Hi all,
I have two student loans and I'm thinking about refinancing for better interest rates with SoFi--at least for my higher interest rate loan. But I have a few questions for those of you who may have done this.
The details:
~$18K loan @ 6.8% (ouch!)
~$4K loan @ 2.3 %
I'm currently paying the minimum on the 2.3% loan and putting the majority of my extra cash towards my 6.8% loan. I think I could refinance with SoFi and get the interest rate down on that loan considerably, but I'm concerned that I wouldn't be able to defer in case I lose my job. (I don't plan to refinance the 2.3%, but that one is pretty small potatoes anyway)
My employer is in a delicate position right now and could possibly go under. I don't have a huge emergency fund, and I know a job search might take a while, so I'm hesitant to lock myself into a loan payment, even with a lower rate, if I can't defer while unemployed. Obviously deferring this loan would be a last resort scenario, but it's pretty easy to do with a federal student loan and a lot less easy if I refinance privately, if I understand the way it works.
To be clear, I'm not definitely losing my job, but I'm worried about the impact refinancing could have if my company does end up going belly up and I have to live on my measly savings plus unemployment for a while.
Advice?