Student Loan Origination Fees: Calculate Your APR
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If you are comparing loan offers, you'll want to compare annual percentage rate (APR) rather than interest rate alone.
APR looks at all the costs associated with your loan, including origination, broker, legal and application fees. Many lenders don't charge any fees at all, but many do. The cheapest option may well involve a fee.
An origination fee may be added to a loan's balance or deducted from the loan proceeds. The calculator deducts the origination fee from the amount borrowed, as is customary with most student loans, personal loans and small business loans.
For example, Lender A offers a no-fee 10-year student loan for $20,000 at 5%. Lender B offers a $20,000 loan at 4.5% but charges a 5% origination fee. Which is cheaper?
Loan A | Loan B | |
|---|---|---|
Interest rate | 5% | 4.5% |
Loan amount | $20,000 | $20,000 |
Origination fee | None | 5% |
Net proceeds | $20,000 | $19,000 |
120 payments of | $212.13 | $207.28 |
Total interest | $5,455 | $4,873 |
Total fees | $0 | $1,000 |
Total cost | $5,455 | $5,873 |
APR | 5% | 5.61% |
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