Table of Contents
Editorial disclosure: Our goal is to give you the tools and confidence you need to improve your finances.
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Our Take
Brazos refinance loans offer flexible repayment terms and a cosigner release option, making them a solid choice for Texas borrowers and with strong credit. However, eligibility is limited to Texas residents.
Min. Credit Score:
720
Loan Amount:
$10,000 ~ $400,000
Fixed APR:
4.19% - 6.89% with autopay
Variable APR:
3.67% - 6.32% with autopay
Loan Terms:
5, 7, 10, 15 or 20 years Years
Loan Types Offered:
Private student loans, parent loans and student loan refinance
Pros
- Loans don’t have application, origination or prepayment fees.
- Offers cosigner release after 12 consecutive on-time payments.
- Individuals still in school can refinance.
Cons
- Brazos’ refinance loan is only offered to Texas Residents.
- Does not offer bi-weekly payments via autopay.
What is Brazos?
Brazos Higher Education is a Texas non-profit and refinance lender based in Waco, Texas. Brazos has financed over two million student loans to Texans for over 50 years.
Brazos only offers student loan refinancing to Texas residents. Refinance loans have five term options with maximum loan amounts of up to $400,000. Brazos requires a minimum credit score of 720 and a minimum income of $60,000.
If approved for a refinance loan with a cosigner, Brazos does offer a cosigner release option after 12 months of consecutive on-time payments. However, borrowers have to meet the lender’s other underwriting requirements.
Who would benefit the most from Brazos Student Loan Refinance?
- Texas residents with a strong credit history who want to refinance a student loan.
- Eligible applicants who need a co-signer release option.
How can Brazos Student Loan Refinance improve?
- Offer bi-weekly payments via autopay. This makes it easier for borrowers to pay down their debt over time.
- Offer a grace period. Provide a grace period to borrowers who may still be enrolled in school.
- Remove late fees. A 5% late fee might be heavy for borrowers who hit a rough patch. Brazos could remove fees, which could lighten the burden on borrowers.
Terms, fees & details
- Loan terms: 5, 7, 10, 15 or 20 years.
- Loan amounts: $10,000 to $400,000. Up to $250,000 for borrowers with a bachelor’s degree, and a max of $400,000 for graduate, medical, law or other professional degrees.
- Soft credit check offered: Yes.
- Allows you to transfer a parent loan to a child: No.
- Application or origination fee: No
- Prepayment penalty: No
- Late fees: Yes, 5% of the overdue amount or $35, whichever is less.
Friendly Finly Advice
If possible pre-qualify with multiple lenders before committing to a loan offer. Pre-qualifying allows you to compare potential rates and terms to ensure you’re getting the lowest rate. Rates can depend on a variety of factors, including credit history and income.
Fixed APR:
5.15% - 9.40% with autopay
Variable APR:
N/A
Min. Credit Score:
670
Max. Loan Amount:
$300,000
Fixed APR:
5.15% - 10.69% with autopay
Variable APR:
N/A with autopay
Min. Credit Score:
N/A
Max. Loan Amount:
$0
How do we select lenders?
About This Comparison:
We select three alternative refinance lenders that offer similar products to the lender featured in this review. These lenders are chosen based on their relevance to common borrower-related information—such as APR ranges, repayment terms, credit score requirements and loan amount options—their overall competitiveness in the refinance market, and their strong performance on our lender rating rubric. Our editorial team makes these selections independently to help borrowers easily compare key features and make an informed decision.
To help readers evaluate whether the featured lender is the right fit for their needs, we include a comparison section highlighting three alternative student loan refinance lenders. These lenders are selected using the following criteria:
1. Direct Relevance to Borrower Decision-Making
We choose lenders whose core offerings overlap with the featured lender—specifically in APR ranges, repayment terms, required credit scores and loan amount minimums/maximums. This ensures borrowers can make an apples-to-apples comparison of the factors most likely to influence their refinance decision.
2. Competitive Position in the Market
Alternative lenders are selected based on their market presence, competitive rates, and borrower-friendly features. We prioritize lenders that are commonly considered alongside the featured lender by refinance shoppers and industry experts.
3. Coverage of a Representative Spectrum of Options
We include lenders that together provide a balanced view of the refinance
market, such as:
- A lender with low advertised APRs
- A lender with flexible or unique loan terms
- A lender with broad loan amount ranges or borrower eligibility criteria
- A lender with strong performance on our lender rating rubric
- A lender with minimum credit scores that fits borrowers who may visit the featured lender review.
This mix helps borrowers understand how the featured lender compares across different strengths.
4. Data Availability and Consistency
We only include lenders for which we have current, verifiable information on APRs, repayment options, loan amounts and eligibility requirements. This ensures the comparison is accurate, transparent, and aligned with our editorial standards.
5. Editorial Independence
Our editorial team selects alternative lenders solely based on borrower benefits and informational value. Lender partnerships or compensation agreements do not influence which lenders are selected or how they’re presented.
How to qualify
You’ll have to meet Brazos’ eligibility criteria to refinance your student loan. The company has various requirements for applicants to meet:
Financial criteria
- Minimum credit score: 720
- Minimum income: $60,000
- Debt-to-Income ratio maximum: 50%
- Allow applicants with bankruptcies to apply: Yes, but only if it occurred more than 5 years ago.
- Average credit score for approved borrowers or co-signers: 787
- Average Income of approved borrowers or co-signers: $127,201
- Co-signer minimum credit score: 720
- Co-signer minimum income: $60,000
Brazos also requires applicants to have a strong credit history and employment or an employment offer to begin work within 60 days. Brazos also provides the option for borrowers to apply with a qualified co-signer.
