Education Loan Finance facts for kids

Education Loan Finance, also known as ELFI, is a division of SouthEast Bank based in Knoxville, Tennessee. Launched in December 2015, ELFI is a national private lending company that refinances graduate and undergraduate student loan debt. In 2016, the company introduced a state-of-the-art loan application system, designed for borrowers to consolidate outstanding education loans into one single loan. By January 2020, the company completed over $1 billion in student loan refinancing.

Services

ELFI primarily focuses on refinancing student loans for undergraduate and graduate borrowers. The borrower and cosigner must be U.S. citizens or permanent resident clients without conditions and with proper evidence of eligibility. Additionally, the borrower must have a minimum loan amount of $15,000, earned a Bachelor's degree or higher, have a minimum income of $35,000 and a minimum credit score of 680. There are no application fees, origination fees or prepayment penalties when refinancing student loans with Education Loan Finance. The refinancing program has received generally favorable reviews from companies and borrowers.

In October 2016, ELFI introduced a new Parent PLUS loan refinancing program, whereby parents who borrowed federal Parent PLUS loans to finance their children's undergraduate education can refinance those loans through ELFI.

In August 2018, ELFI expanded its student loan lending platform to include direct student loans for undergraduates, graduates and parents of students to finance post-secondary education.

SouthEast Bank’s parent company Educational Services of America, Inc. has awarded over $20 million for scholarships and provide financial literacy to borrowers since its inception.

Recognition

• AAA rating from Standard & Poor’s, 2018
• AAA rating from DBRS, 2018