Paying off loans

[coolioyo]

I plan to pay off my loans over the next 8 months. I do not qualify for IBR because of my income change. I will be moved back to standard repayment plan. Should I consolidate and go to REPAYE? To me, it doesn't seem to matter as I will be paying them off soon.

Thanks for your help.

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[Student Loan Planner]

I plan to pay off my loans over the next 8 months. I do not qualify for IBR because of my income change. I will be moved back to standard repayment plan. Should I consolidate and go to REPAYE? To me, it doesn't seem to matter as I will be paying them off soon.

Thanks for your help.

I think if you've got over a 4% interest rate then you should be refinancing for a couple thousand in interest savings. Otherwise I would just do standard and get rid of them

 

[keifernny2]

If you refinance, you will have to have your credit inquiried (a hard-pull). If you need to keep your credit intact, then for a 8 months worth of partial interest savings it is probably not worth it. The refi process takes a few months too. If your time window was longer (like 2 years) or the interest rate very high (north of 10%), then it probably would be worth it.

If you're seriously going to be paid off in 8 months, you could also try a 0% balance transfer onto a credit card that you already have. Just calculate if the BT fee is higher than the amount of interest you'd pay during that time. The downside to this is that if you, for whatever reason, change your mind and don't pay things off you have the potential for a hefty interest payment at the end of the 0% promo.