Top Scams Targeting College Students

Author: Sally Croft

Students are faced with the daunting tasks of completing their pre-college studies, applying to numerous colleges, waiting to get accepted and then planning how to pay for their educational pursuits and the expenses that are expected to come with this endeavor. The hunt for financing is on and students as well as parents can be lured in to schemes that are anything but beneficial to them. There exist, in all forms of media, those who are looking to take advantage of the novice student or adult borrower in order to exploit their resources and gain whatever they can from this.

Some of these sales approaches that try to get money from students or their families can be called “scams”. There are scams that range from simple advertising tricks to come-ons that just plain are invented to draw attention or even to direct you to a particular site. Some of the top scams targeting college students and perspective college students have become quite inventive with their methods.

Government Offers - These are not really from the government, though they may refer to government sites. If an offer looks like it comes from the government be sure to check out the source of the mailing. Students should know that the U.S. federal government site for applying for general financial aid is called the FAFSA and is easy to find by doing a general web search for financial aid.
Flashy colorful advertisements - Discard any mail for financing that comes with flashing ads, music, dancers or other forms of entertainment to distract you.
One time offers - Avoid any thing that says it is a one time offer as it is probably not from a reputable source.
Student Loan Consolidation - Be careful of offers for student loan consolidation from companies other than banks
Scholarship offers, especially those that charge a fee

Things to Look Out For

Some ads offer information on how to get money for free, it’s not really free
Do not fall for any financial aid offers that come unsolicited through email
Sweepstakes with prizes and free money for college are a way to lure students in to deals
Be careful of so-called financial aid finders
Financial aid offers that charge a fee for finding sources for you

Tags: College Student Scams, college students, Graduates, Scams, student loan consolidation
Posted in Graduating Students, Student Loan Consolidation Scams, student loan consolidation | No Comments »

Oct

Top Student Loan Consolidation Services from Chase

Author: Sally Croft

Chase is one of the prominent financial institutions in the US that provides student loans and student loan consolidation. Chase employs experts who are able to assist scores of students every year in pursuing higher education. It offers a secure, easy and quick application process. Chase student loans enable students to understand the various options with respect to student loans.

Types of Chase Student Loans

Federal consolidation loans
Private consolidation loans
Federal Stafford loans
Federal Grad PLUS loans
Private student loans

Federal student loans are offered by the government and can be funded by private lenders like Chase. Private lenders offer similar student loans that have lower interest rates with extended repayment periods. The private student loans offered by Chase can be used for approved education-related expenditures. They are offered in varied forms and can be opted for when the money offered by federal loans is not enough to take care of the full fees for higher education and when they need to be consolidated during repayment.

Student Loan Consolidation from Chase

Student loan consolidation from Chase is offered to combine all existing private loans into a single loan with a low interest rate. It is easy to repay the loan as a single payment every month. Chase takes care of servicing these private student loans and does not sell them to another financial institute or lender. These loans require credit approval along with a completed and signed Application/Promissory Note and verification of application information.

Consolidating Federal student loans do not require for any kind of credit check. However, it does require a minimum balance of $7,500 with a cumulative borrowing limit for private student loans of $150,000, based on credit eligibility. With the help of student loan consolidation from Chase, the repayment period can be extended so that the overall financial obligation can be increased. With this, the monthly loan payments can be reduced and the principal can be prepaid with no penalties. Being able to prepay means the overall cost of the loan reduces drastically.

Keep in Mind

Federal Student Loans can be consolidated, but federal and private student loans should not be consolidated into a single student loan consolidation program. If you consolidate them together, you lose the benefits of forbearance and deferment with the federal loans.
Similar to other debt consolidation loans, student loan consolidation payments should be done by a single lender who will pay the earlier creditors for all initial loans.
For Federal Student Loans Consolidation, the minimum balance is $7,500 and it must be done within the six month grace period or when the loans are in repayment.
Based on the balance of the loan, student loan consolidation will have an extended repayment period.
The repayment plan should enable balance of monthly payments and result in a good credit rating.
Student loan consolidation has a maximum interest rate of 8.25%.
There are no additional charges involved in processing the student loan consolidation.
After the consolidation is approved, it cannot be undone as the loan amount will have already been paid to the previous creditors.

Tags: Chase, Credit Rating, Federal Student Loan, Federal Student Loan Consolidation, Private Student Loan, student loan, student loan consolidation
Posted in Private Student Loan, student loan consolidation | 1 Comment »

Sep

Wells Fargo Loan Consolidation

Author: Sally Croft

Students with too much debt can handle their finances effectively by opting for loan consolidation. This helps eliminate multiple payments every month; instead they make a single payment with a lower interest rate. Though the reduction in interest rate through consolidation of loan cannot improve the credit score immediately, it can definitely help in managing student loans.

Wells Fargo Loan Consolidation

Students can pursue higher education with the help of proper funding. Though some of them are able to source their funding through scholarships or grants, most of them opt for good loan programs to manage their funding. There are many capable private lenders who manage student loans effectively. Wells Fargo is one private lender that has been in the business for many years and is one of the most trusted names in student financial aid.

Loan consolidation from the Wells Fargo is very simple to get through an easy process. It offers valuable advice to students who are looking at consolidating their loans and those who want to pursue their higher education. The Stafford loan is one of the most common Federal student loans available. It can be subsidized or unsubsidized and repayment is usually done in 10 years. The repayment of these student loan do not start until 6 months after students complete their education or 6 months after completion of part-time status at a college or university. With the help of a Wells Fargo Student Loan consolidation the loan can be extended to 20 years and the payments can be reduced to as little as half of what they were paying per month.

One Easy Payment

Wells Fargo Student Loan Consolidation can consolidate the various Federal student loans as well as other forms of loans into one easy payment. For consolidation, Wells Fargo is not particular about whether the loans are federal or private loans (http://www.studentloaninfo.org/blog/private-student-loans-dismissing-the-myths/) or whether they are from Wells Fargo or other lending companies. When students consolidate their variable rate federal loans during their grace period, they can save a lot of money. They also need not pay any origination during disbursement or any prepayment penalty if they decide to repay the debt early. Also, there is no minimum loan balance required to consolidate loans with Wells Fargo.

Points to be Considered for Wells Fargo Student Loan Consolidation

When opting for a Wells Fargo student loan consolidation, the following factors needs to be kept in mind:

Federal loans can be added to the consolidation during the first 180 days after disbursement. If it is after 180 days, students can reapply for a different loan.
If another consolidation loan is applied for, the interest rate might change and may be even more than the current interest rates. This can increase the timeframe for repayment.
The timeframe for the loan application to be approved by Wells Fargo is about two months. During this period, students need to continue make their regular loan payments.
Students need to apply for consolidation on their own.
There is no minimum loan balance needed for consolidation of loans.
Students can access their account online to make their payments easily and keep track of their consolidation payments.

Tags: Federal Student Loans, repayment, scholarships, student loan, student loan consolidation, Wells Fargo, Wells Fargo Loan Consolidation
Posted in Federal School Loan, Student Loan, student loan consolidation | 1 Comment »