economics course did not do any better on the economics test than students who didn’t take a class, which raises questions about the rigor of those basic-level courses. It’s also possible that students are getting some information about economics through other courses. Students scoring at the proficient level on the economics test should be able to analyze the effect of a poor harvest on the supply of an agricultural product and determine the impact of a drop in oil production on countries that import oil, among other things. Seventy-nine percent of 12th-graders who took the economics test demonstrated an ability to at least do basic-level work. That, too, is higher than the percentage of kids reading and doing math at least at the basic level. Students working at the basic level should be able to describe a benefit and a risk of leaving a job to go to school and should be able to identify the relationship between a person’s credit history and the interest rate attached to a loan.

Posted in student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, consolidate loan student, loan calculator, consolidation loan, college loan, college loan consolidation, school loan consolidation, college student loan, school loan, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation | Comments(0) August 2007



Benefits Of Student Loan Consolidation

Student loan consolidations meant to reduce the student’s total debt and particularly the amount of monthly payments, making student loans more affordable. If you choose a student loan consolidation program, it means you are opting for a better rate of interest, flexible repayment options, lower monthly payments and more time to repay your debt. On top of it, most lenders offer other benefits and savings on student debt consolidation. For higher education, you require huge amount of money and you have to borrow it time to time as per the need. You end up graduating with so many loans that all your salary will go into repayment. There is a solution to this: opt for a student loan consolidation program and get all loans consolidated into one loan. The benefits of student loan consolidation are as follows:

Reduce Your Monthly Payments

Some student loan consolidation schemes offer reduction in monthly payment of up to 50% from your current payment. If you are getting this reduction by reduced rate of interest it is really worth it. But if you are getting this by extending tenure of the loan, then you will end up paying more interest in the longer run. Weigh the pros and cons before deciding on the pal
You may obtain an interest rate as low as 5.25% on your student debt consolidation loans Some lenders even offer extra benefits if you fulfill certain criteria, this additional reduction in rates are on an average 1.25%. Thus, shop around to find best rates and the terms or criteria on which the lowest rate is offered. One thing is for sure, you will definitely get lower rate than the average of all your loans you are consolidating under the student debt consolidation.

No Fees and Other Benefits

Most of the lenders, who offer the student loan consolidation, do it for no fees. Very less formalities and paper-work is required and you can pre-pay all your debt without facing any prepayment penalty. This saves thousands of dollars in the interest you would have paid. After your graduation, you can have added benefits. Like if you are able start paying back your student loan consolidation monthly amount while you are still in the grace period, you may get additional 1% reduction in the interest rates. As you can see, there are many benefits of student loan consolidation. There are really no catches in it, just try to research for the best interest rates and other terms before settling in for the student debt consolidation program. Student loan consolidation significantly reduces the student’s monthly repayment, offers longer tenure and lower interest rates with additional benefits. Student loan consolidation programs are designed to help the students manage their loans better and be more comfortable in paying off the loans.

Posted in student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, consolidate loan student, loan calculator, consolidation loan, college loan, college loan consolidation, college student loan, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation, consolidate loan | Comments(0) August 2007



The Best Student Loan Consolidation Plan that is perfect for you is out there

If you have even a passing interest in the topic of student loan consolidation, then you should take a look at the following information. This enlightening article presents some of the latest news on the subject of student loan consolidation. If you find yourself confused by what you’ve read to this point, don’t despair. Everything should be crystal clear by the time you finish. If your parents do not have the cash upfront, they will have to get a loan for you or you could even search for the best student loan yourself. To help you with this important factor in your life, student loans are plentiful.  There are so many lenders that will lend you money for your education. When you finish college or even while you are still in college, you will end up knee-deep in student loans debt. If you are one of these students, you need not despair; you may shop around to find the best student loan consolidation entities to help you in the process of getting out of debt. Best student loan consolidation will help reduce your monthly payment of up to 50%.You cannot find any better deal than that. Reducing your monthly payment will mean that you can have some spare money for other purposes. Best student loan consolidation will thus help you have some money to meet other expenses like car payments, household needs, and childcare. Additionally, because of the best student loan consolidation program, your credit rating will improve and you can even extend your paying period from the usual ten years to as long as thirty years. You may also find the best student loan consolidation company that will give an additional percentage of interest on top of the savings from the consolidation.  This will be good to lessen your monthly burden.

