INvestEd is an Indiana nonprofit corporation that offers private student loans to Indiana residents attending eligible schools anywhere, and students from other states attending eligible Indiana schools.
But if you’re planning on refinancing your student loans, it doesn’t matter where you went to school — INvestEd refinances student loans for borrowers all over the country as long as the they are an Indiana resident, or from elsewhere and attended an Indiana school.
Here’s what you need to know about borrowing and refinancing student loans through INvestEd:
INvestEd student loan refinancing
Best if:
- You didn’t finish your degree
- You might need student loan forbearance benefits
- You have good to excellent credit
Unlike many refinancing lenders, INvestEd doesn’t require you to have a degree to refinance your debt. It also offers multiple repayment options, so you can pick a loan term that works best for your budget.
INvestEd student loan refinancing: Interest rates and loan details
INvestEd offers student loan refinancing for both students and parent loan borrowers. Whether you have private loans or federal loans, you can take advantage of the lender’s range of repayment terms and loan options.
Credible rating | |
Fixed rates from (APR) | 6.15%+4 |
Variable rates from (APR) | 8.5%+4 |
Loan amounts | $5,000 - $250,000 |
Loan terms | 5, 10, 15, 20 years |
Loan types | Any private or federal student loans in good standing |
Min. credit score | 670 |
Min. income | $36,000 |
Residency | U.S. citizen or permanent resident |
Transfer parent loan to child? | No |
Cosigner release | Applications accepted after 12 consecutive, on-time monthly principal and interest payments |
Fees |
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Key benefits |
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Education | Degree not required |
Loan servicer | American Education Services (AES) |
Best if |
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All APRs reflect autopay and loyalty discounts where available | 4INvestEd Disclosures |
INvestEd student loan refinancing review
With competitive interest rates and a lengthy forbearance option if you face financial difficulties, INvestEd could be a good choice for private student loan consolidation. If you meet its lending criteria, you can refinance up to $250,000, and you can choose between variable and fixed interest rates.
How to qualify
To qualify for a refinancing loan from INvestEd, you must:
- Be a citizen of the United States or a permanent resident
- Have a credit score of 670 or higher
- Earn at least $36,000 per year
- Not spend more than 40% to 50% of your gross monthly income on your monthly credit payments, including rent, car payments, credit cards, and student loans
As for when to refinance your debt, INvestEd doesn’t require borrowers to have a degree, so you might qualify for a loan even if you didn’t graduate from your program.
Remember that you’ll need to meet INvestEd’s other employment and credit requirements as well. If you don’t meet these criteria on your own, a cosigner could help you qualify.
Learn More: How to Refinance Your Student Loans
Repayment
Borrowers can choose between four different repayment terms: 5, 10, 15, and 20 years. If you sign up for automatic payments, you can qualify for a 0.25% automatic payment discount.
If you have a cosigner, you can qualify for a cosigner release after making 12 consecutive, on-time monthly principal and interest payments. Keep in mind you must meet the underwriting criteria on your own in order for INvestEd to remove the cosigner from the loan.
INvestEd also offers generous forbearance benefits. If you experience financial hardship, you can postpone your payments for one to three months at a time. You can qualify for a forbearance period twice in a 12-month period, and you can get up to 24 months of forbearance over the life of your loan.
Keep in mind that private student loans don’t come with the same protections that federal student loans offer. If you refinance your federal student loans, you can lose those protections — like the right to income-driven repayment plans, student loan forgiveness, and more.
Learn More: Refinancing Your Federal Student Loans
How INvestED compares to other refinancing lenders
Fixed rates from (APR) | 6.15%+4 | 6.2%+ | 4.84%+3 |
Variable rates from (APR) | 8.5%+4 | N/A | 5.28%+3 |
Loan repayment terms (Years) | 5, 10, 15, 20 | 7, 10, 15 | 5, 7, 10, 12, 15, 20 |
Loan amount | $5,000 to $250,000 | $10,000 up to the total amount of qualified education debt | $10,000 to $250,000 |
Min. credit score | 670 | 670 | 680 |
Cosigner release? | Yes | No | No |
Loan servicer | American Education Services (AES) | American Education Services (AES) | Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA) or American Education Services (AES) |
Best if | You didn’t complete your degree | You earn at least $24,000 per year | You're a parent borrower |
All APRs reflect autopay and loyalty discounts where available | 1Citizens Disclosures | 2College Ave Disclosures | 3 ELFI Disclosures | 4INvestEd Disclosures | 5ISL Education Lending Disclosures |
How to refinance student loans with INvestEd
With competitive interest rates and a generous forbearance policy, INvestEd could be a good choice if you want to refinance your student loans.
However, even with INvestEd’s benefits, it’s still a good idea to shop around and compare as many lenders as possible to find the right loan for you. With Credible, you can check your rates with multiple refinancing lenders at once after filling out a single form.
See Your Refinancing Options
Credible is 100% free!
How INvestEd refinancing can improve
While INvestEd has a valuable forbearance policy, low interest rates, and multiple repayment terms, there are a few ways it could improve:
- Loan maximums: INvestEd allows you to refinance only up to $250,000 in student loans. Borrowers with higher student loan balances — such as medical school debt — will have to find another lender.
- Can’t transfer loan to child: INvestEd does allow parents to refinance private student loans or Parent PLUS Loans, but you can’t transfer the loans into your child’s name. If you want your child to take over responsibility for the loan, you’ll need to refinance with another company, such as Advantage.
