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Wednesday, August 17th
LendingClub has gone through some changes in recent years: while they used to be a peer-to-peer borrowing and investment platform, essentially crowdfunding all types of loans, they are now structured more like a typical financial institution and fund all loans on their own. That's worth knowing, because you may find wording as you browse the site that still makes reference to "lenders" or "lending networks" . (At the time of this review, their main article explaining auto refinancing hadn't been updated to reflect the new structure, for example.) You'll have a more streamlined borrowing experience now, but don't expect to get multiple offers for your refi loan.
Watch out for excluded states and vehicles
We also had to read the fine print to learn that LendingClub doesn't offer auto refinancing across the board. Their loans are only available in 35 states; notable in the list of exclusions are New York, Colorado, and DC. There are also several vehicle makes that won't be eligible for a refi loan here, including Hummer, Saab, Suzuki and Nissan Leaf, as well as any domestic truck designated as a "3500" or with a payload capacity of a ton or more.
No SSN required to get refi loan quotes
To get a refi quote, you'll start by choosing your primary goal: getting the lowest possible monthly payment or lowering your interest rate. (You can also choose "just curious" .) When we chose the latter, we were taken to a surprisingly-simple quote application: no Social Security Number required, just our name, address, phone number, birthdate, and annual individual income. Unfortunately, we were given an unexplained error page when we applied and got no quotes for our auto refinance loan rate. That may be due to the fact that we opted for the "just curious" setting; you may need to play with the settings to get a quote specific to your car loan and borrowing goals.
Lots of positive recent feedback from clients
How about LendingClub's reputation? Their restructuring led to a change in their rating from the Better Business Bureau, from "A" to "Not Rated" , in order to give the BBB time to gather more feedback before evaluating the new-and-improved service. Looking at the most recent reviews from clients using LendingClub for a variety of loan types, we were pleased to see that the vast majority give the company a rating of 4 or 5 stars. While most of them made no reference specifically to auto refinancing, it's encouraging to see repeat borrowers among the reviews.
Worth considering for car refinancing
Is LendingClub a good choice for auto refinancing loans? Maybe. They'll need to keep expanding the states where they offer financing if they want to compete with other lenders, because too many potential customers are excluded by their 35-state service area. And, the jury's still out as far as the BBB listing goes, waiting to be updated after the company's move away from peer-to-peer funding. But, we wouldn't be surprised to see LendingClub move up in our rankings in the future, based on the ample positive, recent feedback from people who have used them to get loans.
With interest rates dropping like crazy, you're smart to think you might be able to save some money with a new loan. Whether you choose to keep your monthly payments the same and shorten your loan term or lower your payments and spend your cash on other necessities, it's almost a guarantee that refinancing will be a good decision.
In the past, most people would go to their bank or credit union to get a car loan refi. After all, it's comfortable, familiar, and easy to set up with checking or bank accounts that are already established there. But, that's not the best idea if you want the nation's top rates and terms for car loan refinancing. Your hometown bank doesn't need to compete with other lenders for your business: they already have it!
Money-wise consumers look to the internet for the best deals, and car loan refinancing is no different. There's no need to accept the first loan offer you see if you can get quotes from several financial institutions at once. Most online lenders have rates and terms that will easily beat anything you find locally, with all the convenience of a completely-online application and approval process. Save money while sipping coffee at home in your pajamas? Why not!
Looking at the available options for car loan refinancing online, it can be hard to tell different lenders apart. Which one should you use, not just to get an initial rate quote but ultimately to finalize your new loan? Here are several ways you can evaluate each choice to find the car loan refinancing that's right for you:
TopConsumerReviews.com has evaluated and ranked the best providers of car loan refinancing available today. We're confident that this information will help you get the rates and terms you're looking for to save money on your car payments!
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