Getting started with a Custom Choice Loan
Who is eligible?
To be eligible for a Custom Choice Loan, the student must:
- Be enrolled at least half-time in a Title IV eligible program at an eligible school.
- Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident;
- Be the legal age of majority, or at least 17 years of age at the time of application*;
- Have a permanent residency address that is NOT in Illinois, Iowa, Texas, or Wisconsin.
Do you need a cosigner?
If you don't have a substantial credit history or have other concerns about being approved for a loan, consider strengthening your chances by adding a creditworthy cosigner.
How much can you apply for?
Custom Choice lets you borrow up to the cost of education minus financial aid received. The Custom Choice Loan is a school-certified product. When certifying a loan, the financial aid office will verify you are eligible for the loan amount requested, and your funds will be sent directly to the financial aid office to be applied to your account.
Custom Choice Loan Highlights
- Competitive interest rates: fixed1 and variable2 options.
- 0.25% interest rate reduction when you have your payments automatically deducted from a personal bank account, and an additional 0.25% interest rate reduction when your payments are automatically deducted from a SunTrust Bank deposit account.3
- Graduation Reward: 1% principal balance reduction on every Custom Choice Loan upon graduation4
- Cosigner release options available5
View our Repayment Examples to see sample monthly payments for Custom Choice Loans.
Any questions?
Feel free to review Frequently Asked Questions about our Custom Choice private student loan, or talk to a SunTrust representative at 866-232-3889.
Ready to apply?
Here's how to apply online.
* The legal age for entering into contracts is 18 years of age in every state except Alabama (19 years old), Nebraska (19 years old, only for wards of the state), and Mississippi and Puerto Rico (21 years old).
1The current fixed interest rates range from 3.40% (3.40% APR) to 13.49% (12.41% APR), in effect as of 02/01/12. Rates are typically higher without a cosigner. The APR examples (lowest and highest) assume a $10,000 loan disbursed over two transactions. The lowest current APR is based on a 5-year repayment term (60 months), an immediate repayment plan, monthly principal and interest payments of $182.50, and a 3.40% interest rate. The highest current APR is based on a 20-year repayment term (240 months), a deferred repayment plan with a deferment period of 45 months upon initial disbursement, a six month grace period before repayment begins, monthly principal and interest payments of $187.11, and a 13.49% interest rate.
Interest rates are based on borrower or cosigner's credit history and selection of repayment option and term. Note: repayment term and options are based on loan amount; a minimum loan size of $5,000 is required for the 15 and 20 year repayment terms as well as for the Partial Interest repayment option.
2The current variable interest rates range from 2.975% (2.85% APR) to 10.115% (9.52% APR). These monthly rates are calculated by adding the One-Month LIBOR index to a margin. As of 02/01/12, the margins currently range from 2.60% up to 9.74% and the One-Month LIBOR index is 0.375%. The One-Month LIBOR index stands for London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) index which is published in the "Money Rates" section of The Wall Street Journal (Eastern Edition). The interest rate and APR may increase or decrease monthly if the One-Month LIBOR index changes which will affect the monthly payment. Rates are typically higher without a cosigner. The One-Month LIBOR index used in the rate calculation for Custom Choice Loans will be equal to the One-Month LIBOR rate published on the 25th day (or if such 25th day is not a business day, the next business day thereafter) of the month immediately preceding such calendar month, rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of one percent (0.125%).
The margin is permanently set based on the borrower's or cosigner's credit history and selection of repayment option and term. Note: repayment term and options are based on loan amount; a minimum loan size of $5,000 is required for 15 and 20 year repayment terms as well as for the Partial Interest repayment option.
The APR examples (lowest and highest) assume a $10,000 loan disbursed over two transactions. The lowest current APR is based on a 5-year repayment term (60 months), an immediate repayment plan, monthly principal and interest payments of $180.24, and a 2.60% margin added to the current One-Month LIBOR index. The highest current APR is based on a 20-year repayment term (240 months), a deferred repayment plan with a deferment period of 45 months upon initial disbursement, a six month grace period upon graduation, monthly principal and interest payments of $137.43, and a 9.74% margin added to the current One-Month LIBOR index.
3ACH discount(s) only apply when full payments (including both principal and interest) are automatically drafted from a bank account. Discount(s) will remain on the account unless (1) the automatic deduction of payments is stopped (including times during deferment or forbearance) or (2) there are three automatic deductions returned for insufficient funds within the life of the loan. The additional SunTrust ACH reward is available for loans first disbursed on or after 6/1/11 and will be applied after the first automatic payment is successfully deducted from a SunTrust Bank checking, savings or money market account.
4Proof of graduation (certified copy of diploma) must be submitted within 90 days of graduation. 1% principal reduction is based on the fully disbursed loan amount. To receive the reward, no more than one late payment (payment received more than 10 days after the due date) is allowed.
5Request for the cosigner to be released can be made after the first 48 consecutive, on-time payments (not later than ten days after the due date) of principal and interest have been made. The borrower must meet credit criteria on their own at the time of the request. The borrower must also be currently enrolled for automatic deduction of monthly payments from a bank account and must not have used forbearance on the loan prior to the request.
Certain restrictions and limitations may apply. SunTrust reserves the right to change or discontinue these programs without notice. All loan programs are subject to approval and may not be available in certain jurisdictions.