Prior to consolidating a Federal Perkins Loan, consolidation lenders should be required to provide easy-to-understand and conspicuous disclosures to Federal Perkins Loan borrowers about the loss of benefits that would result if a Federal Perkins Loan were consolidated, including the fact that there is almost no interest rate benefit from consolidating Perkins Loans. Borrowers currently are not being fully informed about lost benefits.

These lost benefits may include the following:

Consolidation can significantly increase your total interest costs, because you'll be making smaller installments over a longer period of time. Depending on the loan balance and interest rate, consolidation can double or triple your total interest expenses. It is advisable to accelerate payments whenever possible.