EFC==> Take more loans to pay or dish out the cash?

<p>My family EFC is 3,XXX according to FAFSA and I was wondering if you guys think its wise to take private student loans to pay this off OR pay it upfront and dont have to worry about it in the future?</p>

<p>If you have the money to pay upfront do NOT take out more loans.</p>

<p>How are things financially in your family? If things are shaky, it might be wise to hang onto the money for the year. We did not HAVE to take out loans for our son, but it was cutting things too close not to do so. We are hoping to pay off the loans at the end of the year if things are a bit more stable. </p>

<p>I would not like to see a family foreclose on a house because they put down all of their money for college, for instance, and could not get a loan during the year. These are uncertain times when it comes to getting a loan. It used to be a lot easier.</p>

<p>Financially my family is on a tight budget. My sister is going to college soon and my dad’s job is unstable. So i should just get more loans and pay them off slowly?</p>

<p>If you’re behind on the mortgage or heavy credit card debt you
gotta do what ya gotta do, but it only gets harder. Either you or
your parents are probably going to have to borrow more at some
point but rather later than sooner.</p>

<p>The biggest drawback with taking loans is if you do not take them very, very seriously and keep your mind open as to paying them off. We are hoping to pay off a portion of our loans early. But things are unstable for us right now, and taking some loans gives us breathing room.</p>

<p>oh and by the way, is 3,xxx EFC considered pretty low or what?</p>

<p>Considered pretty low, IMO.</p>

<p>It’s extremely low.</p>

<p>yes, I would be doing the happy dance with an EFC of 3,xxx. However, a shortage of any number hurts any family.I agree with the others who suggest not using every bit of cash on hand, your family should have an emergencey fund, most suggest living expenses for at least 4-6 months ( actually longer, but not many can do 4-6 let 12 months expenses)Only borrow what you actually need and pay at least $50 per month back to the loan as soon as you take it out to cover interest. Cut back on anything you can and put the saving into your college expense fund for daily expenses, books, supplies, food etc. I know thinking, ah, what’s $10.00 gonna do? But trust me, every dollar saved now helps and you will be glad you did it.</p>

<p>thanks for the advice. also i have another question. I got my financial aid award for my safety school and they awarded my 31k but the full tuition to go there is around 39k. Does anyone know if theres supposed to be that big (8k) difference even though my EFC was 3,XXX? i would think there would only be a 4k difference between my award and my tuition but i could be wrong…</p>

<p>EDIT: Also whats the difference between Federal Unsubsidized and Subsidized loans?</p>

<p>There should only be a difference of your EFC if the school guarentees to meet 100% of need, which most schools do not.</p>

<p>Subsidized means you don’t pay any interest, the federal govt. pays for it. Unsubsidized means that you do pay interest on the loan but the interest rate is low so you shouldn’t pay too much. Um, about the $3,000 you could get a summer jobs to get the money. I think it’s possible to do if you have multiple jobs and work really hard. FAFSA has a certain amount about $3500 where if a student makes about that amt or less working it will have NO effect on your EFC. So your EFC is right at that amt which is really great. Unless you already have a job in which case I’m sorry this info doesn’t help much. By the way an EFC of $3000 is VERY low IMO as mine is about $23000 :(</p>

<p>I have some questions about the Parents PLUS loan, if you are denied you get $5500 additional of subsidized or unsubsidized loans? And if you are granted the PLUS, is the loan payable immediately or after child graduates? Now when they you are allowed to borrow “up to COA”, that means room/board/expenses, the total for the year?</p>