Additionally, if your student loan is under the federal direct student loans, you may qualify for the best federal direct loan consolidation program. In this program, in addition to the 50% or more reduction in your monthly payments, there is a lock in lower interest rate available for you.  This lock in lower interest rate is best for your student loan consolidation program because it will shield you against inflation rates. This will mean that you will not have to worry about additional charges due to the inflation rate fluctuations. To top is all off, the best student loan consolidation deal under the federal direct program is easy to apply, and there are no fees, credit checks, application, or original charges.Thus, it is a clean way through paying your student loans and can even spare you some money for other purposes.  Is this not the best student loan consolidation program you will ever find? If you are not sure if your student loans are under the federal direct student loans program, you may check out the Internet.  Match your student loans if they will qualify for the best student loan consolidation program. You can also find in the Internet additional information that you can use to help you get out of that knee-deep debt. That’s the latest from the student loan consolidation authorities. Once you’re familiar with these ideas, you’ll be ready to move to the next level.

Posted in student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, consolidate loan student, loan calculator, consolidation loan, college loan, college loan consolidation, college student loan, federal loan consolidation, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation, federal student loan, consolidate loan, federal student loan consolidation | Comments(0) August 2007



Student loan scandal: Effects on consolidation

It’s a good thing you got that college education. You can put it to good use navigating the complex maze that is the student loan industry as you consider whether to consolidate your federal student loans. For those who have never done it, it’s a question that comes up every year in anticipation of the rate change on July 1 of the variable federal student loans. But this year, there’s a twist. News of student lenders offering perks and kickbacks to colleges and alumni associations to include them on preferred lender lists have, understandably, made consumers wary. But that actually may be one good thing to come out of the scandal. The advice about deciding whether and with whom to consolidate hasn’t changed. It’s just become even more relevant.” The current scandal reinforces the need to be a savvy consumer and examine carefully any offer you receive no matter where it comes from,” said Lauren Asher, associate director of Project Student Debt and the Institute for College Access and Success. Indeed, said Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid.org, “even when a school’s preferred lender list is unbiased, you still have to identify which loans are best for you.” The question of whether to consolidate your federal loans depends on the type of loans you have, their rate (variable or fixed) and your goal: Do you want to reduce the interest you pay long-term? Lower your monthly payment? Pay just one bill instead of several? Get better discounts? It also depends on whether you’ve already consolidated the loans in question before. By law, you may not consolidate the same loans twice.Here’s what to consider if you have: Stafford loans If your Stafford loans were issued before July 1, 2006 they are variable-rate loans. What determines the change in the variable rate every July is the yield on the 3-month Treasury bill during the last T-bill auction in May. Currently, the yield is very close to where it was a year ago. So if the 3-month yield doesn’t move much between now and the end of the month, payments on your Stafford loans are not likely to go up much, if at all, after July 1.So there’s little reason to consolidate if your sole goal is to lock in a lower rate this year. But there is one exception: if you’re still in your so-called grace period, defined as up to six months after your graduation. That’s because you still are enjoying the “in-school” rate, which is about 0.6 percentage points less than it will be when your grace period ends and you go into repayment. Consolidating before your grace period ends lets you to lock in that lower rate. Technically, you may lose out on some of your grace period because you will need to begin repayment within 60 days of consolidating. But if you apply for consolidation before July 1, a lot of lenders can set it up so that the clock on that 60 days doesn’t start until close to the last two months of your grace period, Kantrowitz said. There’s also little reason to consolidate if you want to lock in a lower rate and you got your Stafford loan after July 1, 2006. That’s because those loans are fixed rate loans at 6.8 percent and won’t change. Whether you have variable or fixed rate Stafford’s, however, you might consider consolidating if you want to reduce your monthly payments. You can do so by combining your loans into one loan and extending the repayment term. But by doing so you greatly increase the amount of interest you’ll pay. By changing your repayment term from 10 years to 20, you’ll cut your monthly payment by a third, but you’ll double the amount of interest you pay long-term, Kantrowitz said. A 30-year term is even more expensive. Say you have $20,000 in fixed-rate Stafford loans. Asher notes that you’ll pay $7,619 in interest on them over 10 years. But if you consolidate and extend the repayment term to 30 years, you’ll lower your monthly payment by $100 but you’ll end up paying $26,935 in interest. Besides rates and monthly payments, weigh discount incentives when considering consolidation. Many lenders offer breaks if, say, you direct debit your payments or pay on-time for 36 consecutive months. Compare not only consolidation discounts offered by different lenders, compare them to the discounts you’re currently enjoying. Sometimes, Kantrowitz said, “discounts for consolidated loans are inferior to those on unconsolidated loans.”

