Illinois to Sell $1.3 billion In Student Loans

The Illinois Student Assistance Commission plans to sell $1.3 billion in performing student loans on July 31, the agency reported at a meeting of its directors last week. Morgan Stanley and Gardner, Underwood and Bacon are supervising the sale.

The portfolio includes 368,924 loans of 191,914 borrowers with an average indebtedness of $7,240. Purchasers must keep in place all benefits and interest rates of the loans. The commission also plans to refinance 350 million in alternative loans that aren’t federally guaranteed. The commission will hold a portfolio valued at nearly $2 billion following the July sale, according to a spokesperson.

The loans are part of the state’s MAP Plus program that grants up to $250 per semester to recipients. The typical household income of a Map Plus recipient is $81,000. The Map Plus program was created in 2006 but faces elimination under several budget proposals being considered now by the state General Assembly.

The commission sold a similar portfolio of loans worth $648 million in January to Sallie Mae and Nelnet, the National Education Loan Network. That portfolio covered 42,446 borrowers with 75,370 loans, according to the commission. The average borrower indebtedness was $15,280. Morgan and Gardner also worked on that sale.