College Ave Student Loans products are made available through either Firstrust Bank, member FDIC or M.Y. Safra Bank, FSB, member FDIC. All loans are subject to individual approval and adherence to underwriting guidelines. Program restrictions, other terms, and conditions apply.
1. As certified by your school and less any other financial aid you might receive. Minimum $1,000.
2. Rates shown are for the College Ave Undergraduate Loan product and include autopay discount. The 0.25% auto-pay interest rate reduction applies as long as a valid bank account is designated for required monthly payments. Variable rates may increase after consummation.
3. This informational repayment example uses typical loan terms for a freshman borrower who selects the Deferred Repayment Option with a 10-year repayment term, has a $10,000 loan that is disbursed in one disbursement and a 8.35% fixed Annual Percentage Rate (“APR”): 120 monthly payments of $179.18 while in the repayment period, for a total amount of payments of $21,501.54. Loans will never have a full principal and interest monthly payment of less than $50. Your actual rates and repayment terms may vary.
Information advertised valid as of 12/14/2020. Variable interest rates may increase after consummation. Lowest advertised rates require selection of full principal and interest payments with the shortest available loan term.
Borrow Responsibly
We encourage students and families to start with savings, grants, scholarships, and federal student loans to pay for college. Students and families should evaluate all anticipated monthly loan payments, and how much the student expects to earn in the future, before considering a private student loan.
This information is for undergraduate students attending participating degree- granting schools. Borrowers must be U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents if the school is located outside of the United States. Non-U.S. citizen borrowers who reside in the U.S. are eligible with a creditworthy cosigner (who must be a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident) and are required to provide an unexpired government- issued photo ID to verify identity. Applications are subject to a requested minimum loan amount of $1,000. Current credit and other eligibility criteria apply.
1. Interest is charged starting at disbursement, during school and the separation/grace period, and until the loan is paid in full. With the Fixed and Deferred Repayment Options, the interest rate is higher than with the Interest Repayment Option and Unpaid Interest is added to the loan’s Current Principal at the end of the grace/separation period. Payments may be required during the grace/separation period depending on the repayment option selected. Variable rates may increase over the life of the loan. Advertised variable rates reflect the starting range of rates and may vary outside of that range over the life of the loan. Advertised APRs assume a $10,000 loan to a freshman with no other Sallie Mae loans. Borrower or cosigner must enroll in auto debit through Sallie Mae to receive a 0.25 percentage point interest rate reduction benefit. This benefit applies only during active repayment for as long as the Current Amount Due or Designated Amount is successfully withdrawn from the authorized bank account each month and may be suspended during periods of forbearance or deferment, if available for the loan.
2. Although we do not charge you a penalty or fee if you prepay your loan, any prepayment will be applied as provided in your promissory note: First to UnpaidFees and costs, then to Unpaid Interest, and then to Current Principal.
3. This promotional benefit is provided at no cost to borrowers with new loans that first disburse prior to April 30, 2021. Borrowers who reside in, attend school in, or borrow for a student attending school in Maine are not eligible for this benefit. No cash value. Terms and Conditions apply. Please visit Chegg.com/studystarter/termsandconditions for complete details. This offer expires one year after issuance.
4. Loan amount cannot exceed the cost of attendance less financial aid received as certified by the school. Sallie Mae reserves the right to approve a lower loan amount than the school-certified amount.
5. Based on a comparison of approval rates for Sallie Mae Smart Option Student Loans for Undergraduate Students who applied with a cosigner versus without a cosigner during a rolling 12 month period from October 1, 2018 through September 30, 2019.
SALLIE MAE RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MODIFY OR DISCONTINUE PRODUCTS, SERVICES, AND BENEFITS AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE.
Information valid as of 12/28/2020.
Smart Option Student Loans® are made by Sallie Mae Bank.
Sallie Mae, the Sallie Mae logo, and other Sallie Mae names and logos are service marks or registered service marks of Sallie Mae Bank. All other names and logos used are the trademarks or service marks of their respective owners.
©2020 Sallie Mae Bank. All rights reserved.
SLM Corporation and its subsidiaries, including Sallie Mae Bank, are not sponsored by or agencies of the United States of America.
