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EDvestinU student loan refinancing review
Rates as low as 4.25% on your student debt with this no-fee, nonprofit lender.
EDvestinU offers both refinancing and consolidation for public and private student loans. Rates are competitive, starting as low as 4.58% after an autopay discount. You even have the option of choosing a fixed or graduated repayment schedule. Sound like what you’re looking for? Find out if EDvestinU refinancing is right for you.
4.25% to 7.85%
APR
$200,000
Max. Loan Amount
700
Min. Credit Score
Details
| Product Name | EDvestinU Consolidation & Refinancing Program |
|---|---|
| Minimum Loan Amount | $7,500 |
| Max. Loan Amount | $200,000 |
| APR | 4.25% to 7.85% |
| Interest Rate Type | Variable |
| Minimum Loan Term | 5 years |
| Maximum Loan Term | 20 years |
| Requirements | 675 credit score, $30,000 annual income, US citizen or permanent resident, enrolled at least half time at a degree-granting school. |
First, am I eligible?
To be eligible for student loan refinancing or consolidation with EDvestinU, you or your cosigner must:
- Have a credit score of 700 or higher
- Have a debt-to-income ratio of 43% or lower
- Have attended an eligible degree-granting school
- Make at least $30,000 annually for debts under $100,000 or $50,000 for debts over $100,000
- Be a US citizen or permanent resident
- Be older than 18
How does refinancing with EDvestinU work?
While EDvestinU is a nonprofit lender, refinancing with them works like almost any other company: You take out a loan that covers the cost of your current student loans, with more favorable rates and terms. EDVestinU allows you to refinance and consolidate both federal and private student loans, so you aren’t limited to a number or type of loans to qualify.
It can be a bit slow, however. Filling out the application takes about 30 minutes. You’ll receive an initial credit decision right after submitting the application. After that, you can expect another week of uploading documents and processing.
It takes a minimum 30 days for EDvestinU’s refinancing loan to pay off your existing student loans
What happens if I refinance my federal loans with EDvestinU?
Unlike some student loan refinancing providers, EDvestinU allows you to refinance or consolidate your federal student loans. However, this might not be a great idea.
While EDvestinU offers competitive interest rates, they still may not be as low as your federal loan’s rates. On top of this, you’ll give up the benefits that come with federal student loans like a variety of income-based repayment plans and forgiveness programs.
How much will I pay to refinance?
Ideally, you’ll save rather than paying extra. EDvestinU doesn’t charge any application or origination fees. It also doesn’t charge prepayment penalties if you decide to pay off your loan early.
Paying no fees doesn’t necessarily mean your loan is free — it just could be less than your current interest rates. You have two types of interest rates to choose from: Variable and fixed. Variable-rate loans come with interest rates that can go up and down over the life of your loan. They can potentially be lower than fixed-rate loans, which never change, but there’s more risk involved.
Variable APRs range from 4.51% to 9.26% with an autopay discount. Fixed-rate APRs range from 4.53% - 7.20% with autopay.
EDvestinU’s variable interest rates are based on the one month LIBOR rates, an international baseline that many other student loan lenders use to determine variable interest rates. They’re subject to change each month.
Does EDvestinU offer discounts?
Yes, EdVestinU offers a 0.25% discount if you sign up for automatic repayments through its servicer Granite State Management and Resources. This discount is standard for most student loan providers.
What are my repayment options?
With EDvestinU, you have two repayment options: Fixed repayment and graduated repayment.
- Fixed repayment is what you get with any other type of personal loan: Each month you pay the same amount until you’ve paid off your loan.
- Graduated repayments start with low repayments each month and increase every two years.
Fixed repayments are generally better for those who have already made headway in their careers, while graduated repayments tend to be best for those who’ve just entered the work force. You can choose your repayment option when you set your account with EDvestinU’s loan servicer Granite State Management and Resources.
Compare more refinancing options
Top reasons to consider EDvestinU
- Competitive rates. EDvestinU’s nonprofit status helps its rates hover in federal loan territory.
- Graduated repayment option. If you’re just starting in your career, you can sign up for a repayment plan that increases your monthly repayments over time instead of giving you the same repayment each month.
- Diploma not required. As long as you used your student loans to attend an eligible school, your loans are eligible for refinancing.
- In-house servicer. EDvestinU’s loan servicer is also a part of the New Hampshire Higher Education Loan Corporation (NHHELCO), meaning that your information won’t be shared with a different company.
- Forbearance. You can pause your loan for 12 months without having to give a reason — and 12 more if you can prove economic hardship.
