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Earnest Undergraduate Student Loan Review
Undergraduate Private Student Loans
Rewards: Autopay Discount2, Loyalty Discount9
Flexibility: Allows borrowers to customize their payment3 due date, skip 1 payment every 12 months, and make biweekly payments
Yearly Loan Limits: Covers 100% of your Cost of Attendance
Overall Loan Limits: $1,0004 (minimum)
Cosigner Terms: Cosigner optional, allows for cosigner release5
Rewards: Autopay Discount2, Loyalty Discount9
Flexibility: Allows borrowers to customize their payment3 due date, skip 1 payment every 12 months, and make biweekly payments
Yearly Loan Limits: Covers 100% of your Cost of Attendance
Overall Loan Limits: $1,0004 (minimum)
Cosigner Terms: Cosigner optional, allows for cosigner release5
The bottom line
By giving you a lot of options when it comes to repayment10 and avoiding fees altogether8, Earnest is one of the most flexible private student loan lenders. They rank as one of the top lenders for undergraduate students.
Pros- Flexible repayment terms10, including customizing the payment due date and skipping one payment every 12 months3
- Biweekly payment option as alternative to monthly loan payments
- Offers a partial forbearance option
- Offers cosigner release5
Cons- You must be enrolled at least half-time to borrow from them
Loan comparison
Full review
When it comes to flexibility in repaying your student loans, Earnest really stands out from the pack. Borrowers are allowed to customize their payment due date, skip a payment every 12 months3, select a biweekly payment schedule instead of a monthly one, and even recieve a 9-month grace period7 after graduation (as opposed to the standard 6 months). For borrowers in distress, they offer a partial forbearance option, not just a full forbearance, which really helps when it comes to avoiding debt spiraling out of control.
Earnest also charges below-average interest rates. When you combine that with their auto-debit discount2, and no fees8 (not even on late payments), their private loans are one of the most cost-effective.
As an online lender, Earnest’s loan application process involves a soft credit check to determine rates and a hard credit check to process the application.
They do offer two cosigner release options 5 once the loan and primary borrower meet certain requirements.
Earnest - Undergraduate Private Student Loans
Other loans that Earnest offers:
Saving For College provides our readers with free access to objective information, articles and tools to help them make informed decisions about saving and paying for education. We are able to do this because we are compensated by our partners, including some private student lenders. Some, though not all, of the products featured here are offered by partners who may pay us a sales commission. Our partnerships do not influence our ratings or reviews, which are based on in-depth research and objective methodologies, though they may influence which products we write about and where those products appear on our site. Our opinions are our own.
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