<p>They ask for </p>
<p>"TWO REFERENCES FROM HOME LOCALITY OTHER THAN RELATIVES OR STUDENTS"</p>
<p>and I have absolutely no idea what it means. Do they want professional references? Are the references liable in any way? And most importantly, why do they want references?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance. I really appreciate it.</p>
<p>Basically just people who live nearby and know you like neighbors, friends of your parents, etc. This is probably so they can track you down later if your loan notices get returned (students/young adults tend to move frequently and sometimes forget to update their lenders). I think my D used relatives (with different last names).</p>