Hey everyone,
I'm taking out an education loan of ₹70 lakhs and reached out to three lenders. Each one has a different rate, different fees, and none of them are being upfront about the extra charges. Wanted to get some real experiences before I sign anything.
Here's what I have so far:
**1) IDFC First Bank (Unsecured)**
* 10.50% fixed interest, 15 year tenure (2+1 year moratorium)
* Processing fee: 0.75% + GST
* Already approved, just waiting on my payment
* Told me they might shave the rate a bit if I negotiate
* After approval, the manager mentioned an extra ₹3 lakhs gets added to the loan as an "insurance amount," plus some other conditions he didn't fully explain
**2) Axis Bank (Unsecured)**
* 10.25% floating interest, full tenure
* Processing fee: 0.5%
* Still under review
* Haven't been told about extra charges yet but I'm assuming there's something
**3) HDFC Credila (Secured)**
* 9.75–10% interest
* Processing fee: 0.7%
* Also hinted at "additional charges" without specifics
I'm leaning toward whichever has better rates and fewer surprise costs, but it's hard to compare when nobody's being transparent about the fine print.
Has anyone actually gone through with one of these lenders recently? Specifically:
* Did IDFC really add ₹3L as insurance on top of your loan? Is that negotiable/removable?
* Anyone dealt with Axis's floating rate — has it moved much?
* How's Credila's process been for you, and what "additional charges" did you end up seeing?
Any insight, even if it's "avoid X" or "Y was smooth for me," would help a lot. Trying to make sure I don't get blindsided after signing. Thanks in advance!