Learn More: Student Loan Consolidation vs. Student Loan Refinancing
INvestEd private student loans
Best for:
- Students living or going to college in Indiana
- Students who are confident they’ll earn their degree
- Families with large college funding gaps
INvestEd offers private student loans to students living or attending college in Indiana. Eligible students can fund up to their total cost of attendance, minus other aid received, making INvestEd an option worth considering.
INvestEd student loans: Interest rates and loan details
As with most private student lenders, the interest rates offered by INvestEd depend on the student or cosigner’s creditworthiness. To qualify with INvestEd, you or your cosigner must have a credit score of at least 670, and enough income to comfortably handle the monthly payments for the loan you’re seeking.
Credible rating | |
Rates from (APR) | Fixed:
4.8%+8
Variable: 7.75%+8 |
Loan amounts | $1,001 up to 100% of the cost of attendance (minus other aid) |
Loan terms | 5, 10, or 15 years |
Min. credit score | 670 |
Min. income | $3,333 monthly income or debt-to-income ratio not exceeding 30% |
Residency |
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Fees |
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Prepayment penalty | None |
Key benefits |
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Enrollment | Must be enrolled at least half time in a degree-granting program at an eligible institution |
Repayment plans | Defer payments until 6 months after leaving school, or:
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Cosigner release | Applications accepted after 12 consecutive on‑time payments. Borrowers must meet conditions that include:
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Loan servicer | American Education Services (AES) |
Best if |
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All APRs reflect autopay and loyalty discounts where available | 8INvestEd Disclosures |
INvestEd private student loan review
INvestEd is partnered with a lender (First Merchants Bank), loan processor (Campus Door), and loan servicer (American Education Services) to provide competitive private student loans and customer service.
INvestEd offers a good selection of repayment terms — 5, 10, or 15 years — but it’s not as broad as some other lenders. A 20-year option would be helpful for students who need to borrow a lot.
INvestEd offers a choice of a fixed or variable interest rate. Like many other private student loans, variable rates are tied to the 3-month London Interbank Offer Rate (LIBOR). That means your interest rate and monthly payments can go up or down over time. Your interest rate on an INvestEd variable-rate loan can go as high as 21%.
How to qualify
Most undergraduates taking out private student loans will need a cosigner to be approved because they won’t have the kind of credit history and earnings that lenders are looking for.
INvestEd expects you or your cosigner will have a credit score of at least 670, and all of your monthly bills shouldn’t take up more than 30% of your income.
You or your cosigner will also need:
- To have been employed continuously for the last two years (may be waived if retired or disabled)
- No delinquencies of 60 days or more for at least two years.
- No repossessions, judgments, foreclosures, garnishments or tax liens
- No charge-offs of unpaid bills or collections accounts exceeding $100
- No bankruptcies within the past 5 years
Repayment
INvestEd offers a choice of three repayment plans when you’re approved for a loan:
- Start making full monthly payments right away
- Just pay the interest you owe while in school
- Defer payments altogether until 6 months after leaving school
Deferring payments altogether is the costliest option, since interest charges will pile up. If you can at least pay the interest you owe each month, your loan balance won’t grow while you’re in school.
Also, keep in mind that the longest you can put off making full payments is 54 months. Your in-school period cannot exceed 48 months, at which point your 6-month grace period begins.
How INvestEd student loans compare to other lenders
Rates from (APR) | Fixed: 4.8%+8 Variable: 7.75%+8 | Fixed: 3.69%+2,3 Variable: 5.59%+2,3 | Fixed: 6.0%+ Variable: 8.15%+ |
Loan terms (Years) | 5, 10, 15 | 5, 8, 10, 15 | 7, 10, 12, 15, 20 |
Loan amount | $1,001 up to 100% of school's cost of attendance (minus other aid) | $1,000 up to 100% of cost of attendance | $1,000 up to 100% of certified cost of attendance ($200,000 aggregate loan limit) |
Cosigner release? | Applications accepted after 12 consecutive on‑time payments | Yes, applications accepted after more than half of the scheduled repayment period has elapsed | Yes, applications accepted after 36 consecutive on-time payments |
Loan servicer | American Education Services (AES) | University Account Service (UAS) | Firstmark Services |
Best for | Indiana students with large funding gaps | Students and parents seeking flexible loan terms | Those who don’t need to borrow more than $200,000 |
Lowest APRs reflect autopay, loyalty, and interest-only repayment discounts where available | 1Citizens Disclosures | 2,3College Ave Disclosures | 11Custom Choice Disclosures | 7EdvestinU Disclosures | 8INvestEd Disclosures | 9Sallie Mae Disclosures| 10Ascent Disclosures |
How to take out student loans with INvestEd
INvestEd may be a good choice if you live or go to college in Indiana and still need money for school. But it’s always smart to see what rates other lenders will offer before making up your mind.
Credible makes it easy to compare some of the best private student loans. By filling out a single form, you can request prequalified rates from INvestEd and other student loan lenders without affecting your credit. If you see an option you like, you’ll be asked to authorize a hard credit pull to move forward with your loan application.
Checking rates will not affect your credit
How INvestEd student loans can improve
Depending on the rates you’re offered, INvestEd can be a good choice for filling college funding gaps. INvestEd could be a good choice for more students if it:
- Served states other than Indiana
- Offered a wider range of repayment terms
- Set a lower limit on variable-rate loans
Matt Carter contributed to the reporting for this article.