credit card debt

summerbreeze
Mon, 23 Apr 2007 18:29:06 +0000

It isn’t considered by FAFSA or Profile as far as I remember when filling it out. Whether that would affect them co-signing for you probably depends more on their credit rating (which may be excellent if they always pay on time) and debt ratio (debt to income ratio) than on how much debt they have. My understanding is that PLUS loans are only denied if there is adverse credit. In other words, very late payments, bankruptcies, etc --not just carrying a credit card balance. So please don’t panic. Someone made a good suggestion about having them pay off their credit with home equity–especially if making the monthly payments on the credit is dragging them down. If by any chance, your parents are denied a PLUS loan, you automatically qualify for another $4000 federal stafford loan I believe. If that happens, check with the financial aid office. You may want to (strongly suggest) apply to at least 2 financial safety schools if you think your parents may have trouble paying their EFC. Unless you are likely to draw very large merit scholarships, most schools will expect your parents to pay the EFC. To get an estimate, go to www.finaid.org