There is Still Time to Lock in Lower Interest Rates Through Student Loan
Consolidation; Sallie Mae Offers Tips and Advice on Managing Repayment
RESTON, Va., June 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Interest rates on
existing, variable-rate federal student loans will jump by 8 basis points
(0.08 percent) this Sunday, July 1. Customers who submit their Federal
Consolidation Loan application online by midnight (PDT) on June 30, can
avoid the increase and lock in today's lower interest rate. Many students
with variable-rate student loans stand to benefit by consolidating their
student loans before July 1. An application for student loan consolidation
and related information are available at
http://www.SallieMae.com/Consolidation.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030617/SLMLOGO-a )
"Completing your student loan consolidation application is quick and
easy," said Patricia Scherschel, vice president of loan consolidation,
Sallie Mae. "In fact, you can complete the entire process online, including
submitting an electronic signature, in 15 minutes or less."
Consolidation involves paying off current federal education loans in
full and creating a single new loan. The new loan features a fixed interest
rate calculated as the weighted average of the rates of the loans
consolidated, adjusted up to the nearest 0.125 percent, and not to exceed
8.25 percent. Stafford loan customers who are still in their six-month,
post-school grace period can lock in an interest rate as low as 6.625
percent with student loan consolidation, and by doing so, they will avoid
both the July 1 and the post- grace period interest-rate increases on their
loans.
The loan consolidation experts at Sallie Mae offer these tips to last-
minute applicants.
1. Put down the phone and apply online. Customers may call our toll-free
hotline at (800) 448-3533 for more information or to request an
application, but the fastest way to apply is to go to
http://www.SallieMae.com/Consolidation. Most customers can complete
this form in 15 minutes or less.
2. Allow us to help. Sallie Mae's complimentary, online concierge service
walks customers through the application process quickly and easily,
takes just five minutes to complete and is a fail-safe choice for
customers who don't have all of their loan details handy. Sallie Mae
can help customers fill in the blanks on their student loan
consolidation application and will notify them when the application is
ready to review and sign online. Customers who complete the concierge
request form by June 30 will qualify to lock-in the current lower
rates on their variable-rate loans.
3. Take advantage of E-Sign. By signing and submitting applications
online, student loan consolidation customers can avoid using
snail-mail or an expensive overnight delivery service. Once an
application is submitted electronically, Sallie Mae will send an
e-mail confirming receipt of the signed application.
4. Shop for the best fit. A customer's relationship with a consolidation
loan provider can last up to 30 years, so it is important to pick a
trusted lender that offers competitive discounts. Sallie Mae offers
eligible customers with a balance of at least $10,000 an interest rate
discount of 1 percent after the first 36 on-time payments. In
addition, consolidation customers with balances of $7,500 or more will
receive an immediate 0.25 percent interest rate reduction for using
automatic debit to make payments electronically. Combined, these
benefits mean real money: an average borrower with a $25,000 loan
could save as much as $4,200.
5. Optimize your repayment. For a more in-depth analysis of their
optimal repayment options, customers can also use the exhaustive
simulation provided through Sallie Mae's Repayment Optimizer tool,
which provides detailed repayment estimates that take into account the
rate reductions, discounts and benefits associated with various loan
offerings. That tool is available at
http://www.SallieMae.com/RepaymentOptimizer.
6. Don't miss the June 30 deadline. Midnight (PDT) on Saturday, June 30
is the deadline for submitting an application to Sallie Mae.
7. Check your address. If you do not prefer to apply online, you can
still apply via regular mail as long as the envelope is postmarked
June 30. Before customers drop the letter in the mail box, they
should check the pick-up times to make sure the letter will be
postmarked June 30. Paper applications should be sent to:
Sallie Mae Loan Consolidation
P.O. BOX 6178
Indianapolis, IN 46206
8. Be patient. It may take a few weeks for applications to be processed,
although electronic applications often are processed in less than two
weeks. Sallie Mae will base the consolidation loan's interest rate on
the rates in effect on the variable-rate Stafford and PLUS Loans in
June even if the consolidation loan is issued on or after July 1.
Sallie Mae will send a disclosure notice when the new consolidation
loan has been disbursed.
SLM Corporation (NYSE: SLM), commonly known as Sallie Mae, is the
nation's leading provider of saving - and paying-for-college programs. The
company manages $150 billion in education loans and serves nearly 10
million student and parent customers. Through its Upromise affiliates, the
company also manages $17 billion in 529 college-savings plans, and over 7.5
million members have joined Upromise to help save for college with rewards
on purchases at nearly 70,000 places. Sallie Mae and its subsidiaries offer
debt management services as well as business and technical products to a
range of business clients, including higher education institutions, student
loan guarantors and state and federal agencies. More information is
available at http://www.salliemae.com. SLM Corporation and its subsidiaries
are not sponsored by or agencies of the United States of America.
SOURCE Sallie Mae
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Related links:
http://www.salliemae.com
http://www.SallieMae.com/consolidation
Photo Notes:
NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030617/SLMLOGO-a
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/827187.html/
CONTACT:
Beth Guerard of Sallie Mae, +1-703-984-5621,
beth.guerard@salliemae.com
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