<p>So...what can I do to improve my rates, if anything? The bank that all the loans are through does not offer consolidation. My credit has improved 50+ points since I took out the 11.3% rate loan, and I have a great cosigner willing to help as well.</p>
<p>Should I consolidate? Something else? Thanks, and forgive my cluelessness here.</p>
<p>This is really no different than re-financing a mortgage or any other debt. You need to visit a few banks and get a reading on whether they will be able to loan you funds at a better rate, based on your credit rating and that of the co-signer. Someone with better math skills than mine should calculate what your current effective rate is on the full amount, so you can compare apples to apples. You may just want to refinance the 11.3% loan if turns out the others are at competitive rates. They all don’t have to travel together. Good luck.</p>
<p>Assuming all of those loans have a 10-year amortization schedule, a consolidation loan at 7.5% would produce a nearly identical payment (abt $298/mo). If you can better that rate, your payment would drop or you could pay your debt off quicker and save yourself some money.</p>
<p>Finaid.org has a loan calculator for this purpose here:</p>
<p>Thank you both very much. Generally speaking, do you think it’s probably wise to just go ahead and try to consolidate the one loan at 11.3%? Are the rest of them- ranging from 4.25-6.75- going to be very tough to beat, generally speaking?</p>