Filling the Need Gap: Last-Minute College Financing Options Are Still Available
16 August 2005 - 7:53PM
PR Newswire (US)
RESTON, Va., Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- After the initial euphoria of
college acceptance passes, reality sets in: Someone has to pay for
it. When financial aid is not enough to cover the cost of college
and the start date of school is nearing, more families are turning
to alternative financing options. (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030617/SLMLOGO-a ) Families
should first consider funding options that do not need to be
repaid, such as scholarships and grants, said Martha Holler,
spokesperson for Sallie Mae, the nation's No. 1 paying-for-college
company. Once those options have been exhausted, they may consider
an education loan to cover their education expenses. The Federal
Stafford Loan is the most common type of education loan for
undergraduate and graduate borrowers. However, students are limited
by what they can borrow. One option to help bridge the financial
aid gap is a Federal PLUS Loan. PLUS Loans are the lowest-cost way
for parents to finance their child's education. Parents may use
PLUS Loans to borrow as they need, including money for tuition,
room, board, books, supplies even travel, to cover the cost of
attendance at their child's college of choice. "Parents can borrow
for college, but they cannot borrow to pay for their retirement,"
explains Holler. "Most families will qualify for PLUS Loans, and
everyone gets the same low interest rate regardless of their credit
history." PLUS Loans are not based on income or assets and do not
require collateral. Moreover, parents can take up to 10 years to
repay the loan using a wide variety of repayment options, from
delaying repayment for up to five years while their child is in
school or once their child leaves school. Sallie Mae offers free,
no obligation credit decisions regarding PLUS loans when parents
visit http://www.parentanswer.com/ (or call 1-800-891-1410).
Another last-minute financing option for students is a private
education loan, such as a Sallie Mae Signature Student Loan. The
Signature Student Loan is a private education loan for
undergraduate, graduate and health profession students attending
four-or-five-year schools at least half time. Interest rates and
fees are based on credit history; the better the student's or co-
signer's credit, the lower the interest rates and fees. Students
and families can learn more about the Signature Student Loan and
use Sallie Mae's online pre-approval feature to receive credit
results by logging onto http://www.salliemae.com/Signature. Lastly,
many schools offer families the opportunity to make monthly tuition
payments over the course of the school year, an interest-free
alternative to a large, one-time payment due at bill time. For a
small fee, families can reduce the amount they need to borrow to
cover the cost of college. Students and their families should ask
their campus bursar or financial aid office for more information.
"Finding last-minute money to pay for college is doable, and
parents don't have to take a second job or another mortgage on
their home to accomplish it," said Holler. For more information on
last-minute college financing options, visit
http://www.collegeanswer.com/, where students and families will
find a number of resources on planning and paying for higher
education. http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030617/SLMLOGO-a
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Sallie Mae CONTACT: Erin
Korsvall of Sallie Mae, +1-703-984-5136 Web site:
http://www.salliemae.com/ http://www.parentanswer.com/
http://www.collegeanswer.com/ Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/827187.html
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