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Earnest Student Loan Refinancing Review: Is Earnest Student Loan Legit or Scam

Paying off incurred student loans after school has always been challenging for most students. This is because of the high interest accumulated over the years.

Earnest student loan Refinancing is one option that offers students an easier way out, unlike other student loan options.

It is for people who need private student loan financing or can refinance their current debt into a new loan with a lower interest rate and/or monthly payment.

This student loan has a lower-than-average interest rate flexible repayment option, allowing borrowers to set their monthly payments and loan terms for up to 20 years.

This post will provide you with the information and all you need to know about refinancing student loans with Earnest.

You can navigate the table of contents below to get an overview of all this post entails.

Earnest student loan refinancing review

Table of contents

Earnest Student Loan Refinancing Reviews

Like every other loan option, Earnest is a refinance option offering student loans (Undergraduate and Graduate loans), personal loans, and even private loans.

Earnest is owned by Navient, a student loan servant sued for questionable service practices, including pressure on borrowers with difficulties obtaining permissive payment plans.

However, Earnest acts as a separate unit within the company and lends its loans rather than passing its loan to a third party.

Check out 21 Full Scholarships To Pay Off Student Loans

Why Earnest Student Loan Refinancing?

The major reason you should consider this refinancing Loan option is that it gives you the flexibility to set your monthly payment and loan term between five and 20 years; most other lenders set deadlines that do not allow you to choose the appropriate time for your money.

Also, Earnest has one of the lowest fixed and variable rate ranges ever. The only disadvantage is that borrowers cannot use the co-site.

Earnest also refinances major PLUS loans, but the lender is not an option if you want to transfer your loan to your child, as you can with CommonBond and SoFi.

However, if you are only looking for competitive pricing to get student loans without using a participating site, Earnest is a good choice with the flexibility it can offer parents.

What are the Available Earnest Student Loans?

There are basically two student loan refinancing made available by Earnest for students. They are;

  • Undergraduate student Loan
  • Graduate student Loan.

Let’s talk about them briefly.

Undergraduate Student Loans

This student loan option is for undergraduate students. So, if you are a full-time or part-time undergraduate student, you can get this Earnest student loan independently or with a cosigner.

You can choose your repayment years from 5-13 years. Note your interest rate will be assigned based on your repayment term and the credit history of you and/or your cosigner.

4.39% to 12.78%

2.74% to 11.44%

$1,000 up to the total cost of attendance

Five, seven, 10, 12, or 15 years

Graduate Student Loans

On the other hand, Earnest’s graduate student loans are for students who are done with their undergraduate programs and ready to kick start a graduate degree program like MBA, medical, or law school program.

4.39% to 10.99%

2.74% to 9.89%

$1,000 up to the total cost of attendance

Five, seven, 10, 12, or 15 years

Other student loan options from Earnest include:

  • Undergraduate refinancing
  • Graduate refinancing
  • Business, medical, or law school loans
  • Business, medical, or law school refinancing
  • Parent loan refinancing

See Also: Pros and Cons of Student Loans in 2024

Who is Eligible for Earnest Student Loan Refinancing?

To apply for this student loan, some criteria will qualify you before you can apply, aside from the Pros and Cons of Student Loans.

These qualities are not similar to other student loan refinancing options, so you must carefully read this session word for word.

First, to qualify for an Earnest Student loan, you must manage money well. Aside from that, other criteria include the following:

  • Must be a U.S. citizen or possess a 10-year, non-conditional green card.
  • You must have a stable source of income.
  • As a borrower, you don’t spend extravagantly, meaning you spend less than you earn.
  • You must not have any record of bankruptcy.
  • Must have attended a school authorized to receive federal aid
  • You must have at least two months of savings in the bank.
  • Don’t have more than two credit card debt
  • Must have only a 650 credit score

Note that this loan is not for Delaware, Kentucky, or Nevada borrowers. Variable rates aren’t available to borrowers in Alaska, Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Ohio, Tennessee, and Texas.

What are the Loan Fees and Discounts?

In applying for Earnest student loans, there is no fee attached. This means the application is free, even the prepayment and late payment all free.

Talking about the Discount rate, as a borrower, you will be entitled to a 0.25% interest rate discount for any Auto Pay program you enroll for.

Rates and Terms Involve in Earnest Student Loan Refinancing 

The interest rate is one thing that differs among lenders. Some lenders charge a high-interest rate, while some, like Earnest, charge low-interest rates.

Basically, Earnest charges have two rates, fixed-rate and Variable rate. Fixed-rate loans range from 3.47% -7.72%, while variable-rate loans range from 2.41% to 6.99%.

The maximum loan rate for less than ten years is 8.95%. For loan terms over 10 to 15 years, the maximum interest rate is 9.95%. Long loans have a maximum interest rate of 11.95%.

Also, this refinancing option uses an accurate pricing model. This means you can end up with a 7.5-year loan term, which you probably won’t see with other lenders.

