College students and parents who plan to apply for college loans have to consider how much debt they can shoulder and how soon they have to repay the loans to save money. Some experts suggest that students should go for loan repayment programs that would not ask for more than 15 percent of their eventual starting monthly income. For parents, experts suggest that they should limit their total debt repayments to about 40 percent of their gross income.College loan corporations provide loan consultants and online college loan calculators to help students weigh their options. College loan repayment usually starts 6 months after graduation, leaving school, or when a student drops below half-time enrollment. The loan provider will notify the student when repayment is about to start.Standard Repayment PlanThis repayment program allows students to repay their loans over a 10-year period. Most of the time, monthly payments remain unchanged over the duration. This program is usually the default program unless the student chooses a different repayment option.Graduated Repayment PlanThis repayment program allows students to pay a smaller amount during the beginning of the repayment period. The monthly payment amount gradually increases along with interest, usually every two years. This program is better for people who are expecting a steady increase of income.Income Sensitive Repayment PlanThis repayment program is almost the same as graduated repayment plan. The main similarity is that monthly payments are lower at the start of repayment and gradually increases over time. The difference between the two repayment plans is that an income sensitive repayment plan, as the name implies, would base monthly payment on a percentage of the student?s monthly income.Extended Repayment PlanThe Extended repayment plan allows students to pay off their debts in small amounts over a long period of time, usually from 25 to 30 years. One thing a student has to consider when using this plan is the added cost of interest since the payment period is longer than most other plans.
