Granite State Loan Servicing Has Ended — Here’s What to Know

Nearly 1.3 million borrowers were affected when the Department of Education announced that Granite State Management and Resources (GSMR) would stop servicing federal student loans by the end of 2021.

If Granite State serviced your loans, you likely received correspondence from the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) or your newly appointed loan servicer, Edfinancial Services. However, any time student loans change hands, there's a chance that the process won’t go smoothly.

With student loan repayment already being a stressful process, understanding how the Granite State student loan transfer might’ve affected you, and what to do next, can give you peace of mind.

Which Granite State student loans were affected?

New Hampshire Higher Education Association Foundation (NHHEAF) Network, Granite State's parent company, said that it wasn’t renewing its contract with the DOE as a federal student loan servicer. All student loans that were owned by the federal government, but serviced by GSMR, have been transferred to Edfinancial Services.

However, NHHEAF announced that it would “continue to service Federal Family

Education Loan Program loans and EDvestinU loans, including all such loans securing its outstanding student loan securitizations.”

EdvestinU is a private lender offering private student loans and student loan refinancing.

What to expect when Granite State student loans transfer to Edfinancial

By this time, you should’ve already received a letter or other correspondence from the DOE and Edfinancial Services regarding the transfer of your existing Granite State student loans. If not, reach out to both as soon as possible to avoid missing any required loan payments.

If your federal student loans were transferred to Edfinancial Services, you should expect the following:

• An email or letter from EdFinancial Services informing you of the loan transfer.
• A welcome letter (once they receive your loans) from EdFinancial Services with the company's contact information and any next steps you need to take.

GSMR and Edfinancial will work together until the transfer process is complete. This helps ensure that loan payments are correctly processed.

At this time, you'll set up your online account with Edfinancial, including payment information, and take care of any other actions required to continue your student loan repayment. Even if you've been repaying loans for a while, you might only see loan information from the period after the transfer. Your loan terms and interest rate won't change with a transfer.

Ensure your loans are transferred correctly

Many federal student loan servicers don't exactly carry a reputation for stellar customer service among borrowers. As easy as the DOE makes the transfer process sound, you should take steps to protect yourself and your loans from any mistakes during the process.

Here are some ways to protect yourself after your loans were transferred from Granite State to Edfinancial Services:

Download your NSLDS file

Start preparing by downloading your loan records from the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS). The NSLDS is a database used by the U.S. Department of Education to keep a centralized record of all federal student aid. To get your record, log on to the Federal Student Aid website. You'll need your FSA ID and password to access and download the file.

Keep good records

Protect yourself even further by keeping your own records regarding your loans and payments. Save any correspondence, whether emails or letters, concerning your loans. Screenshots work well for this, too. Use a cloud-based system like Google Drive to save your documents in one central location.

Set up your online account immediately

Once you receive word of the transfer, start setting up your account with Edfinancial. Follow any instructions given by your new servicer. Familiarize yourself with the servicer's online portal, paying close attention to information like loan repayment, customer service options, and anything else you think is important to know.

Verify your loan details

While you're logged in, take a second to verify your loan details and compare them to your own records. If there is an issue with your loan or loan payments, take action immediately, especially if it's an issue on Granite State's end. The further removed you are from them as a servicer, the harder it will be to receive support.

Refinancing as an alternative student loan repayment alternative

Perhaps you want to avoid future transfers for any reason — whether to avoid the risk of another bumpy servicer change, or you simply want out of the federal student loan system. One alternative is refinancing your student loans.

When you refinance federal student loans, a private lender pays off your existing loans, and you receive a new loan with a new interest rate and terms. Depending on your credit score and history, you might qualify for much lower interest rates. This can potentially save thousands of dollars over the life of your loan or help you lower your monthly payments if you choose a longer term.

Keep in mind that when you refinance federal loans, they become private loans. You no longer have access to federal loan programs and protections like:

• PSLF and other student loan forgiveness programs.
• Income-driven repayment plans.
• Other federal loan repayment plans.
• Extended loan deferment and forbearance options.
• Direct Consolidation Loan options.

Make sure that you don't need access to any of these federal protections before refinancing your student loans. It's also a good idea to build up some emergency savings to protect yourself if unexpected expenses or a hardship prevents you from making your private student loan payments.

The bottom line

The transition of Granite State student loans to your new servicer shouldn’t have changed your loan details or term. Since millions of borrowers’ information was involved in the shuffle, mistakes during this process can happen.

To avoid grief and frustration later on, compare the student loan records that Edfinancial Services now has in its system against your own loan information to ensure they match.