5 Reasons to Refinance Student Loans | ELFI Education Loan Finance

5 Reasons to Refinance Your Student Loans in 2019

August 10, 2016

2019 is proving to be one of the most opportune times to refinance student loans. To explain why, our experts in student loan refinancing and debt consolidation have compiled the top five reasons why borrowers should take advantage of current interest rates and refinance student loans as soon as possible:

Reduced Interest Rates

Current interest rates for student loans may be much lower than when the loan was opened. Therefore, refinancing while rates are low helps ensure that borrowers pay less in interest and over the life of their loan. Borrowers should, therefore, take advantage of lower, more desirable rates while they are offered, as they could change — and rise — at any time.

Lower Monthly Payments

Modifying the repayment term of a student loan by extending the years of repayment may allow borrowers to enjoy lower monthly payments. For instance, if a borrower has already paid five years of a ten-year repayment term, he or she may be able to refinance the outstanding amount to ten or fifteen more years, thereby lowering their monthly payment amount. Borrowers should, however, avoid the temptation to extend the term too much, as longer terms generally increase the overall cost of the loan. Make sure to assess each plan and figure out what makes the best financial sense — right now and in the future.

Benefits Associated with Removing the Co-Signer

Refinancing student loans may allow borrowers to release any co-signers from the loan — an action that can be beneficial to both parties. For co-signers, this releases them from future financial responsibility to that loan, and it may also assist them in improving their own financial profile by reducing the amount of debt in their name. Furthermore, when a co-signer is released from a student loan, primary student loan holders may see an increase in their credit score(s).

Easy-To-Manage Accounts

When student loans are refinanced with refinancing institutions such as Education Loan Finance, the loans are consolidated into one, easy-to-manage loan. This helps borrowers eliminate any confusion related to having multiple balances, due dates, and payment amounts.

Gain a Financial Advocate

Just as in any industry, the level of customer service among banks and lenders varies from one company to another. When considering refinancing with any lending institution, borrowers should research and compare each lending institution’s ability to help customers with any issues regarding their student loan refinancing package. In order to maintain a happy, working relationship, borrowers should talk to the company itself and look for customer reviews that describe the company as one that works for the client, is informative, hard-working, dependable, friendly, and flexible. The personal loan advisors at Education Loan Finance specialize in student loans, and we provide our borrowers with information so they can determine the best solution for their budgets.

Refinance Today

Graduates and professionals alike have always worked hard to obtain their college and professional degrees. That is why Education Loan Finance’s mission includes helping former students better manage and possibly lower the costs associated with their student loans. Saving that money starts today, and the sooner borrowers begin to assess their loans and find a smarter plan, the more money they can save right now — and in the future. Check out Education Loan Finance’s innovative student loan refinancing solutions or apply today.

Why Now is the Time to Refinance

Monthly principal and interest payments on student loans can bury many borrowers. A lower interest rate can help you save thousands of dollars over the life of your loans. Better rates also mean you can pay down that medical school debt faster, also helping you pay less in the long run. The importance of refinancing now is that you can start saving immediately. Depending on what you qualify for through private lenders like ELFI¹, you could lower your interest rate, have a single monthly payment, lock in a fixed interest rate, and more. All helping you to enjoy the fruits of your hard work faster. Another reason to refinance now is that the Federal Reserve Board lowered interest rates twice already this year. This federal interest rate applies to banks—it’s the amount of interest they charge each other to lend federal reserve funds. The benefit for you, as a borrower, is that the less interest banks pay, the less you can potentially pay.

Refinancing Federal vs Private Loans

In our blogs, we regularly discuss the difference between private student loans and government student loans. Keep in mind, the differences between these loans come back into play for refinancing. Regardless of your initial loan type, when you refinance your medical school debt, you take out a new loan with a private lender – ideally at a meaningfully lower interest rate. With this new private loan, you can lose access to federal benefits like:

Income-driven repayment plans
Ability to pause payments through deferment and forbearance programs
Loan forgiveness programs

ELFI has a team of Personal Loan Advisors who can help you decide if refinancing makes sense for your situation. As always, we encourage borrowers to look for student loan refinancing loan options with no origination fees or application fees first.

