Loan Research - Check, School Info - Eagerly Awaiting

By now I have done a lot of great research on available and highest-rated loans, and I think I have narrowed to a few lead options: the Discover Private Loans, NorthStar Total Education Higher Loan and the WellsFargo Grad Loan. From all the research I’ve done, it seems like I might be able to get approved for a loan fairly quickly, barring any unforeseen circumstances. But the one unknown is any preferred process or protocol from my school. Problem is, they don’t even release all of their financial aid forms and information until August 1st. So I suppose I am in a wait and see, poised and ready to go phase until then.

On a side note, does anyone have other details/background on the loan institutions I prioritized?

Studying up on my Student Loan Options

One of my 2009 annual goals – given the fact that I’m going back to school this Fall was to become an expert on student loans and secure a really great package. Based on my financial aid package, I will have to secure between $12,000 and $30,000 in additional private loans in addition to the federal loan package I already received from Stanford. While the approval process will generally be short for private loans (between 48 hours and a week), the becoming-an-expert process will take a lot longer. I will probably wait a little later in the summer to understand if Stanford has preferred lenders set up and if I will want to simply pursue additional funding from the same institution that my GradPlus Loans will be coming from, but in the meantime, I have narrowed down a list of 14 other private options to explore (with the help of finaid.org) – whew. I have a heard the most about CitiAssist and US Bank’s No Fee Loan, but I want to do lots more research to understand which might have the best terms and most competitive rate. And in the meantime I got to refresh myself on what the LIBOR acronym stands for. Good fun for a Monday afternoon!

a LOT ahead of me.

Since it's officially Stanford, I have a long to-do list ahead of me. Item one: loan research for next year!

GOOD NEWS: Stanford gave me $32,979 in grant/fellowship money!

BAD NEWS: The remainder of the year's estimated cost is $53,120, which I will have to cover in loans. Here's the breakdown:

$3,000 in a Federal Perkins Loan (5%)
$8,500 in a Federal Stafford Loan (subsidized through school)
$12,000 in a Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (6.8%)
$29,620 in GradPLUS or Private Loans (7.9-8.5% or dependent on my credit rating)

All for one year of my life! Whew. My to-do list: finding out more about Stanford preferred lenders, if there are any, and if not - immersion in GradPLUS.

My EFC Pronouncement is Back...

This is my first time dealing with the whole FAFSA / loan process arrangement, so I’m still puzzling through what my EFC (Estimated Family Contribution) will actually mean in reality. My Estimated Family Contribution – ie. what the government has determined I can afford to give towards my education - turns out to be $22,508. Which I’m assuming means that I should be prepared to seek at least that much in loans. Gulp.

Profile on Peer to Peer Lending in the Credit Crisis

In the special “Education Life” insert in the Sunday Times today there was an article on alternative ways to find money for college “Loans in the Time of Facebook”. It sounds remarkably appealing, but I’m less familiar with “social” or “Peer to Peer Lending” as it’s called, so I checked out a few of the sites advertised.

Virginmoneyus.com: Manages money between family and friends. If I were so lucky, this would be a great way to authenticate a loan through a third-party site.

Fynanz.com: Peer to Peer lending with a 5% bonus for lenders. You can search by school or state as well so you can see where other students are seeking to borrow.

GreenNote.com: This was the most inspiring of the sites in my opinion. Positioned as receiving a loan from someone who believes in you. Low 6.8% Fixed Rate

Prosper.com: The most established of the PTP lending resources I’ve found with the tagline “Let’s Bank on Each Other.” Similar, personal interst small loans.

It seemed that the fundamental problem highlighted in the article about all of these sites were that there are quite obviously too many interested borrowers and not enough lenders. For me, too, I think it’s just the uncertainty in the market, but I guess I would be a little skittish using these less-established resources… of course, we’ll see how the loan process goes for me, and I may be reinvestigating.

Grad School Financial Aid Action Plan... and GO!

After culling all of the best ideas from fellow pf bloggers, I’ve devised an action plan for financial aid. Some good ‘ole generic discipline is in order.

+ Reference Websites of 3 Schools I’m applying to…. CHECK.
+ Investigate two outside scholarships from Columbia…. THIS WEEKEND.
+ Subscribe to all Financial Aid blogs/updates….. NEXT WEEK.
+ Cull list of all potential scholarships / sources of funds…. NEXT 3 WEEKS.
+ Work on & Complete 1 Scholarship Fund etc. per 3-wks…. BEG. DEC. 1
+ Meet with Financial Adviser… MID-DEC.

Later… fill out a FAFSA form, fill out a CSS Profile Application, i.e. doing all the fun government stuff.

Any other big advice or secret hints?