Iowa Student Loan Review
College Family Loan
Rewards: Autopay Discount
Yearly Loan Limits: Up to 100% Cost of Attendance
Overall Loan Limits: No minimum borrowing limit
Cosigner Terms: Cosigner optional, does not offer cosigner release
With a Family Loan from Iowa Student Loan, you’ll know what you’re getting from the start. They only offer fixed rate loans and charge no fees, but you’ll likely find lower-cost loans with more flexible repayment options elsewhere.
Pros
- Covers up to 100% of annual cost of attendance
- Allows anyone to borrow on behalf of the student (not just family members)
- Offers a full deferment in-school repayment option
Cons
- Does not offer variable interest rates
- Does not offer cosigner release
- Requires that the student maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress
How does this loan compare?
Full Review
Iowa Student Loan’s parent loan is among the most transparent out there. They only offer fixed interest rates, and a narrow range of them, with no additional fees (not even on late payments). They don’t have a minimum borrowing limit, and you can borrow up to the full annual cost of attendance at the student’s college. If you’re not a family member, but still want to borrow on behalf of the student, Iowa Student Loan will allow it.
That transparency, however, comes with a significant dose of inflexibility. Though they offer a full deferment in-school repayment option, they only offer two repayment terms (10 years or 15 years) and do not specify their forbearance policies. They lend to borrowers with credit scores as low as 670, but they also require that you have a debt-to-income ratio that does not exceed 40%. Additionally, though a cosigner is optional, they do not offer a cosigner release.
Iowa Student Loan - Private Student Loan Details
- Credit Check: Soft to check rates, hard to process application
- Repayment Terms: 10 years, 15 years
- Minimum Borrowing Limit: None
- Yearly Borrowing Limit: 100% of Cost of Attendance
- Aggregate Borrowing Limit: Not specified by lender
- Application Fee: None
- Origination Fee: None
- Prepayment Penalty: None
- Late Fee: None
- Minimum Credit Score: 670
- Minimum Annual Income: Not specified by lender
- Maximum Debt-to-Income Ratio: 0.4
- Citizenship Restriction: Citizens or Residents
- Minimum Enrollment Restriction: Half-Time
- List of States where Loan is Not Available: None
- Approved Schools Include: Non-Profit
- Immediate Principal and Interest Repayment: Yes
- Fixed Monthly Repayment: None
- Interest-Only Repayment: Yes
- Full Deferment: Yes
- Length of Grace Period: 6 months
- Maximum Deferment Period: 24 months
- Maximum Forbearance Period: Not specified by lender
- Cosigner Release Option: None
- Death Discharge: Yes
- Disability Discharge: Yes
- US-Based Call Center: Not specified by lender
- Hours of Operation (in addition to weekdays): No Evenings or Weekends
- Application Timeline: Not specified by lender
- Scholarship Search Tool: None
- Sponsors a Scholarship: Not specified by lender
- Job and Career Assistance: Yes
- Financial Literacy Training: Not specified by lender