Here is my plan:
Consolidate all 30 loans with Oklahoma Student Loan Authority (OSLA)...
...except one small $300 loan held with AidVantage.
Great Lakes was first pick. But Great Lakes (great company) is being absorbed into Nelnet (horrible company). I don't want my loans absorbed into Nelnet.
I'm leaving one loan out of consolidation as a safety in the event...
- OSLA mishandles my loans > I can consolidate the large and small loan with another servicer.
- I feel that paying off $300 on my own will boost my credit score (currently 706).
I may also NOT consolidate my 5% $3K Perkins loan. I can later consolidate that loan after 180 days to further drop the interest rate of the larger consolidated loan (6.9%).
Which leaves me with this question:
What is the benefit of paying off a student loan manually vs allowing the loan to be zeroed out through consolidation?
Is there any FICO benefit whatsoever?