How to Get a Student Loan When You Have Bad Credit and No Cosigner
Most people plan to go to college. In this day and age, you have to, to earn a good living. In fact, college graduates earn 84% more over their lifetimes than high school graduates according to a report by Georgetown’s Center on Education and the Workforce. This is why students take on student loans.
College is a necessary investment, but it can be costly. Fortunately, there are plenty of good options to get scholarships, grants and student loans at decent interest rates. But sometimes these are not enough or you are in a situation where you or your parents have poor or bad credit. What can you do then? Good news. You can find a student loan even with bad credit. So do not give up on you or your child’s dream of college.
Different Kinds of Student Loans
• Subsidized Federal Direct Student Loans
• Unsubsidized Federal Direct Student Loans
• Perkins Loan
• Plus Loan
• Special Loans for Health Science and Teaching
• Need-Based Scholarships and Grants
• Credit-Based Loans Requiring Good Credit and Cosigners
• Non Credit-Based Lending With No Consigner Required
Your first step is to fill out The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This gives the Department of Education an overview of your family’s financial situation and how much you can afford to pay for college. It provides the school’s financial aid officers with the information they need to figure out which loans are best for you.
In order to qualify for these loans, you must be a U.S. citizen, show financial need and be enrolled for at least half time in an eligible school. Now these are the most attractive school loans because they have fixed interest rates, do not require payments while you are enrolled in college, do not trigger a credit check, have lower interest rates and allow you to use the loan for all college expenses.
But, as I mentioned above sometimes this is not an option. Maybe you do not meet all the eligibility requirements or possibly you need an additional loan for college expenses. Plus, you still have the obstacle of bad credit. That is when you want to apply for a so-called bad credit student loan.
Yes, you may pay a higher interest rate. But look at it this way; it is better to pay a little bit more now for the opportunity to earn a lot more later. As with all loans, make sure you compare the interest rates, fees and terms of each student loan. Also, look into the other loans mentioned above before you choose a higher cost loan.
When you are ready to move ahead with your application for a bad credit student loan, complete the fast and secure application here and keep pursuing your dream of graduating from college.