Nation’s leading guarantor delivers record levels of education-finance service
USA Funds supports more than $20 billion in loans for higher education
INDIANAPOLIS — USA Funds®, the nation’s leading education-loan guarantor, reports that it supported a record of more than $20 billion in loans to help students and parents pay higher-education expenses during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.
The figure includes more than $9.8 billion in Federal Consolidation loans to help student- and parent-borrowers manage education debt. USA Funds’ consolidation-loan volume jumped nearly 49 percent from the previous year, as thousands of student- and parent-borrowers locked in fixed interest rates on consolidation loans prior to a July 1, 2005, increase in the variable rates on federal student loans and parent loans.
The USA Funds guarantee also supported more than $10.7 billion in new Stafford loans to students and PLUS loans to parents of dependent undergraduate students. The dollars of new Stafford and PLUS loans guaranteed by USA Funds rose 8 percent from the previous year.
“We’re pleased that many of the nation’s leading postsecondary institutions and education lenders continue to rely on USA Funds to help students and parents finance a portion of their college costs,” said Carl C. Dalstrom, USA Funds president and CEO. “At the same time, we’re committed to delivering to schools, lenders, students and parents the finest services available to help borrowers successfully manage and repay their education loans.”
As a guarantor under the Federal Family Education Loan Program, the largest federal source of student aid for higher education, USA Funds insures FFELP loans against default. As part of its responsibilities, USA Funds supports critical education-loan services, including loan-application processing, customer assistance and default prevention and recovery, as well as policy guidance and training for financial-aid and education-lending professionals.
USA Funds also supports a variety of programs that help students prepare for, gain access to and succeed in higher education.