SoFi offers unsecured personal loans between $5,000 and $100,000 with terms between two and seven years. They’re a great option for people with good to excellent credit scores who need to finance large expenses, like home improvements, medical bills, vacations, or debt consolidation.
SoFi
Personal Loans with No Fees
- Soft credit check during the pre-screening process: During your initial loan query, SoFi pulls a soft credit check that doesn’t affect your credit, so you can see if you pre-qualify before you apply.
- Low fixed or variable APR interest rates: SoFi offers an interest rate discount for those enrolled in auto-pay, resulting in fixed APR rates of 5.99% to 18.07%, or variable APR rates of 5.74% to 14.7%. Your interest rates are based on several considerations, including the state in which you live, your credit history, income, professional experience, and other factors.
- No Fees—hidden or otherwise: Your personal loan is fee-free, meaning no setup, early payment, hidden, or late fees. Although SoFi doesn’t charge a late fee, they warn that late payments could result in more interest, negative credit reporting, and other loan default consequences. However, their unemployment protection program may protect you “if you lose your job through no fault of your own.”
- Unemployment protection and career coaching: SoFi’s unemployment protection program may put your account in forbearance in the unexpected event of job loss, meaning they’ll pause your monthly payments without affecting your credit, but your loan will continue to collect interest. Additionally, the program’s career advisory group will help you find new employment.
All of SoFi’s customers are eligible for complimentary career coaching from a professional coach. They’ll work with you one-on-one toward your career goals, including a job promotion, industry transition, job search, and personal branding.
How Can You Qualify for a Personal Loan with SoFi?
To qualify for SoFi’s personal loans, you’ll need to meet their minimum requirements.
- FICO score must be at least 680 (confirmed by SoFi’s customer service representative).
- You must be at least 18 years old or the age of majority in your state.
- You must be a United States citizen, permanent resident, or current visa holder.
- You must reside in one of the 30 states in which SoFi is licensed to lend.
- You must “have sufficient income or be employed, have sufficient income from other sources, or have an offer of employment to start within the next 90 days.”
- You should have a positive financial history.
- You should have verifiable career experience.
- You need a reasonable debt-to-income ratio (at least less than 43% of your income should be in debt).
How do I Work with SoFi?
The first step to SoFi’s loan process is to complete a pre-screening phase through a form on their website. This is where you’ll see if you’ve been pre-qualified before you begin the loan application. You should also see which interest rate you’ve qualified for. Then, you’ll be taken through the steps to complete your application process.
- Pre-screening: During the pre-screening phase, you’ll be asked to provide some personal information, including your requested loan amount, planned use of funds, preferred monthly payment, date of birth, residency status, name and address, phone number, employment status, yearly income, current living arrangements, and social security number. A soft credit check will be pulled, so it won’t count against your score. Once you’ve finished the initial screening online, you’ll be told whether you can complete your application online or if you didn’t qualify based on your answers.
- If You Pass the Initial Screening: If you pass the screening, you’ll be redirected to the online application. Loan consultants are available to help answer your questions during the application process via phone or live chat. You’ll be able to choose between a fixed or variable rate. Variable rates will never exceed 14.95 percent. Once you submit your application, SoFi will pull a hard credit check for a complete look at your situation. When they have verified all your information, and you’ve been approved for the loan, you’ll receive electronic documents to sign and submit. Your funds are generally deposited into your account a few days after they’ve received your signed documents.
- If You Fail the Initial Screening: If you don’t qualify for a loan based on your initial screening, you’ll be redirected to a page that will provide you with a brief overview of their reasons for the denial and an option to call them for more information. If you opt to call, you’ll be given another option to communicate via text message. The customer service representative will tell you why you didn’t pass the screening, work with you to determine if you qualify for a lower loan or refer you to another loan company that may be able to help.
SoFi
Personal Loans with No Fees
How to Apply for a Personal Loan with SoFi
Ready to see if you qualify? Head over to SoFi’s personal loans page and click any of the “find my rate” buttons located throughout the page to begin the pre-screening process.
SoFi is a great option for those with good credit who are seeking low-payment personal loans for large expenses or debt consolidation. Their unsecured loans are fee-free, offer low-interest rates, and are quick and easy to apply for. They pull soft credit checks during pre-screening, so you don’t have to worry about your inquiry affecting your score. We all know that life happens, and SoFi’s unemployment protection and career coaching service can save you a lot of trouble in unforeseen circumstances. SoFi also offers a variety of customer service support channels, including over-the-phone, live chat, and texting (which is convenient for those in loud environments or who don’t have the time to hold a full conversation).
SoFi
Personal Loans with No Fees
