Did you consolidate your Stafford loan?

[dazzleman]

Unfortunatley, I did not.  I received a sh**t-load of literature, but I thought it was just another loan scam.

... damn

But somethign doesnt seem right here.  My loans are the deferred type and I thought I agreed to a set interest rate.  How can they magically up the interest rate I agreed to on contract?

Go back and read the contract.  Don't get your information from jfern.

I remember when I was in college, my student loan rate was 7%, and that was considered a GREAT rate at the time.  A year after I started college, the rate went up to 9%, still below market at the time.

I didn't really have a choice about rates at that time.  The program has changed a lot.

[dazzleman]

Option 3 (rich)

Actually, just wait for the next recession (to some people here, we've never been out of a recession) and the Fed will start lowering rates again and then reconsolidate.  Variable rates are for losers (or those with so-so credit history or no cash), unless the term is ultra-short (under 1 year or so, 2 years max)

Yes, for some people here, the 'recession' that we've been in for the past 6+ years will end when the next Democratic administration takes office (which hopefully won't be for a long time).  It's an interesting definition of recession that includes a period of 3-4% annual economic growth.  It seems to me that for these people, the definition of 'recession' is purely political, and not based on actual facts of economic performance.  What a shock.