When to consolidate

[deleted390966]

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I have federal loans (both undergrad and grad) + 1 private loan.
Should I consolidate my loans as soon as possible or wait until I graduate (in 2017)?
Does consolidation affect my eligibility for IBR or PAYE?

 

[James Martin]

Debt consolidation often works best for those with credit card debt, which generally comes with higher interest rates. If you own a home or other valued property that you can use as collateral, lenders will be more likely to offer you lower payments and interest rates. But remember: If you use your property as collateral, you risk losing it if you fail to repay the loan.

 

[bwmd]

You can consolidate your federal loans. Once you do the grace period goes away, so this would be something you'd do after graduating. A federal DIRECT consolidation loan is still eligible for IBR/PAYE. You can't however consolidate your private loans into a federal loan, so that would remain separate.

You can of course consolidate everything into a private loan, but you generally won't be eligible for this until you're working and have an income (unless you use a cosigner). Private consolidations also generally don't have robust forbearance allowance like federal loans do, so again, this is something you'd do when you're not a student and have $0 to put toward them.