• How to Increase College Savings without Leaving Your Couch

    How to Increase College Savings without Leaving Your Couch

    Use these holiday hints to increase college savings and by this time next year, you’ll be proud of your accomplishments. (…and don’t forget to clue in grandparents and other relatives to get a bigger bang for your buck!)

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  • Why is the cost of college different for every student?

    Why is the cost of college different for every student?

    When people buy things, they know the price and act accordingly. For inexpensive stuff, Apple-pay, a debit card or cash is offered without much analysis. With increasingly more expensive items, such as a TV, a car, or a house, consumers research. They consider options and shop around to determine what is affordable and how to…

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  • Student Loan Basics: The Difference between Consolidating and Refinancing

    Student Loan Basics: The Difference between Consolidating and Refinancing

    Picking a student loan that meets your needs requires an understanding of some basic concepts. Student Loan Basics empowers you with information to make informed choices to borrow for college and manage the debt after college. This article explains the important differences between consolidating and refinancing student loans.

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  • Student Loan Basics: How to Pay-off your Loan Faster

    Student Loan Basics: How to Pay-off your Loan Faster

    Picking a student loan that meets your needs requires an understanding of some basic concepts. Student Loan Basics empowers you with information to make informed choices to borrow for college. This article explains loan amortization and shows how to pay off student loans faster.

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  • Student Loan Basics: Fixed & Variable Interest Rates

    Student Loan Basics: Fixed & Variable Interest Rates

    Picking a student loan that best meets your needs requires you to understand some basic concepts. Student Loan Basics is a series of articles to empower you with information about student loans and help you make smart financial choices.

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  • Save Money: Dig into Financial Aid

    Save Money: Dig into Financial Aid

    College admissions decisions are arriving – a joyous time for students relishing their success. A disappointing moment when dream schools say no. No matter which, these emotions will soon be overrun by the reality of making a school choice. And then figuring out how to pay the coming college bill. Lurking under it all: how much student loan debt will…

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  • The Facts, Not the Hype, about Student Loan Forgiveness

    The Facts, Not the Hype, about Student Loan Forgiveness

    Student loan forgiveness is a hot topic. Here are six facts to help you make sure you don’t get burned by the hype around loan forgiveness. Know the facts now to avoid taking a loan expecting that it will be forgiven only to find out that you don’t qualify after making ten years of payments.  

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  • Tuition Payment Plans – Hidden Gems to Pay for College

    Tuition Payment Plans – Hidden Gems to Pay for College

    Most families know that there are many ways to pay for college: savings, loans, grants, scholarships, financial aid, gifts from friends and family, income from a job, etc. Sometimes overlooked is a hidden gem that could reduce student borrowing and the total cost of paying for college: tuition payment plans. 

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  • Use 529 Savings for Pre-College Schooling, Student Loans, and Apprenticeships

    Use 529 Savings for Pre-College Schooling, Student Loans, and Apprenticeships

    In the 1990s, Congress passed legislation to create 529 college savings programs to help families create a nest egg for college. With terrific tax benefits and lots of flexibility to move money among beneficiaries, more than 13 million current account holders have saved more than $325 billion.  

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