Mpower Financing Student Loan Refinance Review

Our Rating: B- ⓘ (Compare)

Mpower Financing, Public Benefit Corporation (PBC), is among the few refinance options for international students. In addition to student loan refinancing, Mpower (stylized as MPOWER) advertises financial education, credit-building, and job placement services.

*$100K is the cumulative lifetime limit for Mpower loans. For example, applicants who have already borrowed $25K may be eligible to refinance up to an additional $75K.
**Lowest rates always include the 0.50% interest reduction for enrolling in auto-pay and an additional 0.50% interest rate reduction for six (6) on-time payments for a total reduction of 1.00%.

Skip to: Rates & Fees | Eligibility Requirements | Repayment Options | Consumer Reviews & Complaints | FAQ

Mpower Refinance Rates & Fees

Mpower’s lowest listed fixed rate includes the total 0.25% interest rate reduction for enrolling in auto-pay.

Additional information about Mpower refinance rates:

• Checking your rate with Mpower will not affect your credit score. They will conduct a soft, not hard, credit inquiry (learn the difference).
• Mpower does offer a discount for setting up auto-pay: 0.25% interest rate reduction.

Additional Fees

Beyond interest rates, there are a number of fees a refinance lender may charge up-front or during the loan servicing period. Below is a list of these fees that Mpower does or does not charge.

1. Application fee – fee to apply for rates & approval.
2. Loan origination fee – fee to create the new loan.
3. Disbursement fee – fee for distributing funds to lenders to pay off loans that have been refinanced.
4. Prepayment penalty – fee for making extra payments to reduce a refinance loan balance or pay it off early.
5. Late payment fee – fee for making a late payment.
6. Returned payment fee – fee for failed payments due to insufficient funds, also known as a “bounced check”.
7. Collection fee – fee for collection activity on a defaulted debt.

Current Promotions & Offers

Mpower offers a 0.25% interest rate reduction for enrolling in direct debit or auto-pay.

Borrowing is not required to be eligible for Mpower scholarships, including its monthly scholarship series.

Mpower Refinance Eligibility Requirements

To qualify for refinancing with Mpower, all borrowers must meet the criteria below.

• Citizenship Requirement: none.
• Income Requirement: undisclosed.
• Credit Score Requirement: none.
• Graduation Requirement: bachelor’s degree.
• Location Requirement: current U.S. residence (3+ months).

Additional restrictions apply for specific individuals and loans.

• Refinance borrowers must have two (2) years of work experience in order to qualify.
• To qualify with Mpower, a borrower must have a valid visa (including OPT, H-1B, PGWP and more) or be a DACA recipient, U.S. citizen, permanent resident, refugee, or asylum seeker.
• Though borrowers must have U.S. residency, it is possible to refinance from any of 14 countries, including: Australia, Austria, Brazil, The Dominican Republic, Germany, India, Kenya, South Korea, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, Switzerland, Spain, or the United Kingdom.

Mpower Student Loan Repayment Options

Lenders vary greatly on the benefits and options provided to borrowers during the loan servicing period. Additionally, benefits may only be available on a case-by-case basis. Mpower offers some relief options.

Deferment & Forbearance

Mpower does not specify any conditions for deferment or forbearance. Mpower’s online Support Center, however, does reference forbearance. Mpower also offers free financial counseling to its borrowers.

See typical conditions for deferment and forbearance below.

Additional Options

Mpower may offer other opportunities for relief or contract modification.

• Co-signer release does not appear to be available after refinancing (though borrowers may reapply without a co-signer).
• Death / disability discharge may be available in the unfortunate circumstance that a borrower passes away or suffers total permanent disability.

Mpower Reviews, Complaints & Lawsuits

Beyond our own findings, our team also collected the most genuinely insightful customer experiences we could find, including any instances of legal action against the company in which the details became public.

Mpower Online Reviews

Few examples of Mpower customer reviews are available on English-language public forums. This is understandable considering Mpower is one of few lenders that refinances education loans for international students.

