Frequently Asked Questions
Hebrew Free Loan
The William Davidson Jewish College Loan Program requires full-time attendance. Personal loans for education expenses do not have this requirement. For more information view our Education page.
The William Davidson Jewish College Loan Program requires attendance at a Michigan program. Personal loans for education expenses do not have this requirement. For more information view our Education page.
At this time, HFL does not accept any form of online payment, such as PayPal, Venmo, or CashApp. If you would like to set up monthly automatic withdrawals from a bank account, click on Current Borrowers. If you set up loan payment by mail with your bank, please make sure to include your loan number on the memo line.
If you currently have a personal loan, you may be eligible to apply for an additional loan, depending on your current balance and payment status. You will need to complete a new loan application at https://application.hfldetroit.org/.
HFL does not report your loan to credit reporting agencies. However, if default results in a court judgment, the judgment will be reported to credit reporting agencies.
Loan payments may be made by automatic, monthly deductions from your checking account or by check or cash delivered to the Hebrew Free Loan office in person or by mail. For more information, please go to Current Borrowers page.
HFL does not assist small business applicants with developing business plans. However, the regional Small Business Administration’s SCORE program can provide free mentorship to entrepreneurs on how to prepare a proper business plan.
For small business loans between $20,000 and $100,000, a borrower must submit standard business and projection plans, as well as financial and market analysis. Call or email Joel Hechler at jhechler@hfldetroit.org or at (248) 515-4770 with questions about these types of small business loans.
- For personal loans, HFL runs credit checks for co-signers, but not for borrowers.
- For Marvin I. Danto Small Business Loans, HFL runs credit checks on borrowers and co-signers.
- For the William Davidson Jewish College Loan Program, HFL does not run credit checks.
- For Michigan Jewish organization loans, HFL runs credit checks on co-signers only.
The timing of your check depends on when the properly completed paperwork is received.
HFL works with each loan borrower to create a repayment timeline that works within their cash flow and budget. Depending on the loan amount, repayment is usually between one and four years.
There are different co-signer requirements depending on the type of loan you are applying for. Please see the specific loan requirements under Loan Programs for more information.
HFL relies on co-signers to be sure that loans are repaid if the borrower cannot do so. This is how HFL recycles 99% of our loans to help more people over time.
The maximum loan amount depends on the type of loan you are requesting. The description of each type of loan (Personal, Business, Education and Jewish Organization) provides this information.
HFL provides loans to Michigan residents who are Jewish. Questions regarding Jewish identity are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
The loan process depends on the type of loan you are requesting. The description of each type of loan (Personal, Business, Education and Jewish Organization) provides this information.
