Best College Loans
The best college loans are the ones that charge the least interest but give you the most money, usually. Don’t be tempted to get a loan because they’ll give you $20,000 a year. You don’t want to make it too easy to borrow money. You should first try to get as many scholarships and grants as you can while also looking for an affordable college. Also, work during the summers and pay for as much as you can from what you earn. Then, and only then, should you look for loans.
The best college loans are government loans.
Government loans always offer the lowest rate, aside from free loans from your parents or relatives you may be lucky to get. When looking for loans, the government is the first place you should look to.
There is a limit to the amount you can get from each loan. For example, you can only get a maximum of $4,000 a year from the Stafford loan. But there is also money available from the Perkins Loan and the Parent PLUS Loan that are worth looking into. These will still have lower rates than private student loans.
The worst college loans are credit cards.
I have heard of people paying for college with credit cards, even if it was just a couple thousand dollars. If you do this, you are setting yourself up for a mess of problems. Credit cards have enormous interest rates, even the lowest rates are usually more than double that of a government loan.
Also, credit cards start accruing interest as soon as you charge to it, after the grace period. Unless you are just waiting for some money and are using your credit card until you get the cash to pay it off within the grace period, you should never use a credit card for college.
Pay for as much of college as you can before loans and you can save even more money. Don’t just look at loans as the first place to look. Look for scholarships, grants, and your own savings.