Below are 3 samples of MPower customer feedback from social media platforms, included here for their value as unedited, uncensored, and unsolicited user experiences. Note that these reviews are unverified, may include inaccuracies, and may provide outdated information (about rates, bonus offers, etc.).

“Anyone who intends to study in the US and needs private loans funding I highly recommend use @MPOWERfinancing . Check them out.” – @khanyelwazi on Twitter, 11/13/2021

“@MPOWERfinancing why is it so hard to get in contact with your team? Why do I have to keep sending 3-4 emails with no response? This issue has been going on for years. You need to do better it’s frustrating.” – @ikvinjeleuk on Twitter, 11/7/2021

“@MPOWERfinancing Can someone at mpower PLEASE get back to me about the status of my loan? I have gone without a response for nearly two weeks and my program start date is THURSDAY. I can’t move to the US without your response. Very frustrated with this poor service!!!” – @soft_aspects on Twitter, 8/31/2021

More (unfiltered) customer reviews of Mpower are available on TrustPilot.com (4.7 of 5).

Mpower CFPB Complaints

As consumer finance companies, student loan refinancing lenders fall under the jurisdiction of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). As part of its mission, this federal agency allows consumers to log official complaints. These complaints are publicly available on the CFPB official website.

Since December 4, 2022, the CFPB has logged 16 complaints about MPOWER Financing, Public Benefit Corporation (Mpower) at a rate of one (1) complaint every 47 ½ days; that is just below the average daily complaint rate among reviewed lenders. Among the 11 complaints that include narrative details, one (1) specifically references refinancing.

In 2024, consumers filed 8 complaints about Mpower, a 4.25% increase over the number of complaints filed in an average year. Mpower received 7 consumer complaints in 2023, equivalent to:

• 91.2% of its average annual complaint rate.
• one (1) complaint for every $9.129 million of estimated corporate revenue.
• one (1) complaint for every 18 employees.

The allegations made in these complaints are unverified, are not necessarily representative of all consumers’ experiences with MEFA, and may contain outdated information (about rates, bonus offers, etc.).

Below we’ve included three (3) of the most recent complaints (as of this writing) in which the consumer consented to share their details.

Complaint 9619251
7/26/2024
Texas

“My loan with Mpower financing was denied on XX/XX/year> stating that there are some delinquent pas and present obligations provided by XXXX credit. I have not seen the report and i do not know where that is coming from. I would like to see a copy of the report and if possible work on resolving every issue on there.”

Complaint 9582986
7/22/2024
Colorado

“I contract a student loan from MPower Financing and the loan repayment is managed by a third party called XXXX XXXX. My loan amount is {$57000.00}. including fees. I started making interest payments on the loan on XXXX XX/XX/year>. I have made four equal interest payments of {$310.00} till XXXX XX/XX/year>. I started making $ XXXX monthly payments on my loan interest from XXXX XXXX till date. The issue that arose was that, I have submitted my social security number to XXXX XXXX for my interest payments to reflect on my credit report. Still, as of now, I have not seen the interest I am paying on my student loan from MPower financing reflected on my credit score and credit report. I complained to XXXX XXXX and they told me they had submitted my credit details and payment history to the Credit Bureau for my credit score and credit report to be updated but none of that has been reflected on my credit report. XXXX XXXX then direct me to reach out to the department of Credit Bureau for assistance on my issue. I will be glad for your kind assistant in resolving this issue. Thanks for your corporation in advance. Thank you. XXXX.”

