Parent plus loans are loans that parents who have children that are in college can take out to help with college related expenses.
Why should I take out Parent plus loans for my child?
Every parent wants to help their child go to college – college tuition is very expensive so helping your child pay for college can be helpful down the road. This can be beneficial to college students because they can focus on getting good grades and enjoying college rather than having to worry about money.
The first thing that you need to do before you apply for a Parent plus loan is to have your child fill out a FAFSA. You need to know how much financial aid that your child will receive before you apply for a loan and get yourself into debt.
You need to have good credit in order to qualify for a Parent plus loan. There cannot be any delinquencies on your credit history and you have to have an adequate income source in order to qualify. If you do not get approved for the loan then you can ask a co-signer to help out and then re-apply.
You can apply for a Parent plus loan by either contacting a lender such as Sallie Mae or by applying for a federal Parent plus loan.
The downside to this type of loan is that you are solely responsible for the loan; your college student is not liable for any of the loan payments because they are not the borrower. If you want to have your child be liable for some of the payments then you should think about taking out a private student loan.
You will need to re-apply for the Parent plus loan every year because your child’s federal student aid can change as the years go by. You should talk to your child before you agree to take on such a big financial responsibility. Your child might want to also help out financially by taking on a part time job or working on campus to help offset the costs that will be incurred.
