Q: I have some student loans which I need to consolidate. Many sites (including articles I have found on studentloansforcollege.org) direct me to go to the government website: www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov for student loan consolidation. My one question is, where on this site can I find information on consolidating my private student loans as well as my federal student loans?
A: The reason you will not find information (or an application) for consolidating your private student loans on the federal governments Direct Consolidation Loans website, is because the US Department of Education’s Direct Consolidation Loans apply to federal student loans only. In all of our articles relating to consolidation loans, we have directed individuals to www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov when they are considering consolidating their federal student loans. Private student loans have to be consolidated by a private lender, the federal government will not consolidate your private student loans into a federal consolidation loan.
An important “rule of thumb” when it comes to consolidating your private student loans, is to never consolidate your federal student loans into a private consolidation loan. If you do this, you will lose all of your federal student loan benefits. If consolidating your student loans is something you wish to do, you can visit www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov to apply for a federal consolidation loan through the Direct Consolidation Loan Program. Next, you can contact the lender you have your private student loans with to see if they can help you with a private consolidation loan, or you can research other private student loan lenders to see if you can qualify for a consolidation loan for your private student loans. Remember, always consolidate your federal and private student loans separately.
TheStudentLoanShark:
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