Student loans can help you achieve your dream of getting a college degree. But they can also get you in serious debt if you don’t consider all of the consequences before you borrow that money. Take the time to read up on student loans and how they can impact your future. Start with the tips below.

Communicate often with the lender. Always update them anytime your address, email or phone number changes, which can happen a lot during college. In addition, when you get mail from your lender, be sure to read everything. If the correspondence requests you take an action, do so as soon as you can. If you miss something, that can mean a smaller loan.

Paying down your student loans should be done using a two-step payoff method. Always pay the minimum balance due. Second, make extra payments on the loan whose interest rate is highest, not the loan that has the largest balance. That way, you will end up spending a lesser amount overall.

It is important to know how much time after graduation you have before your first loan payment is due. If you have Stafford loans, you will usually have about 6 months. Perkins loans are about 9 months. Other loans will vary. Know when you will have to pay them back and pay them on time.

You should shop around before deciding on a student loan company because it can end up saving you a lot of money in the end. The school you attend may try to sway you to choose a particular one. It is best to do your research to make sure that they are giving you the best advice.

Before applying for student loans, it is a good idea to see what other types of financial aid you are qualified for. There are many scholarships available out there and they can reduce the amount of money you have to pay for school. Once you have the amount you owe reduced, you can work on getting a student loan.

If you want to give yourself a head start when it comes to repaying your student loans, you should get a part-time job while you are in school. If you put this money into an interest-bearing savings account, you will have a good amount to give your lender once you complete school.

Try getting your student loans paid off in a 10-year period. This is the traditional repayment period that you should be able to achieve after graduation. If you struggle with payments, there are 20 and 30-year repayment periods. The drawback to these is that they will make you pay more in interest.

It is best to get federal student loans because they offer better interest rates. Additionally, the interest rates are fixed regardless of your credit rating or other considerations. Additionally, federal student loans have guaranteed protections built in. This is helpful in the event you become unemployed or encounter other difficulties after you graduate from college.

Be careful about accepting private, alternative student loans. It is easy to rack up a lot of debt with these because they operate pretty much like credit cards. Starting rates may be very low; however, they are not fixed. You may end up paying high interest charges without warning. Additionally, these loans do not include any borrower protections.

Rid your mind of any thought that defaulting on a student loan is going to wipe the debt away. There are ways that the government can collect the money against your wishes. For example, it can step in and claim a portion of your tax return or Social Security payments. It is also possible for the government to garnish 15 percent of all disposable income. This will leave you worse off.

To get a better interest rate on your student loan, go through the federal government instead of a bank. The rates will be lower, and the repayment terms can also be more flexible. That way, if you don’t have a job right after graduation, you can negotiate a more flexible schedule.

The advice from above is just the beginning of what you need to know about student loans. Student loans are an incredible investment in your future. So you need to take the time to carefully consider what you will be borrowing and how it will all add up. The choices you make today can have great impact on your financial future.