College Ave Student Loans 2024 Review

College Ave Student Loans

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Expert Take

College Ave offers private student loans to undergraduates, graduate students and parents. Interest rates are competitive, but you’ll likely need a co-signer to get approved.

Pros

• Flexible repayment terms
• Accepts students attending less than part-time
• Can prequalify without hard credit check

Cons

• Strict co-signer release
• Late fees

Vault’s Viewpoint on College Ave Student Loans

Since 2014, College Ave has provided private student loans and refinancing options to undergraduate students, graduate students and parents. The company offers competitive interest rates and borrowers have a variety of repayment terms to choose from. And unlike other lenders, College Ave is willing to work with part-time students.

Before applying with College Ave, there are a few disadvantages to consider. The lender doesn’t offer multi-year approval, so you’ll need to apply every year. And College Ave states most undergraduate students will need a student loan co-signer. This likely applies to every year you apply since 95% of undergraduate borrowers who are approved for additional loans apply with a co-signer.

Unfortunately, College Ave doesn’t have a fast co-signer release. While some student loan providers let students release a co-signer after 12 on-time payments, College Ave borrowers won’t be able to remove co-signers until half of the repayment term has elapsed. That means co-signers will have to stay attached to a 10-year loan for at least five years. College Ave also requires the borrower to have an annual income that is at least twice the balance of the outstanding loan.

About College Ave Student Loans

College Ave student loans are a good fit for most borrowers who can apply with a co-signer, who will need a minimum credit score “in the mid-600’s.” The lender’s prequalification tool lets you see if you qualify for a loan with no impact to your credit score.

Undergraduate and graduate borrowers can borrow a minimum of $1,000 up to 100% of the cost of attendance. For student loan refinancing, maximum loan amounts vary depending on the degree. You can refinance up to $500,000 for medical, dental pharmacy or veterinary doctorate degrees. But other graduate programs could have a maximum of $150,000 or $300,000.

International students are eligible to apply as long as they have a valid Social Security number and a co-signer who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

Interested in a College Ave student loan? Here’s what you should know before you apply.

Who Should Apply for a College Ave Student Loan?

Students who already have a co-signer with a credit score in the mid-600s will be more likely to get approved for a College Ave loan. Traditionally, undergraduate college students will struggle to get approved for a private student loan unless they have a cosigner.

Students must also be at least 16 years old and have a Social Security Number. Also, they must be attending an eligible school, which will be listed on the College Ave application.

Students who want a good customer experience can rest easy if they apply with College Ave. The lender has a 4.4 out of 5 rating on Trustpilot with almost 1,000 reviews. Users say that College Ave is easy to work with and quick to respond.

What We like

• Flexible repayment terms. College Ave lets borrowers choose from one of four repayment terms: five, eight, 10 or 15 years. This means borrowers can decide if they want a lower monthly payment plan or if they want to save more on total interest.
• Students can attend less than part-time. Many lenders require that students have at least part-time status, but College Ave will accept students who are less than part-time for many of its loans.
• Students can prequalify. College Ave doesn’t require you to submit a full application to get your interest rate. You can get prequalified without affecting your credit score, which can be helpful if you’re comparing multiple options.

Who Should Consider an Alternative Student Loan to College Ave?

If you don’t have a co-signer, you may need to get a loan through another provider. Also, students who don’t have a Social Security number will need to look elsewhere for a private student loan.

What We Don’t Like

• Strict co-signer release program. Co-signers can only be removed from your loan after 50% of the repayment term has gone by. And your annual income must be at least double the student loan balance. You must also not have had any major red flags on your credit report for at least 12 months to potentially not need a co-signer.
• Can owe late fees. College Ave will charge a late fee if your payment is more than 15 days late. The fee is $25 or 5% of the unpaid amount, whichever is less.

How to Apply for a Student Loan Through College Ave

The application process for a College Ave loan is similar to the process with other lenders. Here’s what you should expect:

1. Choose the type of loan you want to apply for. You can choose from an undergraduate, graduate, career, parent loan or student loan refinancing.
2. Decide whether you are the borrower or the co-signer. You can either start a new application or work on an existing application.
3. College Ave requires your full legal name, Social Security number, annual income, name of the school you’re attending and the total amount you need to borrow. You will need to provide your school-certified annual cost of attendance, your year in school, and any other financial aid you’ve received.
4. If you’re approved, you’ll receive your interest rate offer. From there, you can decide whether to move forward with a formal loan application.

How Does College Ave Stack Up to Its Competitors?

With more than a dozen different student loan companies on the market, it can be hard to understand why College Ave is a better choice than its competitors. Here’s how College Ave compares to other leading lenders:

College Ave vs. SoFi

SoFi student loans provide access to a variety of benefits to its customers. For example, SoFi borrowers can sign up for complimentary career coaching and networking events and get access to exclusive online communities. College Ave does not have these types of programs.

SoFi also does not charge any late fees if you miss a payment, whereas College Ave charges a late fee that is either 5% of the unpaid amount or $25, whichever is less. The no-late-fee policy can be useful for students who may accidentally forget to make their payments.

Interest rates are similar between SoFi and College Ave and the two lenders both provide a choice between a fixed or variable interest rate loan.

College Ave vs. Earnest

Earnest student loans come with a nine-month grace period for undergraduate student loans, while College Ave only provides six months. This three-month difference can be helpful for students who need more time to find a job and get settled.

Both lenders offer similar low student loan interest rates. But Earnest only offers fixed interest rates on their loans, while College Ave has both variable and fixed interest rate loans. Students who want to take a chance that interest rates will drop over time may be better off with College Ave.

Earnest also says that they will match interest rates from other lenders and they even provide a $100 Amazon gift card if you sign up for a loan with Earnest instead of with one of their competitors. Both lenders allow borrowers to get pre-qualified without affecting their credit.

College Ave vs. Sallie Mae

As one of the biggest student loan companies on the market, Sallie Mae is almost synonymous with student loans. They only offer repayment terms from 10 to 15 years, compared to College Ave which offers five, eight, 10 or 15-year terms.

Both Sallie Mae and College Ave offer both fixed and variable interest rate loans. But Sallie Mae’s interest rates are slightly higher than College Ave’s rates, especially for their variable-rate loan.

Newsweek writer Jamie Johnson contributed to this post.