Originally Posted by
Jazzop
Consider the following instead:
1. Consolidate the loans at a low interest rate.
2. Put all that cash into high-yield investments (Roth IRA, brokerage accts)that will outpace the interest on the loans.
3. Pay the loans off through the standard payment plan.
Between consolidation and the discounts offered with automatic payment plans, you should pay around 3-5% in interst on the loans. It's reasonable to expect at least 10% yield on a Roth. This doesn't even count the tax advantages of student loan interest deduction and Roth disbursements.
Private loans - consolidation isn't really an option, only replacing with a different kind of loan. They're also graduate, with an interest rate around 7%, variable, with nowhere to go but up in this economy. I was doing what you suggested for some time, then lost a substantial amount of money (as we all did). While the time horizon makes it possible to eek out over 8 percent, my risk tolerance at this point is low.
It unfortunately seems there's no way to skirt around the payment from checking only rules to use a CC for paying off large chunks.
The servicer is ACS.