College Ave Review: Private Student Loans

Our Take

4.5

TalkFinance rating

The bottom line: College Ave is an online lender founded in 2014 that offers both private student loans and student loan refinancing. Its private loan is best for students who want to make payments while they're still in school. Its refinance loan is best for borrowers who want a nonstandard loan term — six or nine years, for instance.

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on College Ave website

College Ave

FIXED APR

2.99 - 12.99%

VARIABLE APR

0.99 - 11.98%

MIN. CREDIT SCORE

Mid-600s

Pros & Cons

You can see if you’ll qualify and what rate you’ll get without a hard credit check.
More flexible repayment options than other lenders.
Six-month grace period extension is available.

You must be at least halfway through your repayment term before you can request a co-signer release.

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CHECK RATE

EST. APR

LOAN TERM

5, 8, 10 or 15 years

LOAN TERM

5, 7, 10, 12 or 15 years

LOAN TERM

10 to 15 years

MIN. CREDIT SCORE

Mid-600s

MIN. CREDIT SCORE

540

MIN. CREDIT SCORE

Mid-600's

Full Review

College Ave’s undergraduate private student loans are best for those who want to make payments while in school; borrowers can opt for immediate, interest-only and fixed $25 payment plans. You can also defer payments until after graduation.

More than 95% of College Ave undergraduate loans have a co-signer. You must be at least halfway through your repayment term to release the co-signer from the loan, as well as meet additional criteria. For a standard 10-year repayment term, that would mean making at least 5 years of payments, which is longer than other lenders require to release a co-signer.

You could refinance the loan earlier in your repayment term instead. But that would change the terms of the existing loan and require meeting the refinance lender's qualifications.

College Ave private student loans at a glance

Offers personalized rate estimates via a soft credit check.
International students are eligible if they apply with a co-signer who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
Six-month grace period extension is available.

How College Ave could improve

College Ave could improve by offering additional programs such as:

Letting borrowers qualify for co-signer release faster.
Offering more than 12 months of forbearance.
Allowing borrowers who have previously filed for bankruptcy to qualify.