College Loans in Montana
Shop for the Best Combination of Benefits
Montana students and parents have a couple of resources to check out as a matter of course in exploring college financial options. The Montana Higher Education Student Assistance Corporation (MHESAC) provides scads of resources both informational and of a financial nature. But the actual loan servicing comes from the Student Assistance Foundation of Montana (SAF) where Montana students may also apply directly for federal loans punctuated with special incentives, as well as consolidation loans.
Student Assistance Foundation of Montana
Most states sanction a branch of their government to serve as the primary resource for state residents looking for reliable information on available financial aid and for the state’s loan programs. Also agencies like SAFMT are privy to state funds initially set aside as tax-exempt bonds. Once freed up the state turns them over to SAFMT for their use as financial loan resources. These funds are exempt from federal taxes meaning hundreds of thousands of dollars are saved, dollars that can be passed along to student loans in the shape of interest rate reductions, with no added loan fees attached. This is why you find state-backed federal loans bundled with such attractive benefits.
What They Offer
Apply online, quickly and conveniently through SAFMT for the Montana-specific federal loans:
- Montana’s Choice Stafford Loans promise no loan fees and increasing interest cuts for consistent timely payments. Borrowers willing and able to setup repayment as automatic deductions from their bank accounts will receive another small reduction in interest, as well.
- Montana’s Choice PLUS Loans allow parents to borrow whopping amounts of funds; in fact, all they may need to cover college tuition costs. Similar interest reductions and incentives for prompt payments exist as for those in the Stafford program. Parents don’t need to sweat having a certain type of job to qualify and the credit qualifications are a bit more relaxed than with mainstream commercial loans.
- Montana’s Choice Graduate PLUS Loans are offered to, of course, graduate and professional students who are able to manage their own student loans. Once again, interest rate reductions and nice repayment benefits provide the perfect grad loan package.
Repayment Terms, Deferment and Consolidation
Naturally all good things come to an end and student loans come due: about six months after graduation. This standard grace period is for your benefit; it gives you the chance to get your feet on the ground and get a job. But statistics show that many students fail to land jobs right out of school that enable them to adequately handle their debt, which typically includes an alternative student loan and credit card debt.
So, what do you do when faced with multiple student loan repayments? To simply fail to pay results in a default which can lead to a total bankruptcy of your credit future, or at least for the next 7 to 10 years while you work on fixing it. If you are going back to school at least half time you might explore your options with regards to deferring payments. If you just want one low monthly payment then consolidating might be just the answer.
SAFMT packages their own consolidation loan, the Swiftstart Consolidation Loan actually rewards you for being responsible enough to take the plunge into consolidating your loans. You can cut your monthly payments almost in half and extend your repayment period to accommodate the change.
