Many already are familiar with federal PLUS student loans for parents of college students and have taken advantage of this excellent funding source, whether their kids attend a community college or a public or a private institution. As with any federal student loan, borrowers may utilize funds to cover all educational costs, including tuition, fees and other expenses. Since credit-based PLUS student loans are not contingent upon a family’s tax bracket or level of need, almost anyone is qualified to receive one. With interest rates as low as 8.5 percent, this little-known technique makes for a very appealing tool to manage a family’s educational finances.

According to NextStudent, the Phoenix-based premier education funding company, many students and their parents, while familiar with student loan consolidation, are not aware of a little-known benefit available to families with multiple students in college. This tool gives parents peace of mind when managing and repaying different student loans, whether students attend Portland State or Stanford, as long as the same parent took out the PLUS student loan for each student.

PLUS Student Loan Consolidation Offers Flexibility, Easy Management

If a family has two children in college, with PLUS student loans taken out under one parent’s Social Security number, the student loans most likely will qualify for student loan consolidation. Keep in mind that each student’s parent PLUS loans should be renewed each year. A “renewal” is truly not a “renewal,” but rather a brand new student loan.

Here’s a scenario that will best illustrate the flexibility of folding multiple PLUS student loans into one easy-to-manage package. A family has two children, one is a freshman with a single PLUS student loan and another child has three additional PLUS student loans covering the first three years of school. All four PLUS loans may be consolidated into one. Again, the only stipulation is that all PLUS student loans are taken out by one parent using the same Social Security number.

PLUS Student Loan Incentives Offered by NextStudent

While federal PLUS student loans are available through many lenders, borrowers receive many rebates and incentives with NextStudent:

• .25% Interest Rate Reduction: for using the Auto-Debit repayment feature

  Pages: 1 2