Loans Information

All About Student Loans


A student loan is an unsecured loan made by lenders that receive government underwriting assistance. Without this government assistance, student loans would not be very practical. Lenders would find other more profitable arenas in which to loan their money. Nobody would be able to get a low interest student loan - without the help of a parent with a substantial financial history and reasonable means. Like any government sponsored program, there are rules and regulations and red tape to deal with. In the case of student loan red tape, it all begins with a financial aid form called the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid).

This form establishes the student's eligibility (or ineligibility) for all manner of student loan assistance, including low interest loans. This form can be filled out and submitted as a regular paper form, or it can be filled out and tracked online (much easier). The guidance office at your High School is likely to have a pile of these forms. Libraries and College Admissions offices are other places to look for the paper version of the form. If all else fails and you really want the paper version of the FAFSA, you can get one by calling 1-800-4-FED-AID.

Most people find it more convenient to simply log on to www.fafsa.ed.gov and submit the form electronically. By doing it this way you also automatically get a way to look in on the status of your application. Supposedly, doing the form online can make the process from one to two weeks faster than submitting the paper form. Either way, you will find that the form is relatively easy to fill out, and typically will require much of the same information that would be included in the parent's tax returns.

Student loans are also available to those who turn out to be ineligible for the regular unsecured low interest student loans. These other loans are normally called Parent Plus loans or private alternative loans, or just "alternative loans". These are basically loans made with a co-signature from the parents. In effect it's no different from a young person buying a car with a parent's co-signature. Both the student and the parents are on the hook for repayment of the loan.

Because of the government regulation involved with the unsecured student loans, this is one of the few types of loans that do not require a whole lot of shopping around. There is not a lot of variability in the interest rates and other features of the government sponsored loans. The same is not true for the Parent Plus loans or private alternative loans. With those you do need to shop around.

So the first step is really to fill out a FAFSA form well in advance of the time tuition is due and use that to start your quest for college money. This will help you to determine what kind of student loans you are eligible for and assist you greatly in your loan shopping.

You can learn more about your options and how to apply for student loans by going to my website at - http://www.creditcards-and-loans.com/student-loans.html

Jeff Pritchard is a webmaster with several informative websites and primary author of the new website http://www.creditcards-and-loans.com. This site is a supermarket for all types of credit and loans. You can learn about the options and differences between various kinds of loans and find all the best and latest loan offers.


MORE RESOURCES:

Paydirt: Student loan locator
Minneapolis Star Tribune, MN - Jul 5, 2008
There is plenty of news this summer, from interest rate resets to loan providers exiting the market. By KARA McGUIRE, Star Tribune Paying for college is a ...
Rates dropped July 1 on some student loans Cleveland Daily Banner
Loans can fill gaps in college financing St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Students can find aid, even at last minute Seattle Times
all 11 news articles


CRDB issues 6.5bn/- for business loans
DailyNewsOnline, United Republic of Tanzania - 4 hours ago
THE CRDB Bank Limited has issued a loan of 6.5bn/- to small and medium scale financial institutions in Kilimanjaro region for the period spanning January ...


ADB earmarks $924M in loans to RP
Inquirer.net, Philippines - 7 hours ago
By Michelle Remo MANILA, Philippines--The Asian Development Bank, one of the country's biggest sources of foreign loans, is considering to lend $924 million ...


Homeowners suffer while mortgage bill sits in Senate
San Diego Union Tribune, United States - 10 hours ago
They knew what they were getting into when they took out their loans. Let 'em suffer for it.” First, not everyone did know what he or she was getting into. ...
Arizona rate increases to peak in July Arizona Republic
Fighting Foreclosure: One Family's Story Consumer Affairs
As foreclosures rise, mortgage assistance tapers off Houston Chronicle
all 6 news articles


Regulating Wall Street A window to a new world
Economist, UK - Jul 3, 2008
Even Goldman Sachs, Wall Street’s sole surviving muscleman, sees the loan facility as systemically crucial. Though the amount borrowed has fallen to a daily ...
Wall Street firms reduce, banks step up Fed loans The Associated Press
Wall Street firms reduce borrowing The Associated Press
all 180 news articles


Arizona law now requires loan officers to be licensed
Arizona Republic, AZ - 20 hours ago
At almost the end of the state's legislative session in the wee hours of the morning, lawmakers approved a bill that requires loan officers and mortgage ...


How an odd bipartisan alliance in '90s led to loan debacle
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA - 18 hours ago
By Joseph N. DiStefano The bad-home-loans mess that has slowed the US economy can be traced to a strange 1990s alliance of Democratic social engineers and ...


Case filed against ex-banker for giving Rs 6 cr loan to relatives
Expressindia.com, India - 4 hours ago
Kamla Kant Tripathi had disbursed these loans without verifying the credentials and financial status of the applicants and their guarantors. ...


When Credit Gets Tight, a 401(k) Loan Becomes Tempting
New York Times, United States - Jul 5, 2008
He did not allow employees of Karsten Manufacturing, maker of Ping golf clubs, to take loans from 401(k)s. The response from normally placid retirement ...


FSA is too cautious over home loans, warn banks
guardian.co.uk, UK - Jul 5, 2008
Britain's banks are becoming increasingly frustrated that the Financial Services Authority, keen to avoid a repeat of the Northern Rock fiasco, ...

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