First Republic Bank – Personal Line Of Credit For Student Loans

First Republic Personal Line Of Credit

First Republic offers one of the most competitive personal line of credit products out there, which you can then use to pay off your student loans.

The product is simple, with ultra-low rates, and no fees. Here's a closer look at how First Republic's personal line of credit works and what it offers.

Related: See how a Personal Line Of Credit compares to Student Loan Refinancing.

Rates And Terms

What's awesome about First Republic is the low rates. They currently only offer fixed rate loans, and they keep it pretty simple.

Since it's a personal line of credit, the terms are slightly different than a normal student loan refinance product. You get a 2-year drawdown term - meaning you can spend the money anytime during the first two years. And during that 2-year period, you're only required to pay the interest that accrues on the amount you borrow.

At the two-year point, your loan is amoratized based on the term and rate you select.

They currently offer the following rates and terms:

• 7 Year: 3.95% APR
• 10 Year: 4.95% APR
• 15 Year: 5.25% APR

These rates include relationship-based pricing adjustments. To qualify for a 2.00% rate adjustment, applicants must open a First Republic ATM Rebate Checking account (“Account”) with automatic loan payment and direct deposit. To qualify for a 0.50% rate adjustment, borrower must deposit and maintain a minimum deposit balance in the Account.

If the borrower does not meet these requirements, the rate adjustments will be removed and the rate will increase by 2.00% and 0.50% respectively.

Loan Amounts

First Republic allows borrowers to borrow up to $350,000 when they take out a personal line of credit. This is a solid amount, but not the most we've seen.

The minimum amount is $70,000 - which is fairly high.

The loan can be used for refinancing student loan debt, credit card debt, or auto loans. You can also use the funds for home or medical expenses, family planning, or special celebrations.

There are limitations on what you can use the funds for. You cannot use the personal line of credit for: business or commercial uses, investing in the stock market, refinance existing First Republic loans, or direct payment for post-secondary education expenses (i.e. use it like a new student loan). 

Loan Bonus Offers

First Republic is offering a solid bonus offer to make this personal loan of credit even more enticing. You can get a 2.00% rate adjustment by opening a checking account with automatic debit and direct deposit. You can also get a 0.50% to 0.75% rate adjustment by maintaining a minimum balance in the account.

The rate reduction works as follows: 

Borrower must open a First Republic ATM Rebate Checking account. If the Account is closed, the rate will increase by 5.00%. Rates shown include relationship-based pricing adjustments of:

1. 2.00% for maintaining automatic payments and direct deposit with the account
2. 0.50% for depositing and maintaining a deposit balance of at least 10% of the approved loan
3. An additional 0.25% for depositing and maintaining a deposit balance of at least 20% of the approved loan amount.

You can start the application online here.

Are There Any Fees?

There are no origination fees, prepayment penalties, or maintenance fees on this loan. However, if you don't keep at least $3,500 in your ATM Rebate Checking account you'll be charged a monthly maintenance fee of $25.

Who Qualifies To Apply?

As you saw above in the rates and terms, there are definitely some restrictions, but they can be met by well qualified borrowers. 

First Republic has several important restrictions that every potential applicant should be aware of before going forward. No deferment or forgiveness is offered. These loans are personal lines of credit, and so if you refinance a student loan, you lose access to any Federal programs you might be eligible for. Make sure you read our full guide on student loan consolidation and understand your options.

Loans may only be taken out in states where the company has locations and is accredited to do business. These states include:

• New York City
• California (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Newport Beach, San Diego, Palo Alto, Santa Barbara, Palm Desert)
• Massachusetts (Boston)
• Oregon (Portland)
• Connecticut (Greenwich)
• Florida (Palm Beach)

First Republic also has tough credit and income requirements to qualify. You should expect to have excellent credit to get a loan through them.

Finally, as we mentioned above, there are a lot of terms and conditions to get the lowest rates. You must also reach out to our personal banker to get started. Hopefully they move this process online soon, but that's how you need to get going for now.

How Does First Republic Compare?

Since First Republic actually offers personal lines of credit rather than refinance loans, they're loans are far more flexible than you'll find with most student loan lenders. You also can take advantage of up to two years of interest-only payments.

However, limited state availability will make First Republic a non-option for many student loan borrowers. And even if you happen to live in one of the areas with this product is available, you'll need to deposit at least 20% of your loan amount into a First Republic ATM Rebate Checking to get the bank's lowest-available rate.

That means if you want the lowest APR on a $30,000 loan, you'll need to deposit at least $6,000 with First Republic and maintain that balance until your loan is paid off. That's a pretty hefty capital requirement that you won't have to deal with to qualify for the best rate with most other lenders. Here's a closer look at how First Republic compares:

What Borrower Protections Are Available?

Unlike many of the top refinance lenders available today, First Republic doesn't offer any kind of forbearance or deferment programs on its personal lines of credit. There also isn't any death or disability discharge.

If you're looking for borrower flexibility, you should probably look at different lender. Commonbond, for example, offers up to 24 months of hardship forbearance. And Earnest allows borrowers to skip a payment as often as once every 12 months.

Is It Safe And Secure?

Yes, as a bank, First Republic adheres to strong website encryption standards. The company also takes a variety of steps to combat identity theft and supports two-factor account authentication.

How Do I Contact First Republic?

Their goal with this product is to get you to become a banking customer. So you can also only start the loan process via a private banker.

Luckily, we have a private banker, and you can reach out to him here: Eric Peterson at (619) 338-1505 or by email here: epeterson@firstrepublic.com. 

You can also start the process here: First Republic Bank Personal Line of Credit.

Is It Worth It?

First Republic offers a fantastic personal line of credit (that can be used for student loan refinancing) for those that qualify for it. These are some of the lowest fixed rate loans we've seen, and even though there are hoops to jump through to get them, they are worth it.

If you're ready to get started, contact our personal banker and start the process. You can reach out to him here: Eric Peterson at (619) 338-1505 or by email here: epeterson@firstrepublic.com. 

Apply at First Republic here >>