See our LendKey Student Loan Refinancing Review to pay less interest, pick a payment that fits your budget. Get rate estimate without affecting your credit score.
LendKey is a great way to refinance your college debt and pay it off quickly. LendKey works by offering a marketplace platform that connects customers with credit unions and banks to help refinance student loans. The application is the same as any lender, so you will have to fill out basic loan information and will be subject to a credit check. Also, instead of just getting one quote, you will receive a couple from lenders that aren’t as well known as the big name banks. Continue reading to learn more about LendKey.
(Click here to learn more at LendKey)
LendKey In a Nutshell
Loan Terms | 5, 7, 10, 15 or 20 years |
Loan Amounts | Undergraduate: $5,000 – $125,000 Graduate or combined: $5,000 – $175,000 |
Loan Types | Variable & Fixed |
Cosigner | Yes |
Autopay Discount | 0.25% |
How LendKey Works
Start by heading over to the LendKey website to see how much you can start saving by refinancing your student loans with them. All you have to do is fill out a few questions online, and you will be able to access loans from LendKey’s network of lenders.
Once there, you can see your rates that can be adjusted by loan amount, credit score and location. You can even choose a loan term that works for you with all other variables adjusting accordingly. The whole process is online, including submitting the required documents.
LendKey Special Features
LendKey has made the time-consuming and confusing loan process much simpler on their easy-to-use platform that lets you find, customize and fund your loan through its network of credit unions and community banks.
Simplify Your Finances
Partner lenders can refinance both federal and private student loans, including graduate loans, into one convenient low rate.
Compare Multiple Offers At Once
With LendKey, you don’t have to remember multiple usernames and passwords, open up tons of tabs and windows to compare loans, or familiarize yourself with different user interfaces. Its student loan refinancing platform lets you check your rates with multiple lenders all at once, making the process easy and fairly painless.
Cosigner Release
With LendKey you can secure a low interest rate with a cosigner, then cut them loose, but only by proving you’re responsible. Once you’ve made 12 consecutive, full, on-time payments, your cosigner can ditch you.
LendKey Rates & Fees
Because LendKey does not partner with big banks, the company has more flexibility when it comes to interest rates and plans. Expect number that are going to be a lot lower than industry average. Setting up automatic payments will knock off an additional 0.25% your interest rate. If you hit your repayment period and pay 10%, you will get 1% off your interest rate, which is also tax deductible.
Application Fee | None |
Origination Fee | None |
Prepayment Penalty Fee | None |
Late Fee | $5 – $15, depending on the lender |
LendKey Requirements
In order to refinance your student loans with LendKey, you must meet these requirements:
- Have a steady gross monthly income of at least $2,000. If you have a cosigner, they must have a steady gross monthly income of at least $2,000, and you must be currently employed.
- Graduate of an approved degree program.
- Be an existing member of a participating credit union, or, become a member of a participating credit union during the application process, prior to final loan approval.
- Be a United States citizen or permanent resident.
- Meet all underwriting criteria for loan approval.
Additionally. LendKey cannot refinance if you live in Maine, Nevada, North Dakota, Rhode Island or West Virginia.
LendKey Limitations
LendKey is a great platform but it by no means perfect. Here are a couple of things that LendKey could improve on.
Limited to Partner Lenders
LendKey has an impressive list of lenders in their arsenal. However, a large part of what makes them great gets taken away when you take into consideration lenders’ eligibility requirements, and a lof that boils down to where you live.
Also, you won’t see offers from non-partners, like SoFi or Earnest, which could give you better terms. If you want the lowest interest rate possible, then you should include national banks and online lenders in your search.
Extra Research
Yes, LendKey matches you with lenders, but the platform doesn’t necessarily give you all the pertinent details about each one. Before you commit to an offer, take the time to find out about the lender’s requirements, terms, conditions and all the fine print.
Refinancing Federal Student Loans
Before you turn your federal into a private one, be sure you know what you could potentially miss out on. If you decide to do this, you won’t be eligible for federal income-based repayment plans or loan forgiveness programs.
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Bottom Line
With LendKey, you have alternatvies to big name banks by matching you with local ones and credit unions. Through this platform, you will be able to customize your options, and if you are not satisfied, you can get your money back within 30 days of opening your account.
(Click here to learn more at LendKey)
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