However, the minimum loan amount is $5,000, and the maximum is 500,000, and loans of up to 100% of the school’s certified cost of attendance are available. There is no application, origination, or late fee. A 0.25% autopay discount is available.

Other Terms and conditions include;

  • Forbearance means that a borrower can postpone payments in three-month increments for up to 12 months.
  • A borrower can skip one month’s worth of payments every 12 months — one if they’re making monthly payments or two if they’re paying biweekly.
  • There is room for an extension of the payment date by seven days. So as a borrower, you can push back the due date on an individual payment or change their autopay date through their online Earnest account.
  • There’s no option to add a cosigner, but refinancing removes the original cosigner.
  • Once the borrower dies, the payments will no longer be made.

Earnest Student Loan Refinancing Repayment Options

As a student, you have four repayment options available for you to use.

The first is to make full payment. This option involves you making the full monthly payment while still in school.

The second option is to pay only the accrued interest while still in school. Either you make the payment before graduation or nine months after graduation.

The third option is to pay flat monthly payments of $25 while in school and for the nine months following graduation.

Finally, you can choose to make a deferred payment. This involves you not making any payment while in school and for the first nine months after graduation.

Note these options aren’t for you if you are an Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, North Dakota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Washington resident.

How to Apply for Earnest Student Loan

You can apply for Earnest Student Loan online with your laptop or phone. Some of the requirements include the following:

  • Your name, address, and phone number.
  • The highest degree you’ve achieved when you graduated and the school you attended.
  • Your annual income; your monthly rent or mortgage payments; and the sum of your cash, retirement, and investment accounts.
  • Your email address to create an account.
  • Whether you’re a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
  • Your Social Security number and consent for Earnest to make a soft credit inquiry, which won’t affect your credit score.
  • Indicate whether you’re currently employed or not. If not, you’ll be prompted to share if you have a job lined up, along with that job’s information.

Earnest Private Student Loans

Earnest is also offering undergraduate and graduate private student loans. They have highly competitive rates and terms for their undergraduate loans, as well as flexible repayment plans.

One of the best features of their private student loans is that they offer a nine-month grace period after you graduate before you have to start making payments – one of the longest we’ve seen.

Currently, the Private Student Loans Fixed Rates are 4.39%-12.78%, while the Variable Rates are 2.74% – 11.44%.

Check out these 13 Best student loan refinance companies in 2024 | Apply

Who Shouldn’t Refinance Their Student Loans?

Refinancing a federal loan might not be right for everyone. If you are employing a repayment program for a Direct Consolidation Loan with the federal government for your student loan payments, you would no longer have access to these programs with a private refinanced loan.

In addition, graduates working towards loan forgiveness with a federal program, such as Public Service Loan Forgiveness, would also not want to refinance for a new interest rate, as they would no longer be eligible for forgiveness. 

FAQs On Earnest Student Loan Refinancing

How does Earnest Refinance work?

If you refinance with Earnest, you’ll get a . 25% interest rate reduction — regardless of whether you choose a fixed or variable rate — as long as you have autopay enabled, automatically deducting your payments from your account each month. Flexible repayment options.

How often can you refinance with Earnest?

Even if you’re already an Earnest customer, as long as you’re in good standing, you can apply to refinance your loan with Earnest to switch between fixed and variable-rate loans every six months.

What happens when you refinance a student loan?

How does student loan refinancing work? Student loan refinancing allows you to gather all or some of your loans into one new loan, often at a lower interest rate that may help you pay less over time or provide you with a longer repayment term that will lower your monthly payment.

Does Earnest allow cosigners for refinancing?

At this time, Earnest does not offer the option to apply with a cosigner for every applicant applying for student loan refinancing or personal loans.

How long are Earnest student loans?

Earnest private student loans offer nine months, but either way, you’ll have to start making monthly loan payments at the end of your grace period.

References

  • help.earnest.com – Can I refinance my current Earnest student loan refinance again? | Student Loan Refinancing
  • www.nerdwallet.com – Earnest Reviews: Student Loan Refinancing and Private Student Loans
  • www.moneyunder30.com – Earnest Review – Student Loans Refinancing Becomes Easier

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Ajah Excel is a team growth and performance expert with over nine years of experience in blogging and personal development. He leads a team of 36 crazy, restless innovators with an enviable work culture at Silicon Africa Technologies Limited – a fast-rising tech firm from the SouthEast. Excel is the founder of Kiiky.com and WriterGig. He is also the co-organizer of TEDx Ikenegbu and convener of Social Media Fest. He is a vibrant learner who yearns to share his knowledge to educate and inspire young Africans. He has a B.Tech in Information Management Technology with certifications in growth hacking, effective communication, leadership, team, and personal development, to mention a few. Ajah Anayochukwu Excel is a passionate public speaker, creative writer, and brand storyteller.

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