Wells Fargo Student Loans Review

No matter the degree you’re pursuing, course fees accumulate and most students will need some loan type. You’ll probably consider private student loans if you’ve exhausted your financial aid, savings, or income. Finding the best student loan company can be challenging. It is recommendable for borrowers to compare lenders.

Even if Wells Fargo has deep-discounted interest rates for its customers, the Wells Fargo Student Loan program doesn’t measure up to those of competing lenders. More importantly, customers aren’t likely to give favorable Wells Fargo Student Loans reviews. This article will offer a comprehensive Wells Fargo Student Loans review.

Wells Fargo Student Loans Review

Wells Fargo offers eight student loan types. There are six payment options: Automatic Payment, Online Transfers and Payments, Mail, Phone, and In Person.

Fixed Rates:

• Career/Community College Student Loan- 7.46%-12.65% APR
• Collegiate Student Loan- 5.94%-11.26% APR
• Graduate Student Loan- 6.84%-11.67% APR
• Parent Loan-6.49%-12.99% APR
• MedCap Alternative Loan- 6.66%-10.18% APR
• MedCap-XTRA Loan- 9.53%-9.76% APR
• Bar Exam Loan- 10.66%-10.89% APR
• Consolidation Loan- 5.24%-9.99% APR

Variable Rates:

• Career/Community College Student Loan- 6.35%-12.05% APR
• Collegiate Student Loan- 4.57%-10.51% APR
• Graduate Student Loan- 5.64%-11.07% APR
• Parent Loan- 5.74%-12.24% APR
• MedCap Alternative Loan- 5.06%-9.54% APR
• MedCap-XTRA Loan- 9.07%-9.30% APR
• Bar Exam Loan- 10.44%-10.66% APR
• Consolidation Loan- 4.99%-9.74% APR

Loan Terms: Collegiate, Parent, and Graduate Student Loans have a term of 15 years. The loan term period offered for MedCap Alternative Loans is 15 to 20 years. Consolidation Loans may have a term of 15 or 20 years. The MedCAP-XTRA and Bar Exam Loans have a 7-year term.

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Minimum Amount: $1,000 for all loan types

Maximum Amount:

• Career/Community College Student Loan- $20,000
• Collegiate Student Loan- $120,000
• Graduate Student Loan- $180,000 for law and business school, $120,000 for other study fields
• Parent Loan- $25,000 per school year, $100,000 lifetime limit
• MedCap Alternative Loan- $250,000 MD/DO Medicine and Dentistry; $180,000 graduate nursing, occupational therapy, optometry, pharmacy, physiotherapy, physician associate, podiatry, veterinary science; $120,000
• MedCap XTRA- $5,000 for internship costs, $12,000 for medical boards and clinical exams, $15,000 for residency interview and relocation costs
• Bar Exam Loan- $12,000
• Consolidation Loan- $5,000

Wells Fargo Student Loans Requirements

The application process for Wells Fargo Student loans comprises of 13 easy steps. Wells Fargo prefills some of the application parts for them when they log in. It can be done on a smartphone, computer, tablet, or over the phone. Applicants can download required documents online.

Credit Score: No minimum

Annual Income: No minimum

Citizenship: U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent resident, international student who is a temporary resident

Application Fee: None

Other Requirements: Applicants should be at least 18 years old. Wells Fargo student loans are available in all states. If a student attends school less than full time, he or she can still qualify for a Wells Fargo Student Loan. To qualify for a Wells Fargo Graduate Student Loan, students need to make satisfactory academic progress in their academic programs.

For Consolidation Loans, the borrower needs a $5,000 minimum total student loan balance, whereas every individual student loan needs a $1,000 minimum balance. Students must be in the last year of a law program or have graduated within a month from a legal education institution to be eligible for a Bar Exam Loan.

We Liked Wells Fargo Student Loans Because…

Cosigner release is one of the pros of Wells Fargo Student Loans. Wells Fargo has Loan Forgiveness for the borrower’s beneficiaries and co-signers if the student borrower dies or becomes permanently disabled.

The bank provides deferment, forbearance, and hardship options for preventing loan default. Forbearance types include public service, FEMA disasters, in-school, extended grace, and military. Six-month payment relief is an option for borrowers affected by job loss and surprising medical expenses.

There is no fee for origination, returned checks, or early repayment. Payment is not necessary while a student is in school; repayment starts 6 months after graduating or leaving school. The grace period for MD and DO students is 3 years. If you repay your loan early, you would not pay a penalty.

Borrowers can use the following discounts to reduce their interest rates.

• 0.25 percent interest rate reduction with previous federal or Wells Fargo Student Loan
• 0.25 % interest rate reduction when enrolling in autopay
• 0.25 percent interest rate discount if borrowers or their cosigner have a Wells Fargo 0.50 percent interest rate discount for borrowers having a Portfolio by Wells Fargo relationship.

Every aforementioned discount is available when applying for the loan, except the automatic payment discount. This discount can be used at the time of loan repayment.

Not So Sure About…

Wells Fargo does not give borrowers the option of refinancing federal student loans. The bank has limited loan term and repayment plan options. Borrowers cannot benefit from a pre-qualification process allowing them to see offers with a soft inquiry. Instead, Wells Fargo does a hard inquiry before showing loan offers to borrowers.

One of the cons Wells Fargo Student Loans reviews mention is the unfriendliness and unhelpfulness of customer service staff. In August 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has fined Wells Fargo $4 million for charging illegal fees, misleading borrowers, and failing to fix incorrect information in credit reports. Also, Wells Fargo had to pay back $410,000 to the borrowers.

As of July 2010, the bank no longer offers federal student loans. The fee for a late payment is $28.

Online Reviews Say That

Over 96 percent of the Wells Fargo Student Loans reviews on Consumer Affairs have 1 star. Some reviewers mention on their Wells Fargo Student Loans review an issue with the bank.

A customer who got a ruined credit wrote this Wells Fargo Student Loans review:

“…Wells Fargo was charging me late fees for 1.5 years without notifying me of any issues…they didn’t have permission to contact me directly…Wells Fargo wasn’t obligated to contact me…”

The following Wells Fargo Student Loans review on Consumer Affairs indicates a consumer scam concern.

“… Better to stay with the federal. It is a scam, wolf in sheep coating.”

Another Wells Fargo Student Loan review implies that the bank delays the release of funds.

Wells Fargo Student Loans Contact Details

Customer Support:

Application Questions
1-800-378-5526
Weekdays- 7 am-9 pm CT
Saturday- 8 am-1 pm CT

Payment and Statement Questions
1-800-658-3567
Weekdays- 7 am-8 pm CT

Email address: wellsfargocommunity.com

Facebook and Twitter are other available customer service methods.

Conclusion

Some students might be discouraged from choosing Wells Fargo as their lender since it does not offer the best customer service. However, the low-interest rates and no-penalty early repayment feature attract borrowers. If you are not a Wells Fargo customer, it will be better to apply with another lender. Thank you for reading our Wells Fargo Student Loans review! Please share your thoughts in the comments below!