Attending college should be a life-changing experience for many, making new friends and accelerating your career prospect along the way.
But for many, student loans can pose quite a concern, and repaying them can be a demanding process.
You may want to refinance your student loan to benefit from potentially lower interest rates than your previous loan.
Another option you may want to consider is extending the repayment terms of your existing loan to help lower the monthly payments inflicted by your studies. This method will mean you pay more interest over time, but you will also have more money to spend each month on living.
We’re going to look at ten of the best providers for helping refinance your student loan.
1. College Ave
College Ave provides a great deal of flexibility when it comes to refinancing options. You can choose a low fixed or variable interest rate loan with this provider. To start, they offer two options:
- Make full payments immediately
- Make full payments of interest-only payments for your first two years
Loan terms are available for any number of years between five and 15 years. Refinancing options are available on loans between $5,000 and $250,000. College Ave only operates online so all payments will be made via online banking. The average credit score for a College Ave lender is over 750, so keep this in mind when applying.
2. Citizens Bank
Citizens Bank offer a more traditional banking service, with both branch and online options when it comes to seeking help. Dealing with this provider is quick and easy and you can have a quote for refinancing your student loan in less than five minutes.
Additionally, Citizens Bank provides refinancing options for students who didn’t graduate from college. This is excellent as many other providers do not offer this service.
3. Credible
Credible is a completely online service that helps specialize in student loans and refinances. All you have to do is fill out an online application and you will receive a number of offers from lenders to help you compare which is the best option for you.
The process is free and will take less than five minutes, making it ideal for your hectic lifestyles.
4. Laurel Road
Laurel Road will help you find a loan with the best interest rates for you in just minutes. They offer both fixed and variable rates, starting from as low as 2.50% APR. Dependent on your credit rating you may be approved for repayment options spread over up to 20 years. Making monthly payments much more manageable.
5. MEFA
MEFA stands for Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority, but don’t worry you won’t need to live or have studied in Massachusetts to qualify for this finance scheme. MEFA claims that they help their average customer save an average of $191 per month.
To qualify, you simply need to be in good standing with all of your student loans, making sure all payments have been made on time for the past 12 months prior to your application. The minimum loan amount is $10,000.
6. CommonBond
According to CommonBond, their lenders save an average of $24,046 on their student loan refinances and benefit from one of the higher refinance maximums of anywhere up to $500,000.
If your credit score is above 750 then you will probably be eligible for their re-finance schemes. For all loans you can choose between a variable rate, fixed-rate, or even a hybrid rate which starts off as fixed and ultimately becomes a variable rate after five years on the scheme.
7. SoFi
SoFi is ideal for helping refinance federal and private student loans. Unlike many other lenders, SoFi has no upper limit on their total cover, meaning you can re-finance higher fees than many other lenders out there.
There is a minimum however, that sits at $5,000. Their average lender has a credit score of 774, so please consider this before applying.
8. Earnest
If you’re a graduate with a high credit score, then Earnest is an excellent option for you. Their average customer’s credit score sits above 700. However, they do provide an excellent range of refinancing fees, ranging from $5,000, right up to $500,000.
Both fixed and variable rates are offered through Earnest so you can select whichever best suits your current situation.
Key Takeaways
As you can see, there are many refinancing schemes out there to help you pay back your student loan. These are just some of our favorite options.
Just remember that to meet most refinance schemes you will need to meet the following criteria:
- A credit score above 660
- History of making payments on time
- Regular income
- College degree
*There are ways around this, as some lenders will allow co-signing*
We hope you have enjoyed this article.
