• Borrowers with private education loans must be an existing MELA borrowr to qualify:
• Loans must be qualified private or alternative education loans
• Qualifying loans being consolidated must be fully disbursed and in repayment or grace status
• Minimum loan balance of $10,000
• No aggregate loan limit for MELA loans; $100,000 aggregate loan limit for non-MELA loans
• Borrower(s) must have a minimum of two years of credit history
• Borrower(s) must have a minimum of three trade lines on their credit report
• Borrower(s) must meet lender's minimum income requirement
• Borrower(s) credit reports must show:
  • Loans being consolidated must be less than 60 days past due
  • No record of a paid or unpaid charge-off in the past two years
  • No record of foreclosure, repossession, open judgment or suit, paid or unpaid tax lien, prior education loan default, or other negative public record items in the past seven years
  • No record of bankruptcy in the past seven years
• The ability to repay the debt is determined by calculating the debt to income ratio, which must be less than 50%.

Depending on the amount of your loan, repayment terms can be extended up to 30 years.

Amount Borrowed		Repayment Period (in years)
$10,000-$20,000		15
$20,001-$40,000		20
$40,001-$60,000		25
$60,001 and above		30

Borrowers may receive an immediate .25% interest rate reduction for automatic, electronic payments.**

Bear in mind that while lengthening the term of your loan will reduce your monthly payment, extended terms may increase the total amount of interest you will pay over the life of the loan.

A guarantee fee (percentage of loan amount) is based on the applicant’s credit history and is added to the loan balance at the time of approval.

Credit History		Guarantee Fee
Excellent Credit		1%
Good Credit		3%
Fair Credit		6%

• You can click here to apply online
• You can request a paper application be mailed to you
• Call a Private Loan Specialist at 1-800-922-6352 to request an application
• Print out a hard copy of the application and mail or fax to 207-791-3616
• Mail in the following supplemental documents:
  • Proof of Income for both borrower and co-borrower(s) (one of the following):
    • Copy of your most recent pay stub, dated within past 30 days, and prior year's W-2
    • If self employed, most recent signed 1040 Tax Return with Schedule C, E, and/or F
    • If retired, last year's 1099 or Social Security or pension statement of benefits
    • Include documentation for other sources of income, if any, listed for consideration
• Loan Payoff Information:
  • Current loan payment statements from your lender
• Proof of Identity: (a copy of one of the following)
  • Driver's license
  • Government issued photo ID
  • Military ID
  • Passport or travel visa
  • If not a U.S. citizen, a copy of both sides of Form I-551 (Alien Registration Receipt Card). At least one applicant must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. Each party must have a U.S. Social Security Number.

Once your loan has been approved, we will verify your actual loan payoff amounts with each lender. Until you receive confirmation that your consolidation loan has been completed, you are responsible for making all student loan payments as scheduled by your lender(s).