Downfalls to Refinancing Medical School Debt

Other than losing out on federal borrower benefits, refinancing your loans might not make sense right now. If you already have a low-interest loan, you might not see much savings. To see what you can save, use ELFI’s savings estimator tool. Additionally, some banks charge fees that could potentially offset any interest savings. With ELFI, you’ll never pay:

Application fees
Origination fees
Prepayment penalties

Finally, if you’re still in your residency or fellowship, it might make sense to wait until you have a higher income or better credit score, both of which will impact the interest rates available to you. Or you might considering having a cosigner to help you achieve an even lower rate.

Other Options to Payoff Medical School Debt

While refinancing can lower your monthly payments and get you a better interest rate, there are other options for lowering your medical school debt. Consider overpaying your monthly amount. This option isn’t realistic for all borrowers, but if you’re savvy enough to live simply or lucky enough to apply a spouse’s paycheck, you can quickly pay down that medical school debt. Some graduates might even have the option of taking out a zero-interest (or ultra low-interest) loan from relatives or friends. Once the student loan is repaid, you can put the excess funds toward other debts or investments.

Understanding Your Loan Refinance Options

It is important to explore all your options when opening an initial student loan. It's equally as important to explore the best refinancing options for reducing your medical school debt. If you need help navigating those options, contact ELFI. As pioneers in the space, our management team has over 30 years of expertise in student loans and student loan refinancing. ¹Subject to credit approval. Terms and conditions apply. Note: Links to other websites are provided as a convenience only. A link does not imply SouthEast Bank’s sponsorship or approval of any other site. SouthEast Bank does not control the content of these sites.

2019-10-16

Can I Refinance My Student Loans and Go Back to School?

Many Americans, at one time or another, have thought about their student loans as they contemplate whether or not they can afford to go back to school and pursue additional higher education. Maybe you were able to partially pay your way through college, but couldn’t quite close the gap, so you turned to federal student loans or private loans to make ends meet. You may have been accepted into your first-choice school and you made the financial leap using student loans to fund the degree of your dreams. Whatever the case may be, you’re now in a situation where you need to change your current student loan structure in order to go back to school and take the next step in your education. Student loan refinancing may be the best option to help you lower your monthly payments and allow you to go back to school with financial peace of mind.

**So I Can Refinance My Student Loans and Go Back to School - But Why Should I?**

The short answer to the question “Can I refinance my student loans and go back to school?” is often a “yes”. There are lots of options for dealing with student debt, and those options change depending on the amount of your current student loan debt, whether your current student loan is federal or private, and what you’re looking to achieve through student loan refinancing. This means that no matter what your financial situation, you can almost certainly take advantage of a student loan refinance through a reputable private lenders such as ELFI¹ provided you can meet credit criteria established by each lender. One advisor stipulates that you should only take out new student loans that won’t overburden your financial situation by taking on too much debt or “overleveraging”. Overleveraging means taking on more debt than your income can comfortably pay for, as measured by financial ratios such as “debt-to-income ratio,” or DTI. If you already owe a lot on your current student loans and have the financial means to afford new student loans, then you might want to consider refinancing the student loans you already have to make room for the new monthly debt payments you will have on the additional student loans you take out. That’s good news for graduates who shelled out a pretty penny for their undergraduate degree. In general, the best reasons to refinance your student loans - if you’re taking on new debt to go back to school - would be to:

Get a lower interest rate (and potentially lower monthly payments)
To take advantage of new federal or private loan programs that may be financially suitable to you, or
To consolidate the student loans you already have with a single, private lender rather than dealing with multiple lenders on your existing student loans.

Is a Student Loan Refinancing My Best Option?

Student loan refinancing does have some benefits that other options, such as debt consolidation programs, would not (like allowing you to release a cosigner from your previous loans). One big benefit you’ll likely receive from student loan refinancing is a lower monthly payment. The federal student loan debt consolidation program, unlike student loan refinancing with private lenders, averages the interest rates of your existing federal loans and rounds up the weighted average interest rate by an eighth of a point, so while the interest rates of some of your loans may go down, others will go up to meet the average set in the consolidation process. That means that your interest costs likely won’t change all that much, if at all. There are many reasons to explore refinancing your student loans, including improving your interest rate, payment timeline, or ability to take on new loans with the money you could save each month. Other benefits include releasing a cosigner from one or more loans, getting better customer service or benefits than you currently get from your lender, or having the convenience of making a single monthly payment instead of multiple payments. Consider using an industry-leading private lender such as ELFI for a fast loan prequalification experience (in as little 2 minutes!) that can get you the student loan funding you need.

What Factors Should I Consider When Deciding on a Student Loan Refinance?

