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Overview Of Student Loan Consolidation Interest Rates

December 8th, 2009 by Charles Gloson

The drop in interest rates has made considering student loan consolidation interest rates more attractive. Students may be paying larger monthly payments on loans and need to lower the payments. Or, they may have several separate loans that are paid to different lenders each month with varying interest rates. With almost eight percent of students carrying an average $10,000 loan, there can be many reasons to want to consolidate.

Education loans fall into two categories, Federal education and Private education loans. When a student is considering consolidation it is important to keep these categories separated. The method for calculating consolidation interest rates for federal education loans are strictly regulated by the government. The education loans provided by private lenders do fall under the same restrictions and requirements and can vary greatly depending of the lender gave the loan.

The federal government figures student loan consolidation rates by taking the average weighted interest rate of all the loans and rounding up to the nearest 1/8%. In most cases the loan's interest rate will be between the lowest and highest interest rates that a person currently pays. The highest that the interest rate will go is 8 1/4%.

There are some instances when an individual with a PLUS student loan will be able to receive a lower rate by consolidating. The cap on a PLUS student loan is 8.5%. However, when the PLUS is consolidated, the cap is 8.25%. By consolidating the PLUS loan a student can save 0.25%. This is called the PLUS Loan Loophole.

Interest on a private education loan is calculated using the prime rate or London Interbank Offered Rate with an additional one to five percent origination fee. The origination fee is based on a person's credit score. The origination fee normally is included in the loan and there is not an upfront fee required.

The total amount of the loan can also be increased when other costs must be added. Capitalization of deferred interest from the original loan may be included in the loan if the original loan had deferred interest. If there were any discounts offered with the original loan they normally must be paid back and will be included in the loan as well.

Consolidating student loans will extend the repayment period of the loan and lower one's monthly payment. It will also allow an individual to make one payment to a single lender for their education loan. But, it is important to talk to a professional about the many student consolidation interest rates that are available when finding a private lender. In some cases a person's interest rate will not be lowered enough by consolidation to make the extended payments of a loan worthwhile. By doing research and finding the best rates a person can significantly lower their payments and have one interest rate that will offset the higher rates that were being paid previously.

Looking for the lowest student loan consolidation rate? Undergraduate student loans may be the best option for you.

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