- Cosigner release. You can take your cosigner off your loan after you’ve made at least 36 months of consistent, on-time repayments, and meet the EDvestinU’s credit and income requirements for a sole borrower.
- No origination or prepayment fees. Refinancing your student loans through EDvestinU won’t cost any fees upfront or if you decide to pay off your loan early to save on interest.
Why you might want to look elsewhere
- Long turnaround time. It takes at least 30 days between submitting your application and when your funds are disbursed.
- Lots of documentation required. EDvestinU asks to see more documentation than is typical of other student loan refinancing providers. In fact, gathering documentation can take the most time when applying.
- Small company. While EDvestinU’s customer service is strong, the small number of employees means that there’s a limit to how much it can do.
- Almost no online reviews. It’s hard to get an idea of others’ experiences with EDvestinU without reading customer reviews — or even a Better Business Bureau (BBB) rating.
What do borrowers say about EDvestinU?
It’s hard to say: You’ll get crickets if you search for customer reviews of EDvestinU. It has no BBB page, no Trustpilot page and even rarely comes up on usually-chatty online forums like Reddit.
This can mean a couple of things. EDvestinU’s simply not as popular as other providers. Or it could also mean customers have had a largely neutral experience — nothing exciting enough to praise or complain about. The one comment we could find related to student loans mentioned that they’d gotten a mediocre rate on a private student loan from EDvestinU and were interested in refinancing. Other than that: radio silence
What to expect when signing up
EDvestinU’s application is a bit more involved than most personal loan applications. The most difficult part about EDvestinU is gathering together all of the required documents.
Required documents and information
Prepare to hand over the following information and documents during the application process.
- A state-issued ID. A driver’s license or passport should work.
- Income verification for you or your cosigner. This can include pay stubs or tax returns.
- Information about your current loans. This includes: How many loans you have, how much you owe, what interest rates you’re paying and contact information for your lender and loan servicer. EDvestinU will ask for account numbers related to your student loans to ensure the refinancing funds are paid to the correct loan servicers.
- Personal references. EDvestinU requires two personal references for each applicant.
- A 30-day payoff amount. You can either reach out to your current lender and ask for a thirty-day payoff statement — how much you’re going to owe in 30 days — or contact EDvestinU’s Education Resources team for help with this by calling 855-887-5430.
How to apply for refinancing through EDvestinU
- Go to EDvestinU’s website and scroll down until you see Consolidation. Click Apply Now.
- Review and choose either the fixed-rate or variable-rate option before clicking Apply Now again under the type of rate you would like.
- Fill out information about your school and whether you would like to apply with a cosigner before hitting Am I eligible?
- If you’re eligible, create an account and start filling out your application.
- Wait to hear if you’ve been conditionally approved based on you or your cosigner’s credit, pending documentation. This should take around one minute.
- Gather and submit all documentation to EDvestinU.
- Wait for EDvestinU’s formal interest rate offer. If you accept the offer, carefully review and sign EDvestinU’s promissory note.
- Wait two or three days before confirming that you want to go through with your loan or cancel your loan with no penalty.
- Wait for your funds to be disbursed directly to your lenders on your disbursement date.
All EDvestinU refinancing loans take at least 30 days from submitting your application to the disbursement of your funds. That’s because EDvestinU sets a disbursement date of 30 days after it receives your application. It does this so your loan amount is as accurate as possible — that’s why it also asks for your 30-day payoff amount.
Step-by-step application with screenshots
More about EDvestinU
EDvestinU is the private student lending branch of the New Hampshire Higher Education Loan Corporation (NHHELCO), a nonprofit that generates funds for college students across the US.
The NHHELCO network also includes student loan servicer Granite State Management & Resources, student loan backer the New Hampshire Higher Education Assistance Foundation (NHHEAF) Network and Center for College Planning, a nonprofit that helps students and families throughout the college application and financial process.
EDvestinU works with CampusDoor to administer its application system.
In addition to refinancing, EDvestinU also offers private undergraduate and graduate student loans, and even scholarships. It awards two $1,500 scholarships through a lottery system every three months. Both college students and high school seniors are eligible to enter as long as they attend or plan on attending a Title IV school.
Bottom line
EDvestinU student loan refinancing can take a while, but its nonprofit rates could help you save in the long-run. Since the application is more involved than some others, you’ll likely have to reach out to customer service at least once with questions.
Not sure which lender you want to refinance with? Read our guide to student loan refinancing to find more options and learn more about how refinancing works.