Refinancing Student Loans?

I wish.

Most fed stafford loans now are 6.5 +/- .25. the federal direct program gives you the option to consolidate all of your remianing "private" loans, but at >6% in most cases.

Can't balance transfer them either.

I work in the student loan business so I might be able to help.

If your loans are federal loans (Stafford, GradPlus, PLUS) you can consolidate them but only through the DOE's Direct Consolidation Program. Your new intrest rate on your consolidated loan will be the weighted average of the interest rates on the loans being consolidated (rounded to the nearest higher 1/8 of a percent).

Unfortunatly the way federal loans are stuctured, there is no way to take advantage of the present market rates. I'd call your local bank or credit union to see what they may be able to offer.

My earlier post was referring to a new consolidation. But there's a number or things that can affect the interest rates on past consolidation... So I can't be sure about your particular situation. Prior to July 1, 2006, all federal student loans had variable interest rates. So the date of when you took out your original loans and the date of your consolidation matters. Also, consolidations could previously be completed through private entities (Banks, Educational lenders) so you saw lower interest rates offered to persuade students to consolidate with them. I've seen interest rates on consolidation loans with our company ranging anywhere from 8.5%-1.39%.