Applicant Eligibility

• Applicants must be a U.S. citizen.
• Applicants must be age of majority in your state of residence.
• Applicants must be the borrower on at least one outstanding, fully-disbursed private education loan, federal-backed education loan, or Parent Loan.
• Applicants must be the borrower on the loan application and on the promissory note.
• Applicants with a bachelor’s degree or higher may be eligible to refinance their student loans.
• Applicants must provide proof of income.
• Applicants must be able to meet the borrower credit requirements.

Cosigner Eligibility

• Cosigners must be a U.S. citizen.
• Cosigners must be age of majority in your state of residence
• Cosigners must co-sign on both the loan application and on the promissory note.
• Cosigners must provide proof of income.
• Cosigners must be able to meet the cosigner credit requirements.

Loan Limits

• PenFed has a minimum loan amount of $7,500 and a maximum loan amount of $300,000.

Terms

• Fixed Rate Loan Terms: 5 years/60 monthly payments, 8 years/96 monthly payments, 12 years/144 monthly payments or 15 years/180 monthly payments.
• Variable Rate Loan Terms: 5 years/60 monthly payments, 8 years/96 monthly payments, 12 years/144 monthly payments or 15 years/180 monthly payments.

1. What is student loan refinancing?
Student loan refinancing is the process of taking one or more student loans and consolidating them into one new loan. The refinanced loan will often include new terms, such as a lower interest rate, a different monthly payment and a new repayment term length.

2. Who should refinance?
Refinancing is a great solution for working graduates who have high interest rates on current outstanding student loans or who need to lower their monthly payments. Most borrowers who refinance determine they can save on interest costs over the life of their loans by lowering their interest rate and/or shortening their loan term. Other borrowers choose to extend their loan term in order to reduce their monthly payment, even though this may result in higher lifetime interest costs. Borrowers should be aware that by refinancing, they may lose certain benefits offered by federal student loan programs, such as deferments, forbearance, income-based repayment plans and pay-off of student loans in event of death or total disability.

3. What loans can I include in my refinancing?
PenFed will refinance federal, private, and Parent PLUS student loans. When you refinance with us, we consolidate all of your loans into one easy monthly payment. Spouses may also refinance their loans together, or one partner may "take over" their spouse's loan. When a spouse “takes over” another spouse’s loan, an affidavit (provided by PenFed) must be signed to acknowledge the transfer of the student loans.

4. Where can I find my rates?
Use our Find My Rate tool to calculate your exact interest rate, compute your monthly payment, and compare lifetime interest savings all without completing a profile or submitting to a credit check.

5. How does applying with a cosigner help my application?
Although you may have good credit yourself, applying with a cosigner who also has good credit and strong income can ensure that you meet our credit criteria. This will increase the likelihood that you will pass our initial credit screening process and can provide you with a lower interest rate on your student loan refinance. PenFed will use the higher of the two credit scores for qualification purposes which means you can max out on savings.

Please note that when an application has a cosigner, the borrower and the cosigner will both a) jointly apply for credit; and, (b) be jointly liable for the requested loan. PenFed borrowers may request a cosigner release after 12 months of consecutive, timely payments are made and a re-evaluation is completed on the borrower's financial and credit profile. Note: this does not mean the borrower would have to reapply.

For loans up to $150,000: you'll need a cosigner if your credit score is between 670 and 699 and/or your annual income is between $25,000 and $41,999. Your cosigner must have annual income of at least $42,000 and a credit score of 720 or higher.

For loans exceeding $150,000: you'll need a cosigner if your credit score is between 670 and 724 and/or your annual income is between $25,000 and $49,999. Cosigners need annual income of at least $50,000 and a credit score of 725 or higher.

6. How long is my cosigner jointly responsible for my loan?
Your cosigner is jointly responsible for your loan for the life of the loan so make sure you choose wisely and can manage all the payments. If you miss a payment, it will damage your cosigner's credit.

7. How much can I borrow?
Our minimum loan amount is $7,500, and the maximum is $300,000.

8. Are there any fees associated with this loan?
There are no pre-payment penalties, origination, or application fees with PenFed.

9. Can I refinance my student loan while I'm still in school?
You must have graduated with a bachelor's degree or higher and be currently employed in order to be eligible for student loan refinancing with PenFed.

10. What are the income requirements?
For loans up to $150,000: the annual income requirement for a solo application is $42,000, or $25,000 with a cosigner. Your cosigner must have annual income of at least $42,000.

For loans exceeding $150,000: the annual income requirement for a solo application is $50,000, or $25,000 with a cosigner. Your cosigner must have annual income of at least $50,000.

11. Do I need to be a PenFed member to refinance? How do I become a member?
In order to refinance with us, you will need to become a PenFed member but don't worry - it's easy to join, and there is no requirement for military service. You'll fill out a membership form during the underwriting process after you are pre-approved. Once your membership is confirmed, you'll have access to PenFed's award-winning products and services. You do not need to be a member to apply to refinance your student loans, we only require membership after pre-approval.