Does wells fargo do debt consolidation loans

Wells Fargo is not only the largest mortgage lender in the U. S., it is also a fascinating part of American history. The company was formed in 1852 to provide banking services to developing territories in the West, and, nine years later, the “Pony Express” mail service between the country’s eastern and western shores. In 1905, Wells Fargo’s lone bank in San Francisco separated from the express service, and by the 1970s a network of Wells Fargo banks served the northern California region.

Today Wells Fargo’s territory includes the West, Midwest, and East, and it offers a number of financial services like consumer loans, insurance, and investment banking. It has a reputation for responsibility and good customer care, and pays special attention to maintaining a diverse work force. In 2012, Forbes ranked Wells Fargo among the top 20 largest public companies in the world. So what does its consolidation loan product look like?

Private Loan Consolidation with Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo stopped making federal student loans in 2010, but the company does offer a private consolidation loan, which lets you combine your existing private student loans into a single large loan with one monthly payment. You may be able to make that one monthly payment for an amount smaller than the total of your separate loan payments, and if you are struggling to make those payments that is a very helpful option.

Bear in mind that a reduced monthly payment will, of necessity, make your loan costs higher in the long run, because it will mean extending the life of the loan and thus the duration of your interest payment. But if you’re genuinely at a loss for money to make your student loan payments and your choice is between losing your good credit rating and taking out a consolidation loan, then by all means choose the new loan.

Private Consolidation Loan Rates

Wells Fargo offers both fixed and variable rates on private consolidation loans. You can always find current rate information on Wells Fargo’s website by answering a few questions about your loan. For instance, a 2012 search entering the state Louisiana, the school Tulane University, and the field of study architecture returns a variable rate range of 4% to 8.75% and a monthly payment of $242.39 to $353.48 on a loan of $40,000 repayable over 20 years.

For a similar fixed-rate loan, the range is 7.99% to 12.79% with a monthly payment of $334.33 to $462.66. No loan origination fees are charged.

That supplies an excellent example of how much difference the interest rate can make, but does not necessarily mean your best choice would be the currently lower variable rate. To make the decision between fixed and variable rates, you will need to predict how interest rates are likely to change over the course of your loan. That is best done with the help of not one but several independent financial professionals, and while you should of course talk to a customer service representative at Wells Fargo about how their loans work, your other consultations should be with independent advisors.

Advice On Obtaining A Lower Rate

The rate you receive will depend on the credit history presented by both you and your cosigner, if you have one. You should find the most creditworthy cosigner possible in order to receive the most favorable rate. Your rate will be based on the prime rate, which is a standard index used in the financial industry, plus margin, which is the lender’s markup added to the prime rate to provide some profit while assuming the risk of lending to you.

There are two ways to obtain a lower rate for your Wells Fargo consolidation loan at the outset. They are called the automatic payment discount and the relationship discount, and here’s how they work:

• The automatic payment discount of 0.25% applies if you set up direct debit from your personal checking or savings account. If that account happens to be at Wells Fargo, you are also eligible for
• The relationship discount, which can lower your rate by up to 0.50%. The stronger your relationship with the company, the deeper the discount.

Wells Fargo provides online account access at no charge. Amounts you can consolidate range from $5,000 to $100,000, and the overall total loan amount Wells Fargo offers is $250,000. Do plan ahead, because while you can apply for a loan online, your loan will take between 45 and 60 days to process.

Wells Fargo offers unsecured personal loans to existing customers with good credit. Not only do the loans have minimal fees, but they also come in a wide range of amounts and repayment terms, so borrowers can customize loans to fit their needs.

Customers who make automatic payments from a Wells Fargo account may qualify for a rate discount.

Wells Fargo offers pre-qualification, so borrowers who want to see potential loan offers before formally applying can do so with a soft credit pull, which doesn’t affect your credit score.

If you’re not an existing Wells Fargo customer, you’ll need to visit a branch to apply.

Wells Fargo personal loans at a glance

Time to fund after approval

Loans available in 50 states and Washington, D.C.

Where Wells Fargo personal loans stand out

Soft credit check to pre-qualify: Wells Fargo lets customers pre-qualify for a personal loan, which is common among online lenders but rarer among banks. By pre-qualifying, borrowers can view potential loan terms, including what interest rate they may qualify for, before submitting to a hard credit inquiry.

Wide range of repayment terms: Borrowers can choose from a number of repayment terms. For loans under $5,000, one- to three-year terms are available. For loans of $5,000 or more, borrowers can make payments for up to seven years. Combined with the lender’s large loan amounts, these extended repayment terms make Wells Fargo one of the best banks for a home improvement loan.

Relationship discount: Wells Fargo customers can qualify for a relationship discount, which lowers the amount of interest they pay, by setting up automatic payments from a qualified Wells Fargo checking account. The type of checking account will determine the discount, which ranges from 0.25 to 0.5 percentage point.

