Consolidate before starting med school?

[scholj]

So what's the stance on this? I've heard some conflicting stories here. Some say that you should wait until after you are done with school completely before consolidating your undergraduate and graduate loans, while others (mainly from consolidation firms) claim that you should consolidate whenever you get the chance. I know that if I were to consolidate my undergraduate loans before I start med school in August, I would be waiving my right to a 6 month grace period, but I could still defer payment until I am out of school. However, if interest rates continue to climb the way they have been for the past 5 years, they could be up to 10% or 11% by the time I graduate from med school. Is there a benefit in consolidating my loans before I start med school, or should I wait it out and consolidate after I'm 6 months into my residency?

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[edubbs5]

You should know that the highest a Federal loan consolidation interest rate will be is 8.25% - that is the governed cap. So you don't have to worry about it going that high.

One other thing I would recommend is if you are going to be doing a consolidation - be sure it is with the same lender you will be using in the future - so you can keep the simplicity in your loan portfolio.

 

[okbye]

Keeping the same lender has no benefits, especially if you are going to consolidate eventually. Take your best deal.
You probably have some variable rate loans from prior to 7/1/06 so it wouldn't hurt to consolidate them now so they can't go up. Any future loans will be at a fixed rate so you won't have to worry about it again until graduation, unless they change the law again.