I have a remaining balance of $15K on my student loans. I consolidated my loans 4 years ago and they are sitting at 5.7% fixed APR. Since you can only consolidate loans once, that is no longer an option. I was wondering if anyone had any ideas as to how I can move this balance to a lower rate - ideally 4% or less. My thoughts so far: -A personal loan is too high of a rate -HELOC isn't an option, not enough equity -A $15K balance on CC would prob send up a red flag and kill FICO?? Thanks in advance!
BofA BT RATE of PRIME + 0.00% (4.00%) ...or there are many cards with PROMO 0.00% for 6-9-12 MONTHS RED FLAG??? only $15,000??? I DON'T THINK SO...(unless the student loans are your only credit history and the new card would be your only card)
I just opened the BOA Plat in November and was given an initial CL of $10K, so not enough credit available there for the $15K bal, also haven't received a 4% BT offer from them yet. What about Pentagon Federal Credit Union? They say on their site they are offering 1.9% on transferred balances until paid in full with their CC's??? Do they grand high CL's???
NiceGuy - you CAN GET a 125% HELOC NOW! I get mine the day after I close on the condo - 3-4-04. That's when I pay off balances and put in hardwood and kitchen and deduct EVERYTHING! Let me know if you need more info - but search in Google for 125% heloc.... Security Pacific does them - not sure about your state...but you can get one NOW! aarrf - dogman
If you allow your payment to be automatically deducted from your bank account every month, some SL lenders give you a 1.25% discount in your interest rate. Mine does. You may already do this, worth a shot if you don't mind the auto deduction from your account.
Dogman: I looked into the 125% HELOC but the interest rates I'm finding seem to be higher than what I currently have (5.7%) Is this your experience? 3dayevntr: I currently have a .25% reduction on my existing SL, but since I've already consolidated, I can't move it to another SL lender. I am told that consolidation is a one-time deal.
Who did you consolidate with? I currently have a consolidation loan, but I keep getting these "pre approved"(very funny for a student loan- who isn't pre-approved?!) offers to consolidate with another lender. I will check and see If they will move my loan for another rate and let you know- It might be possible?
I never consolidated my student loans and had 5 different accounts. Little did I know how much that would help me. They are 25 years old and with six the history they are giving me is invaluable. It's 150 years. I have opened 6 new credit cards the last few mos. and still nothing about too little history. The other thing you might think about it that student loan interest is deductible and it may not be if transferred to a credit card. The interest deduction may offset the decrease in interest if moved to a cc.
Shawbee, Thanks for the insight. I have been paying on this loan since 1999. The interest deduction is no longer a consideration for me since I am above the IRS threshold of AGI for deductibility. I got a Citi offer a while ago (checks) that had a 1.9% APR until paid in full with no BT fees. Unfortunately that offer has expired and Citi says they can no longer offer it...