Posted in student loan, loan, student loan consolidation, consolidate loan student, loan calculator, consolidation loan, college loan, college loan consolidation, school loan consolidation, college student loan, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation, consolidate loan | Comments(0) August 2007



Financial planning for graduates

Graduates are finishing their courses with debts now averaging £13,000 to £15,000 on student loans, overdrafts, credit cards and loans from parents, a figure that has been going up by around 12% a year and is likely to rise even faster following the near tripling of tuition fees to £3,000 a year in September 2006. Advanced studies on financial management would appear to be called for!Figures released by the Student Loans Company show total lending to British students in the year to April was £3.4 billion, up from £2.9 billion the previous year. The figures are the first since universities were allowed to charge tuition fees of £3,000 - up from the £1,250 charged to those entering before last September. The National Union of Students (NUS) now estimates that it costs as much as £15,000 a year to study in London and £13,000 elsewhere although the figures are disputed.Gemma Tumelty, NUS president, said “Debt does not only affect students’ choices before they enter university, it affects the courses they choose, the career they take on, the likelihood of them pursuing further study and their chances to save and invest as graduates.”

Hello world, I’ve got a BA (or BSc or MA, etc., etc…)

So, you’re leaving Uni with your degree certificate in one hand and bank statement in the deepest shade of red in the other. What do you do?To get your finances on the right track the first thing you need is write a budget. List everything you owe and all your living costs. If you are working, you need to deduct all outgoings for each month from your total income so you can work out exactly how much spare cash you have left for repaying debts.

Shop around for the best

Just as you shopped around when looking at (you did, didn’t you?), now you have a degree you can switch to get the best deal on graduate accounts. The banks are always keen to attract graduates because they expect them to be good earners in the future.The banks will consider you for a graduate account up to three years after you have graduated. Don’t necessarily take the first one that comes along. You need to compare the products available in the marketplace. Don’t even think about incentives such as discounts at shops and restaurants you’ll probably never use - you’re in the business world now and it’s the figures that count.Graduate accounts offer preferential interest rates on personal loans and 0% rates on overdrafts but interest rates vary greatly as do the terms. This is where you need to be shrewd. Look at terms on free overdrafts; interest rates on extended overdrafts and personal loans; and fees for going over the overdraft limit.

For example, Barclays offers interest free loans up to £3,000 in year one, £2,000 in year two, £1,000 in the third year and £500 in the four year but there is a £5 a month fee. HSBC has no monthly fees but offers interest free loans of £1,500 in year one and £1,000 in year two.Check out the interest rates on extending your overdraft. Once again the interest rates do differ. For example, Abbey will charge you 9.9% and Barclays 15.6%. If you expect to need a personal loan as well, you need to study interest rates here as wellBeware of unauthorised overdrafts - the interest rates may appear outrageous. NatWest charges 17.81%, whereas Lloyds TSB will make you pay 29.8% plus a fee of £30 a day (up to £90 a month) and Barclays 27.5%.

Pay off expensive debt first

The top rules for paying back debt are to work out a timescale to pay off the most expensive at the fastest rate and switch expensive debt to something cheaper, for example switch to a or a cheaper loan. If you’re struggling to pay back debt on credit cards, which can be twice as expensive as a personal loan, you’re probably better off with a If you owe money to the government-backed Student Loans Company, don’t rush to repay it because the interest rate is linked to the retail price index and it’s currently 2.4%. Plus you don’t have to start repaying it until you start earning more than £15,000 a year.

Graduate checklist for financial recovery

  • Draw up a budget work out how much you need to live on and how much you owe.
  • Switch to a graduate account and compare free overdrafts, interest rates on personal loans and extended overdrafts and fees and interest rates for unauthorised overdrafts.
  • Set goals for repaying debt, perhaps two years or five years.
  • Pay off the most expensive debt first.
  • Don’t rush to repay cheaper student loans.
  • Pay back loans and credit cards using direct debits - that way you know they’ll be paid and you won’t be tempted to spend the money.
  • Review your finances every year to check youre on target and always shop around to see if you can get a better deal on loans or credit cards.
  • Don’t take on new loans you can’t afford.
  • Deal with bills when they arrive - don’t let them mount up.
  • Don’t bury your head in the sand if your debts are getting out of control - talk to your bank or seek debt advice. Use the free debt advice services from National Debtline (www.nationaldebtline.co.uk) and the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (www.cccs.co.uk).

Posted in student loan, loan, personal loan, student loan consolidation, loan calculator, college loan, college loan consolidation, college student loan, loan rate, student loan debt consolidation, college finance | Comments(0) July 2007