I need to finish up my financial aid this week, and I've been dragging my feet on the private gap loans to cover the distance between Stafford and my maximum allowance.
Who is offering the best private gap loans?
I've only really checked into citibank (citiassist), and they seem to have a nice program. There are no origination fees, the rate is prime + .25, you get .25 rate reduction for electronic payments, and a .50 rate reduction if the first 48 payments are on time.
my school has also recommended the Alternative DEAL loan from Key Education Resources. It's sponsored by both the ADEA and ASDA. I haven't really looked into private lenders, but i hope this helps.
It seemed like the best all around for those with no co-signer. Also, no fees, aggregate cap (for any of us who are loaning out close to 300 grand for 4 years), and damn good rates (compared to other loans).
generally, everything we've mentioned is quite similar.
the way i see it, i should expect no fees, .25 reductions for bank draft, .50 deductions for timely payments, and 6 to 9 months of time between graduation and repayment.
however, the one advantage i see to Access is the 3 mo LIBOR basis + 2.7%. Historically (last 10 years), this would be lower than the Prime rate that citibank and others are basing their rates on.
