overwhelmed by med school loans

[dermgal08]

Hi, I graduate med school in 1 month.
I have no idea what to do with my student loans - what length term? which ones should I consolidate? My salary will be about 54,000 next year but I will be living in NYC with a monthly rent of about $1600.

I have a total of $90,659 in stafford (unsubsidized and subsidized) and $60,405 in medloans.

The private loans (9) all have variable interest rates (now 6%, except one loan at 7%

The stafford loans are a combination of variable and fixed interest rate loans between 3.875% for one to two others at 8.5% and the rest between 6.62 and 6.8%. (I have 7 total stafford and FFEL grad plus loans)

1. what should I consolidate? (if any)
2. which loans are elgible for economic hardship deferrment?
3. what can I afford to pay on a monthly basis for loans / what type of payment plan should I choose?

Thanks for your help! I really have no idea what I'm doing with the financial stuff.

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[Soundwave]

I would consolidate them all into one loan so that can obtain a fixed interest rate on all of the loans with a long pay off period. You should do some research into which company to consolidate with. Some (like sallie mae) have programs where after you consolidate and make your payments on time for 1 yr, they will deduct 0.5% off your interest rate. That's what you want. You should consolidate into the 30 yr program. You could probably qualify for an economic hardship deferment, but what I would reccomend you do instead is pick a consolidation loan that has a graduated payment program. This means that you have low montly payments during the first 3-5 years, and then the payments pick up for the next 27-25 yrs. This will allow you to make payments during residency on your interest which will be tax deductable while keeping your loans from ballooning out too much. And then the payments will automatically increase once your an attending. And I woulnd't pay it off right away after you become an attending even if you could because your interest rate will be lower then most if not all other loans that you will need inthe future including car/home loans and you can continue to deduct the interest. Some people pay off their loans once they become an attending just to get rid of them but its not a smart way to spend your cash because then they end up borrowing money for a car or home at a higher interest rate. You are also better off putting any extra cash you have in your roth ira rather then paying off your student loans too as the interest rate you should be getting on that should beat the interest on your loans, especially when you take into account the tax benefits. You can enroll in a consolidation program that automatically deducts money from your checking account every month so you don't have to think about it. And when you pick a loan company to consolidate with, don't pick a company that solicits you with tricky mailings that try to look official telling you how you need to call them right away regarding your loan because of new laws or something. If a company is going to be dishonest in the their marketing, I don't see how you can expect them to honest in their dealings with you.

 

[helpfuldoc2b]

Hi, I graduate med school in 1 month.
I have no idea what to do with my student loans - what length term? which ones should I consolidate? My salary will be about 54,000 next year but I will be living in NYC with a monthly rent of about $1600.

I have a total of $90,659 in stafford (unsubsidized and subsidized) and $60,405 in medloans.

The private loans (9) all have variable interest rates (now 6%, except one loan at 7%

The stafford loans are a combination of variable and fixed interest rate loans between 3.875% for one to two others at 8.5% and the rest between 6.62 and 6.8%. (I have 7 total stafford and FFEL grad plus loans)

1. what should I consolidate? (if any)
2. which loans are elgible for economic hardship deferrment?
3. what can I afford to pay on a monthly basis for loans / what type of payment plan should I choose?

Thanks for your help! I really have no idea what I'm doing with the financial stuff.

Are you a resident now and done with med school? If so dont freak out, you will be able to pay those loans real soon. Actually thats not that much in loans to have paid for med school.