Flexible payment dates: Wells Fargo is more flexible with payment dates than other lenders. Before signing the loan agreement, borrowers can choose their payment date, and once the loan begins, they can change their payment date once every 12 months. This is a useful feature if your pay schedule ever changes or if you take on a new expense that changes your monthly cash flow.

Where Wells Fargo personal loans fall short

No direct payment to creditors: If you want to use a Wells Fargo personal loan to consolidate debts, like paying off your credit cards, the lender won’t send the loan funds to your creditors for you. Though this isn’t a must-have for a debt consolidation loan, it’s a nice perk that other lenders offer.

No co-sign or joint loans: Wells Fargo only offers single-applicant personal loans. If you want to add a co-signer to your application or apply for a joint loan, you’ll need to look elsewhere. Co-signed and joint loans can make it easier for lower-credit borrowers to get approved since the lender considers both people’s creditworthiness as part of the application.

New customers need to visit a branch: If you’re not a Wells Fargo customer but want to apply for a personal loan, you’ll need to visit your local branch, according to the company. Current customers can apply online.

Regulatory action against Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo has experienced a series of hefty regulatory fines in the last few years.

In February 2020, the lender agreed to pay a $3 billion fine after it was found guilty of creating millions of fake savings and checking accounts in the names of real customers. In September 2021, the lender was fined $250 million by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency after it failed to implement a mortgage loss mitigation program.

Though these instances do not directly affect its personal loans business, borrowers should keep them in mind.

How to qualify for a Wells Fargo personal loan

Wells Fargo doesn't publicly disclose many of its borrower requirements. Borrowers with good or excellent credit scores (690 or higher) will likely qualify for the lowest rates.

To apply for a Wells Fargo personal loan, you’ll need to provide:

• Personal information, including Social Security number or individual tax identification number (ITIN), date of birth and citizenship status.

• Contact information, including email address, telephone number and permanent address.

• Employment and income information, including the name of your employer, gross monthly income, and mortgage or rent payment; documentation may be required.

• Calculate your monthly payments. Use a personal loan calculator to determine what APR and repayment term you’d need to get a loan with affordable monthly payments.

• Make a plan to repay the loan. Review your budget to see how the loan’s monthly payments impact your cash flow. If you have to cut other expenses in order to repay the loan, it’s better to know that before you borrow.

• Gather your documents. Wells Fargo may request proof of income, which can be a W-2 or paystub, as well as a utility bill to verify your address, and a copy of your driver’s license or Social Security card. Having these documents handy can speed the application process.

How to apply for a Wells Fargo personal loan

Here are the steps to apply for a Wells Fargo loan.

1. Pre-qualify on Wells Fargo’s website. If you’re already a customer, you can pre-qualify online. You’ll be asked to log in to your Wells Fargo account and fill out a short application, including how much you want to borrow and what the funds are for. You can then preview potential loan offers. There’s no hard credit pull at this stage.

2. Preview offers and formally apply. After viewing your loan options, you can submit a formal personal loan application. This could require more documents, like W-2s, pay stubs and bank statements, to confirm the information you gave during pre-qualification. Wells Fargo will do a hard credit check when you apply, so your credit score could temporarily dip.

3. Make a plan to repay the loan. Wells Fargo reports payments to all three major credit bureaus, so on-time payments will help build your credit score, but missed payments will hurt it. Setting up automatic payments and keeping an eye on your budget are two ways to manage your loan payments.

Compare Wells Fargo to other lenders

Personal loan lenders offer different rates, loan amounts and special features, so it pays to weigh other options. The best personal loan is usually the one with the lowest APR.

LightStream and SoFi offer similar features to Wells Fargo and accept borrowers with good to excellent credit.

Wells Fargo vs. LightStream

Like Wells Fargo, LightStream boasts a wide range of loan amounts and repayment terms, making it another good choice for covering large expenses like home improvements. It also includes a rate discount for setting up autopay. However, LightStream doesn’t offer pre-qualification.

Similar to Wells Fargo, SoFi personal loans have high loan amounts and numerous repayment options. SoFi also offers multiple rate discounts and charges zero fees, including no late fees. Unlike at Wells Fargo, borrowers can apply for a joint loan.

How we rate Wells Fargo personal loans

NerdWallet writers rate lenders against a rubric that changes each year based on how personal loan products evolve. Here’s what we prioritized this year:

Affordability An affordable loan has low rates and fees compared to other similar loans and may offer rate discounts. Transparency A transparent lender makes information about the loan easy to find on its website, including rates, terms and loan amounts. Transparency also means allowing users to pre-qualify online to preview potential loan offers and reporting payment information with the major credit bureaus. Loan flexibility A flexible loan is one that lets users customize terms and payments. That means offering a wide range of repayment term options, allowing the borrower to change their payment date, offering loans in most states and funding it quickly. Customer experience A good customer experience can include a fully online application process, financial education on the lender’s website and a customer service team that’s available most of the time and can be reached multiple ways.

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