Complaint 9169947
6/5/2024
Georgia

“I had XXXX student loans with MPOWER Financing, and serviced by XXXX XXXX, from XX/XX/XXXX until XX/XX/XXXX, when I refinanced them. My new lender paid off my previous balance, but the payment was more than {$1000.00} higher than my balance. Moreover, having previously set up auto payment, I paid my regular monthly payment ( ~ {$530.00} ), one day after the refinancing had been completed. Subsequently, on XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX XXXX issued refunds for me and the new lender, to be paid within XXXX (! ) days. A couple of days later I exchanged a few emails with customer support, asking for a finance charge analysis because the refund issued to the new lender should have been somewhat higher, according to my calculations. Since then, I’ve called customer support quite a few times and they always seem to need more time. Every time I call them they ask for another XXXX business days. The last time they replied in an email was on XX/XX/XXXX, when they asked for another XXXX business days. Today is XX/XX/XXXX and no replies or payments have been received. Neither towards the new lender nor towards be, even though there’s nothing to calculate before returning an extra payment that happened after the closing of the account.”

To search for complaints made against Mpower in the CFPB’s Consumer Complaint Database, click here.

Mpower Lawsuits

Mpower Financing, PBC has not been subject to any major litigation.

Note that while this information is updated regularly, ongoing legal action is subject to change.

Frequently Asked Questions

These are the most common questions consumers have about student loan refinancing with Mpower.

• Is Mpower good for refinancing student loans?
  Mpower may be the best option for international students with no FICO score or credit history.

• Does Mpower require a minimum credit score to qualify for student loan refinancing?
  No, Mpower does not require a minimum credit score. Mpower advertises its services as a means to building a credit history.

• Do I have to have a U.S. bank account?
  No, Mpower accepts payment from eligible international financial institutions. Note that there may be fees associated with any currency exchange.

• Are Mpower loans federal?
  Mpower loans are not federal. Mpower has no affiliation with the federal government or the U.S. Department of Education.

• Does Mpower charge a prepayment penalty?
  There are no penalties for early payments or repaying a loan in full before its term is over.

• Does checking your rates with Mpower hurt your credit score?
  It depends; while Mpower does not require a FICO credit score, the refinance application process does include a review of any existing U.S. or Canadian credit history, or a credit history in the applicant’s country of origin (if available). This inquiry may temporarily impact a U.S. credit score.

• Is Mpower a bank?
  No, Mpower is not a bank. Bank of Lake Mills originates Mpower loans.

• Can I refinance a Mpower loan?
  No; because Mpower offers the same APR (and interest rate reductions) to every refinance borrower, there is no reason to refinance an Mpower loan more than once.

• Can I refinance just some of my loans with Mpower?
  Yes, you can refinance some, all, or just one of your qualifying student loans with Mpower. You may choose to refinance your private loans only or refinance private and federal loans together.

• Can I refinance loans that have already been refinanced?
  Yes, you can refinance loans as many times as you want with Mpower. Note that each time you refinance, you will have to submit a new application; every application requires a hard credit check that may affect your credit score.

• Can my spouse and I refinance our loans together with Mpower?
  Mpower only refinances loans for which the applicant is the primary borrower.

• How long does it take to refinance with Mpower?
  Mpower does not specify a timeline for refinancing student loans.

• Who services Mpower refinance loans?
  Mpower has loan servicers authorized to work with different borrowers. For example, NorthStar processes payments from students studying in Canada who need to make payments using Canadian dollars.

• Does Mpower offer a grace period?
  Borrowers may be eligible for interest-only payments for the first six (6) months after graduation. Contact Mpower for details.

• How often do variable rates change?
  Mpower does not offer variable rates.

• Can I get any special rates or discounts with Mpower?
  Mpower offers up to 1.50% in interest rate reductions for borrowers who make a minimum six (6) months eligible automatic payments and who provide proof of graduation and U.S. employment.

• What happens if I file for bankruptcy?
  Mpower does not specify a course of action; it is safe to assume that you will still have to repay your Mpower loan in the event that you file for bankruptcy.

• Does Mpower partner with any major student refinance lender marketplaces?
  Mpower does not appear to partner with any major student refinance lender marketplaces.

Compare Student Loan Refinance Reviews

Sources

1. Mpower Financing, Refinance International Student Loan
2. Mpower Support Center
3. ZoomInfo, MPOWER Financing