A few of the factors most graduates need to consider when refinancing their student loans have to do with not only payment size, interest rates and terms, but also the type of loan they will refinance into and their own personal financial situation. Keep in mind how this may improve your ability to get better terms or rates on your current loan or on any new student loans you end up pursuing after your refinance in order to go back to school. For example, many graduates considering a student loan refinance in order to go back to school don’t know that there is no federal student loan refinancing program. Both private and federal student loans can be refinanced with a private lender, but neither federal nor private loans can be refinanced into new federal loans. What you started with is what you get when it comes to your federal student loan - unless you refinance with a private lender. Federal student loan rates are set by the US congress and mandated by law - you can’t get a better deal or any rate concessions the way you might be able to do with a private lender. Another big factor when it comes to deciding on a student loan refinance is your personal financial situation. While this is often the first question that graduates looking at a student loan refinance ask themselves, it should be asked again - can you afford new student loans to go back to school, even if you get the refinancing terms and rates you want for your current student loans?

How Do I Choose the Right Time to Refinance My Student Loans?

Some financial experts and financial bloggers, such as NerdWallet, suggest refinancing the minute you have the credit score and income to support getting a lower interest rate, regardless of whether you want to go back to school and take on new loans in the process. Beyond this, and the obvious timing issues presented by deciding on whether, or when, to go back to school, be aware that your income, credit score and debt situation will have an overall impact on whether you can get the student loan refinance terms you want. Making sure to weigh all your options and pick a reliable lender who can help walk you through all your loan options. ELFI’s personal Loan Advisors are trained to help you navigate this process and to simplify it for you.

How Do I Choose the Right Student Loan Refinancing Option?

While there are many reputable student loan refinance providers available, expert and impartial voices like NerdWallet and Student Loan Sherpa agree that ELFI (Education Loan Finance) is one of the best. With multiple loan options, flexible repayment structures, and best-in-class customer service, ELFI can make your dreams of refinancing your student loans and going back to school a reality. ELFI also goes a step beyond and provides each borrower a personal loan advisor to help them navigate the process.

Final Thoughts

No matter what your degree field or career aspirations, most graduates will be faced with the choice of whether to refinance their student loans, when to do it, and how to do it in a way that fits their lifestyle. Using a reputable student loan refinance company like ELFI can help you pick the best student loan refinancing option for you, especially if you intend to take out new loans and go back to school. Check ELFI out today for the best and latest in student loan refinance options and get on the road to the career of your dreams! ¹Subject to credit approval. Terms and conditions apply. Note: Links to other websites are provided as a convenience only. A link does not imply SouthEast Bank’s sponsorship or approval of any other site. SouthEast Bank does not control the content of these sites.

2019-10-09

Customer Review of Refinancing Student Loans With ELFI

Meet Daniel, a college graduate with an entrepreneurial spirit. He started his own tutoring business five years ago, and with the burden of student debt weighing him down, he decided to refinance his student loans this past year. After applying for student loan refinancing with about 10 different companies, Daniel decided to go with ELFI. Here's why. He wanted to make sure that he could get the best terms that he could. His new terms with ELFI saved him $162/month, and he's paying his loans for 5 fewer years. His loans were also consolidated into one monthly payment. He wanted a company that matches you with one representative that assists you through the entire process. Amanda Scott, an ELFI Personal Loan Advisor, helped Daniel through the entire process of refinancing his student loans. As he says, "she was the very first phone call and the very last call I had with Education Loan Finance." By refinancing his student loans with ELFI, Daniel freed up additional money every month that he can now use to provide for his growing family, fund the construction of his new home, save for retirement, and support his tutoring business.

"It's a relief knowing that I have refinanced these loans – and that I can now go on with the rest of my life."

Interested in seeing how much you could save by refinancing your student loans? Consult our student loan refinancing calculator.*

Learn More About Student Loan Refinancing With ELFI

*This is a paid testimonial. Education Loan Finance is a nationwide student loan debt consolidation program offered by SouthEast Bank, which is based in Tennessee. ELFI is designed to assist borrowers through consolidating outstanding loans into one single loan that effectively lowers your cost of education debt and/or makes repayment very simple. Subject to credit approval. See Terms & Conditions at www.elfi.com/terms. The interest rate and monthly payment for a variable rate loan may increase after closing. Interest rates will be based on the term of your loan, your financial history, and other factors, including your cosigner’s (if any) financial history. For example, a 10-year loan with a fixed rate of 6% would have 120 payments of $11.00 per $1,000 borrowed. Rates are subject to change.