Lowest APRs shown for Discover Student Loans are available for the most creditworthy applicants for undergraduate loans, and include an interest-only (https://www.discover.com/student-loans/interestonly) repayment discount and a 0.25% interest rate reduction while enrolled in automatic payments. The interest rate ranges represent the lowest and highest interest rates offered on the Discover Undergraduate Loan. The fixed interest rate is set at the time of application and does not change during the life of the loan. The variable interest rate is calculated based on the 3-Month LIBOR index plus the applicable margin percentage. For variable interest rate loans, the 3-Month LIBOR is 0.250% as of January 1, 2021. Discover Student Loans may adjust the rate quarterly on each January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1 (the “interest rate change date”), based on the 3-Month LIBOR Index, published in the Money Rates section of the Wall Street Journal 15 days prior to the interest rate change date, rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of one percent (0.125% or 0.00125). This may cause the monthly payments to increase, the number of payments to increase or both. Our lowest APR is only available to customers with the best credit and other factors. Your APR will be determined after you apply. It will be based on your credit history, which repayment option you choose and other factors, including your cosigner’s credit history (if applicable). Learn more about Discover Student Loans interest rates at DiscoverStudentLoans.com/Rates.
Before applying for a private student loan, Citizens and Cognition Financial recommend comparing all financial aid alternatives including grants, scholarships, and both federal and private student loans.
The Union Federal® Private Student Loan is made by Citizens (“Lender”). All loans are subject to individual approval and adherence to Lender’s underwriting guidelines. Program restrictions and other terms and conditions apply. LENDER AND COGNITION FINANCIAL CORPORATION EACH RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MODIFY OR DISCONTINUE PRODUCTS AND BENEFITS AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE. TERMS, CONDITIONS AND RATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE.
Interest rates and APRs (Annual Percentage Rates) depend upon (1) the student’s and cosigner’s (if applicable) credit histories, (2) the repayment option and repayment term selected, (3) the expected number of years in deferment, (4) the requested loan amount and (5) other information provided on the online loan application. If approved, applicants will be notified of the rate applicable to your loan. Rates and terms are effective for applications received on or after 3/01/21. The variable interest rate for each calendar month is calculated by adding the One-month London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”), or a replacement index if the Lender, in their sole discretion, deems LIBOR to be substantially altered or if LIBOR is no longer based on newly reported rates from its reporting banks, plus a fixed margin assigned to each loan. The LIBOR is published in the “Money Rates” section of The Wall Street Journal (Eastern Edition). The LIBOR index is captured on the 25th day of the immediately preceding calendar month (or if the 25th is not a business day. The current LIBOR index is 0.11% on 3/01/21. The variable interest rate will increase or decrease if the LIBOR index changes or if a new index is chosen. The applicable index or margin for variable rate loans may change over time and result in a different APR than shown. The fixed rate assigned to a loan will never change except as required by law or if you request and qualify for the on-time payment and auto pay discounts.
APRs assume a $10,000 loan with one disbursement. The high variable rate APR assumes a 7-year term with the Full Deferment option, a 19 month deferment period, and a six-month grace period before entering repayment. The high fixed rate APR assumes a 15-year term with the Full Deferment option, a 31 month deferment period, and a six-month grace period before entering repayment. The low APRs assume a 7-year term, no deferment and payments beginning 30-60 days after the disbursement via auto pay from a bank account. See footnote 5 for auto pay details.
In order to provide you with a range of rates you prequalify for, Citizens will perform a soft credit inquiry, as authorized by you. Soft credit inquiries do not affect your credit score. If you prequalify, the rates and loan options offered to you are estimates only. Once you choose your loan options and submit your application, Citizens will perform a hard credit inquiry. Loan approval, options, and final rates depend on the verification of information provided on your application, and information obtained from the hard credit inquiry (and any cosigner’s hard credit inquiry).
The 0.25% interest rate reduction will automatically be applied if the first 36 consecutive monthly payments during the repayment term are received by the Servicer within 10 calendar days after their due date. Payments made prior to the start of the repayment term do not count toward the number of required monthly payments.
Earn a 0.25% interest rate reduction for making automatic payments of principal and interest from a bank account (“auto pay discount”) by completing the direct debit form provided by the Servicer. The auto pay discount will be applied after the Servicer validates your bank account information and will continue until (1) three automatic deductions are returned for insufficient funds during the life of the loan (after which the discount cannot be reinstated) or (2) automatic deduction of payments is canceled. The auto pay discount is not available when reduced payments are being made or when the loan is in a deferment or forbearance, even if payments are being made.
Any applicant who applies for a loan the month of, the month prior to, or the month after the student’s graduation date, as stated on the application or certified by the school, will only be offered the Immediate Repayment option. The 15-year term and the Flat Payment Repayment option are only available on loans of $5,000 or more.
Union Federal is a registered trademark of Cognition Financial Corporation. Union Federal Private Student Loans are not offered in connection with any lender other than Citizens. or the federal government. Cognition Financial Corporation is not an affiliate of Citizens Bank, N.A.
Citizens is a brand name of Citizens Bank, N.A. (NMLS ID# 433960). Member FDIC.
