Both federal and private consolidation can help you tackle your debt, but the two are different. Plus, each strategy has its own pros and cons. Find out about the pros and cons of consolidating student loans and how to choose which is best for you.
What is federal loan consolidation?
Most federal loans, including subsidized loans, unsubsidized loans, and PLUS loans can be consolidated with a Direct Consolidation Loan. In general, you can consolidate loans once you graduate and your loans are either in repayment or during your grace period.
Direct Consolidation Loans have a fixed interest rate for the length of your repayment term. Your interest rate will be the weighted average of your current loans, rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of one percent.
You can apply for a Direct Consolidation Loan online at StudentLoans.gov.
Pros of federal student loan consolidation
If you have federal student loans, combining them together with a Direct Consolidation Loan has several benefits:
- Simplify your loan repayment: When you take out a Direct Consolidation Loan, all of your current federal loans are consolidated into one. Going forward, you’ll have just one loan to manage with one simple monthly payment to remember.
- Reduce your monthly payment: With a Direct Consolidation Loan, you can opt for a repayment term as long as 30 years. With a longer repayment term, you can dramatically lower your monthly payments, making them more affordable.
- Get access income-driven repayment plans: If you have federal loans that are ineligible for income-driven repayment (IDR) plans — such as Perkins Loans — consolidating them with a Direct Consolidation Loan can be a smart workaround. Once you finish the consolidation process, the loan is eligible for IDR plans, helping you reduce your payment.
Cons of federal student loan consolidation
Although federal loan consolidation can be helpful for some, it’s not for everyone. There are some significant drawbacks to consider:
- Resets the clock on loan forgiveness programs: If you’re pursuing either income-driven repayment plan forgiveness or Public Service Loan Forgiveness, consolidating your loans will restart the clock, and you will lose credit for the payments you’ve made to date.
- Potentially pay more in interest: Because most people choose a longer repayment term when they consolidate their loans, you may end up paying more in interest fees than if you stayed on a standard 10-year repayment plan.
- Loss of borrower benefits: You may lose out on certain borrower benefits, such as interest rate discounts or loan cancellation benefits, that you have with your current federal student loans.
What is private student loan consolidation?
Private student loan consolidation is quite different than federal consolidation. With private consolidation, also called student loan refinancing, you work with a private lender rather than the federal government.
You take out a new loan for the amount of your current debt, including private and federal loans, and use it to pay them off. Like federal loan consolidation, you’ll have just one loan and one monthly payment going forward.
Pros of private student loan consolidation
Private student loan consolidation has benefits that federal loan consolidation doesn’t offer:
- Lower interest rate: Your private consolidation loan will have a new interest rate that is based on your creditworthiness. Borrowers with good credit can get a lower rate, so you’ll pay less money in interest charges and save money.
- Become debt-free sooner: With a lower interest rate or a shorter repayment term, you can pay off your debt much sooner.
- Combine both federal and private loans: With federal loan consolidation, you can only combine federal loans together. But with private consolidation, you can combine both federal and private loans into one loan, simplifying your repayment.
Cons of private student loan consolidation
Private consolidation can be a smart way to tackle your debt, but there are some drawbacks to keep in mind:
- You’ll lose federal benefits: If you refinance federal student loans, you’ll no longer be eligible for federal benefits like income-driven repayment plans, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and federal forbearance and deferment programs.
- Interest rates can vary: With private loan consolidation, you can choose a variable or fixed interest rate loan. If you choose a variable rate loan, you should know that your variable rate can fluctuate over time, and could end up being higher than your loan’s original interest rate. And all private lenders offer different rates.
- Good to excellent credit required: To qualify for a low-interest loan, you’ll need to have good to excellent credit and a stable income. If your credit is less-than-stellar, or if your income is insufficient, you won’t be able to qualify for a loan — or you may have to settle for a higher interest rate.
Best loan consolidation lenders
If you decide that private loan consolidation is right for you, it’s a good idea to shop around and compare offers from some of the best student loan refinancing lenders to ensure you get the best rates.
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Managing your debt
If you’re having trouble remembering all of your student loan payment due dates, loan consolidation can make a lot of sense.
Whether you opt for federal loan consolidation or private loan consolidation is dependent on the type of loans you have and your comfort level with their benefits and drawbacks. By understanding consolidating student loans pros and cons, you can make an informed decision about what will work best for you.
