How Do I Consolidate My Student Loans with Sallie Mae?

Sallie Mae has long been a recognized name in student loans, providing thousands of families with options to finance undergraduate education. Student loans are typically two or more loans that the borrower receives each year of undergraduate study. You may have a number of Sallie Mae loans and you want to consolidate them into one monthly payment. You can get information and assistance by contacting Sallie Mae here, and below are the steps to consolidating your Sallie Mae student loans.

Before Consolidating or Refinancing Your Sallie Mae Loans

Before you take that step to consolidate or refinance your Sallie Mae loans, you should consider the following:

1. Will consolidating or refinancing your loan save you money? Don't just consider the monthly savings. You may save each month, but the loan term may increase, which could have you paying more in the long run.
2. What benefits do you stand to lose? Will consolidating your loans make you ineligible for perks such as Public Service Loan Forgiveness or other repayment options?
3. What is your current credit score like? Do you have a sufficiently high credit score to qualify for consolidation or refinance?
4. Will the consolidated loan still be considered a student loan? If it is now going to be considered a personal loan, you will lose the tax benefits available with student loans.
5. What service fees will you possibly have to pay?
6. Did your original loan give you any discounts that you will lose?

Consolidation Process

Once you have considered all the pros and cons of consolidation and decided this is the route you wish to take, you can do so by completing these steps:

1. Open the government student aid website in your browser.
2. Place the cursor over "Manage Loans" to open a drop-down menu.
3. From the drop-down menu, select "Consolidate My Loans."
4. Log into your federal student aid account to start the process.
5. Read and complete the "Direct Consolidation Loan Application and Promissory Note" application.
6. Submit the application to federal student aid electronically.

If you do not wish to submit an electronic copy, you can print the forms, fill them out manually and mail them to the address shown on the federal student loan website. You will be notified via mail of the decision to consolidate or not consolidate your loans.

When filling out your application, you will need the information below available:

1. Verified FSA identification
2. Your personal information
3. All financial information (wages, investments or other sources of income that can be considered when making the decision).

Consolidating your Sallie Mae student loans is one way to have all your payments wrapped up into one monthly payment. Consider how consolidation will affect your loans. If you wish to proceed, you can do so online or via mail. For more information, contact Sallie Mae here.