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Pentagon Federal Credit Union, or PenFed, offers student loan refinancing, among their many banking products and services. Looking to lower your student loan interest rate, reduce payments or combine your loan with your spouse? You’ll want to keep reading to learn everything you need to know about refinancing your student loans with PenFed.
PenFed Student Loan Refinance In A Nutshell
| Loan Terms | 5, 8, 12, 15 |
| Loan Amounts | $7,500 to $300,000 |
| Loan Types | Variable, fixed |
| Cosigner | Yes |
| Autopay Discount | None |
PenFed Student Loan Refinance Features
PenFed’s student loan refinancing product stands out for several reasons. It’s powered by Purefy, a fintech firm that specializes in student loans. It allows married couples to refinance student loans together, provides refinancing of parent PLUS loans, lets you release a cosigner after 12 timely payments and more.
Prequalification
Use PenFed’s Find My Rate Tool to check what kind of loan terms, interest rates and monthly payments you can expect, from PenFED as well as other lenders. This requires a soft credit pull, so it won’t affect your credit score.
Couples Refinancing
PenFed offers spouse loans, so you can save money by refinancing your student loans together. The lender will combine your incomes and base your interest on the higher of your two credit scores. This is especially helpful if one spouse isn’t working, or where one person earns significantly more than the other.
Parent PLUS Loan Refinancing
Unlike most lenders, PenFed lets you refinance federal parent PLUS loans, either as the mom, the dad or the ex-student.
Cosigner Release
You can add a cosigner to take advantage of their credit in order to qualify for refinancing and get a lower interest rate. After 12 months of consecutive on-time payments, you can apply to remove your cosigner from the loan. This is a generous policy compared to other lenders who require years of timely payments before you can apply to release your cosigner.
In-House Loan Servicing
PenFed services their own loans, which means you don’t have to worry about your new debt being passed off to a loan servicer who then manages your repayment. All borrowers get assigned a personal student loan advisor.
Member Discounts
PenFed members enjoy discounts on auto, home, financial and other products and services, such as car rentals and tax preparation software. For complete details, visit the PenFed website.
PenFed Student Loan Refinance Fees
| Application Fee | None |
| Origination Fee | None |
| Prepayment Penalty | None |
| Late Fee | 20% of the interest portion of the payment |
PenFed does not charge any application, origination or prepayment penalty fee. However, if your payment is more than five days late, the lender will charge you 20% of the interest portion – minimum $5, maximum $25 – except where prohibited by law.
PenFed Student Loan Refinance Requirements
PenFed is a credit union that was created to provide services to employees of the Department of Defense, as well as active-duty military and veterans. That said, anyone can join by opening a PenFed savings account with an initial deposit of $5.
Beside being a PenFed member, you need to meet certain income and credit requirements to apply for student loan refinancing:
| Loan Amount | UP TO $150,000 | ABOVE TO $150,000 |
| Apply Without Cosigner | ● 700 credit score ● $42,000+ annual income | ● 725 credit score ● $50,000+ annual income |
| Apply With Cosigner | ● Your credit score is between 670 to 699 ● Your annual income is between $25,000 and $41,999 | ● Your credit score is between 670 to 724 ● Your annual income is between $25,000 and $49,999 |
| Cosigner Requirements | ● 720 credit score ● $42,000+ annual income | ● 725 credit score ● $50,000+ annual income |
The maximum debt-to-income ratio is 35% for those with undergraduate degrees and 40% for those with graduate degrees.
Even if you filed for bankruptcy, you might qualify for student loan refinancing with PenFed:
- The bankruptcy must be 10 or more years ago, or
- The bankruptcy is recent, but you and your cosigner meet all credit, income and debt-to-income criteria.
Besides income and credit requirements, you must also:
- Be a U.S. citizen
- Have a bachelor’s degree or higher
- Have attended a school authorized to receive federal aid
PenFed Student Loan Refinance Limitations
Before applying to refinance your student loans with PenFed, you should consider the following:
- A bachelor’s degree and credit union membership are required.
- Limited loan terms, maximum 15 years.
- No official forbearance or discharge policy.
- No autopay discount.
Bottom Line
Refinancing your student loans with PenFed is a good fit if you and your spouse want to refinance your loans together, if you want to take over parent PLUS loans, or if you need a cosigner for approval.
However, if you’re looking to go back to school, you’ll want to go with a program that has an excellent deferment policy, like Discover student loan refinance.
Also, see the $300 bonus offer for student loan refinancing from Splash Financial.
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