Consolidating Student Loans

March 25, 2008 Consolidate Student Loans 1 Comment

One of the most convenient ways to finance education is through student loans. However, student loans like all other loans have to be eventually paid back. After graduation you might find that the loans have accumulated and are hard to pay back. In such an event, you may consider consolidating your student loans. You can lower your monthly payments as well as save money with student loan consolidation.

Why should you consolidate student loans?

By consolidating student loans, you can combine all your loans together into a single loan. The benefit of student loan consolidation is that you will have only one lender and one payment to deal with. It will also give you the opportunity to lock in a low interest rate, which can save you hundreds of dollars over time.

What would be the cost of consolidating student loans?

When you consolidate your student loans you can bring down your monthly payments considerably, by as much as 60 %. The only drawback is that you may end up paying a larger sum of money over the life of the loan. Before consolidating your student loans, take time to evaluate the interest rate and loan terms. Shop around and compare lenders.

There are several Federal Loans eligible for Student Loan Consolidation. Many federal student loans already have a low interest rate. However, you may be able to achieve a lower payment by consolidating student loans. Below is a list of list of federal loans that typically qualify as student loan consolidation:

Federal Stafford Loans

Federal Direct Loans

Federal Perkins Loans

Federal Supplemental Loans for Students (SLS)

Federally Insured Student Loans (FISL)

National Direct Student Loans (NDSL)

Federal Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students (PLUS)

Loans for Disadvantaged Students (LDS)

Auxiliary Loan to Assist Students (ALAS)

Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL)

William Brister - http://www.debtconsolidationproguide.com - A guide to Credit Consolidation

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HOPE Scholarship-Lifetime Learning

Tax Credits for Your Tuition Payments 

In late January or early February of each year, qualified students enrolled at EvCC in the previous year receive a 1098T notification from Everett Community College. This notification is related to the federal tax credit programs called the Hope Scholarship or Lifetime Learning Tax Credit.

These tax credit programs may be claimed against federal income taxes for the payment of qualified tuition and related expenses. It is the responsibility of the student and/or individual tax payer to determine his or her eligibility and the deductible amount of tuition/fees.p>

A A college cannot provide you with tax advice, so instead of calling us, you may wish to find out if you might be eligible by reading information at these websites:

http://www.scholarshipexperts.com/signup.jsp?sourceid=2819030

You may also wish to consult the IRS or a tax accountant for assistance. Your own check receipts, credit card statements, or your own copy of your receipt showing tuition paid at the time you registered may support your claim.

Beginning at the end of January, you can review your previous year tuition costs by generating your previous class schedules via the Student Kiosk function on our website. We strongly encourage you to do this in order to doublecheck the dollar amount shown on the 1098T. We are aware that in some cases student loans may not have been calculated properly when the 1098T was printed, so it is important for you to doublecheck.

How do I get to the "HOPE Scholarship" login?

  1. Upon entering the Student Kiosk, click on “Hope Scholarship” in the left column
  2. Enter your student ID
  3. Enter your PIN
  4. Click on “View My 1098-T Data”. You may need to scroll down to see all the information. For each quarter on the list on the screen, you can click on the quarter and see more detail.

NOTE: We strongly recommend that you change your PIN number to a secret code. You can do this by selecting Student Pin Change on the menu in the left column on the Student Kiosk page.

If you believe there is an error on your 1098T, and/or if you do not have computer access you may request written information by submitting a written inquiry (with your name, student ID number, address, phone number and signature) to Administrative Services – Hope Scholarship, EvCC, 2000 Tower Street, Everett, WA 98201.