* Auto Pay discount: If you make monthly payments by an automatic, monthly deduction from a savings or checking account, your rate will be reduced by one quarter of one percent (0.25%) for so long as you continue to make automatic, electronic monthly payments. Not all borrowers will qualify for our lowest rates, and your rate will be based on creditworthiness at time of application.
** Earnest clients may skip one payment every 12 months. Your first request to skip a payment can be made once you’ve made at least 6 months of consecutive on-time payments, and your loan is in good standing. The interest accrued during the skipped month will result in an increase in your remaining minimum payment. The final payoff date on your loan will be extended by the length of the skipped payment periods. Please be aware that a skipped payment does count towards the forbearance limits outlined in your loan agreement. Please note that skipping a payment is not guaranteed and is at Earnest’s discretion. Your monthly payment and total loan cost may increase as a result of postponing your payment and extending your term.
*** Not available for borrowers who choose Earnest’s Principal and Interest Repayment plan while in school.
Refinancing all (or several) of your original loans into one new loan will enable you to end up with one monthly payment to one entity. Dealing with one loan servicer is likely to be easier than dealing with several each month.
You may be able to refinance co-signed private student loans. If the new refinance loan doesn’t require a co-signer, then the co-signer is released from their obligation when the original loan is converted into the new one. Note, however, that sometimes a co-signer on a student loan refinance loan might make you eligible for a better rate.
A key goal for those who refinance their student loans is to end up with an interest rate on the new loan that is lower than the weighted average interest rate of their original loans.
No. It’s up to you to decide whether you want to refinance all or just some of your original student loans. Do the analysis suggested in the first question above to determine the weighted average interest rate of your existing student loans. If you have one or more loans that have interest rates lower than the student loan refinance loan, you might decide to keep them out of the refinancing. That way you can continue to take advantage of the lower interest rate, even as you improve the rate on the loans you do refinance.
Sometimes the terms “refinancing” and “consolidation” are used interchangeably in the context of student loans. But there is an important nuance. Student loan “consolidation” is most often used to refer to an option offered by the federal government for “consolidating” (basically, combining and refinancing) your federal student loans into one new loan. Private loans are not eligible for federal student loan consolidation. Federal student loan consolidation will result in a slightly higher interest rate on your combined loans. The new rate is the weighted average rate of the combined loans rounded up to the nearest 1/8th of a percent. You get the benefit of having one loan to manage instead of several, and you may also qualify for even more repayment benefits than the original federal student loans offered.
The term “refinancing” in the context of student loans usually indicates a privately-offered (ie, not from the government) refinancing loan.
Some borrowers “consolidate” their federal loans to maintain their liberal benefits and “refinance” their private student loans. If you have both types of loans, this is an option to consider.
Note: some private lenders – especially ones that have been offering refinancing for a long time – refer to their refinancing product as a “consolidation” loan, just to make it confusing. If the product is offered by a private lender it is not a federal consolidation loan.
Relatively hard. To be eligible to refinance student loans, a borrower has to pass a relatively stringent credit and income test. Many lenders have minimum income requirements. Most lenders are looking for a borrower to have a credit score of at least 680 (there are some exceptions), income of at least $30,000, and a debt-to-income ratio no higher than 30%.
To qualify for the best rates, a borrower’s credit and income situation needs to be considerably stronger than the approximate minimums given here.
The time to refinance varies somewhat on the lender and also depends on the number of student loans to be included in the refinancing. The slowest part of the process is gaining the exact payoff amount from each of the original lenders / loan servicers. Most lenders have developed an efficient process, so on average it takes less than a week from application approval to the origination of the new refinance loan.
Most student loan refinance lenders offer the choice of fixed and variable options. Generally, the variable rate loans will be priced lower than the fixed rate option. The trade off is that you get a lower rate now, but have exposure to rate increases if underlying interest rates increase. Your choice should be based on your personal comfort with risk. If you’re confident that rates are likely to stay low over the time you’ll be in repayment – and if you have a relatively strong level of comfort taking risk – you might opt for the lower variable rate option. On the other hand, if you think rates are likely to rise during the time you’re in repayment – and if you have a low tolerance for risk – you might opt for a fixed rate loan.
There are several factors that should figure into your choice of lender, even beyond the interest rate offered, including:
Loan options will vary based on your school.
NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Open to legal residents of the 50 U.S./D.C., age 18+. Void outside the 50 U.S./D.C. and where prohibited. Sweepstakes starts at 12:00:01 AM ET on 06/01/21; ends at 11:59:59 PM ET on 05/31/22. To enter, visit collegefinance.com. Total ARV of all prizes: $1,000 per month. Odds depend on the number of eligible entries received per month. For full Official Rules, click here. Sponsor: College Finance Company, LLC, 123 Pleasant Street, Suite 202, Marblehead, MA 01945.