Location, citizenship and education criteria:
- Citizenship requirements: A United States citizen, a national or a permanent resident. Borrowers who apply with an eligible co-signer can be a non-citizen with a work or student visa or a DACA recipient.
- Location restrictions: Only offered to Texas residents.
- Graduation criteria: No graduation requirement. You only have to be enrolled at least half-time at one of 2000 eligible schools in the country.
- School criteria: Must be one of 2000 eligible schools nationwide.
- Percentage of borrowers with a co-signer: 26%
- Other restrictions: N/A
Friendly Finly Advice
Brazos, and other refinance lenders, may have additional criteria they use to determine eligibility for potential borrowers. Always check the lender’s website and contact them to confirm or ask about eligibility criteria.
Repayment, deferment, forbearance and discharge options
- Full (Immediate) Repayment: Principal and interest payments start immediately after loan disbursement, even if you’re still in school.
- Alternative Repayment Plan: Borrowers can make interest-only payments for up to 24 months if they are having difficulty making payments.
- Grace period: There is no grace period available for a Brazos Refinance Loan.
- Offers greater-than-minum payments with autopay: No.
- Allows borrowers to make bi-weekly payments via autopay: No. Brazos offers repayment terms of 5, 7, 10, 15, or 20 years for refinance loans.
- Medical Residency or Internship Deferment: Yes. Available in one-year increments with proof of participation.
- Post-Deferment Grace Period: After any deferment period, borrowers may request an additional six months of payment relief. Interest accrues during all deferment and grace periods and capitalizes.The interest is added to the original principal balance once repayment resumes.
- Administrative forbearance: No
- Economic hardship: Yes, in three-month increments, up to 12 months total.
- Active military duty: Yes, up to 36 months.
- Natural Disaster: Yes, up to 12 months, in three-month increments.
- Death or disability discharge for borrower: Yes
- Death or disability discharger for co-signer: No
- Co-signer release: Yes, after 12 months of on-time consecutive payments. Borrowers must also pass a credit check, and meet other underwriting requirements.
The Brazos customer service experience
- Loan servicer: American Education Services.
- After loan dispersal payments begin within: 30 – 60 day
- Online chat support (Bot, live or both): None, but you can contact the lender by phone or through email listed on their website.
- Physical location or branch: Yes.
- In-house customer service representatives: Yes.
- FAQs included: Yes, Brazos answers over 35 questions regarding eligibility, the application process and repayment.
- Provides borrowers a representative who works with them throughout the entire repayment process: No.
- Offers a process for making and escalating complaints: There isn’t a formal process; customers are directed to contact Brazos’ customer service team with feedback or complaints.
- Has tools that allow applicants to calculate potential monthly payments: Yes, they have a refinance calculator on their website.
- Typical time from loan approval to funding: Pre-approval is typically instant, while final approval takes a few weeks.
- Brazos’ track record with customers: Brazos has received only one Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) complaint over the last 12 months. The borrower’s issue concerned incorrect debt verification documents. Brazos has responded to the borrower and CFPB has closed the complaint.
Perks & Benefits
Brazos offers a 0.25% interest rate discount for borrowers who enroll in automatic payments.
Promotional Offers
Brazos offers a $200 referral bonus. You are not required to have a loan or account with Brazos to participate. However, you must meet certain eligibility requirements to request a unique referral link.
The referred borrower must use the referrer’s unique link, be approved for a student, parent or refinance loan and receive their first loan disbursement.
Visit Brazos’ referral requirements page to check your eligibility for this program. Additional terms, conditions and restrictions could apply, and offer details may change.
Friendly Finly Advice:
Even if Brazos has competitive rates, compare multiple refinance lenders before committing to a loan. Prequalifying and comparing lenders is the best way to ensure you’re getting the lowest possible rate and most affordable repayment plan for your budget.
How to apply for a Brazos Refinance Loan (Texas Residents)
- Confirm that you meet Brazos’ Texas-only eligibility requirements. Brazos refinance loans are available exclusively to Texas residents, so make sure you qualify before starting your application.
- Check your rate with a soft credit pull. Begin with Brazos’ online rate check to see potential fixed- or variable-rate offers without impacting your credit score.
- Choose your loan terms and structure. Select your repayment term and rate type, and decide whether to apply with a co-signer (if it strengthens your application). Brazos also allows eligible borrowers who are still in school to refinance.
- Submit documentation and complete underwriting. Upload required documents such as proof of income, Texas residency and current loan statements so Brazos can finalize your approval.
- Review and accept your offer. Carefully review the final APR, repayment terms and fee disclosures (including potential late fees). Once you accept, Brazos pays off your existing loans and your new refinance loan begins repayment.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can borrow a minimum loan amount of $10,000. Brazos can lend up to $250,000 for borrowers with a bachelor’s degree, and up to $400,000 for graduate, medical, law or other professional degrees.
Brazos only offers loan refinance in the state of Texas and to Texas residents.
Brazos has a variety of factors they use to determine eligibility. These include Texas residency, having a minimum credit score of 720 and verified income. For a comprehensive list of Brazos’ criteria, visit their website.
American Education Services services Brazos’ refinance loans.
Brazos Refinance Loan does not offer a grace period.
Methodology
Making finance more human through transparent rating methodologies…
Finly reviews student loan refinance lenders using a transparent, borrower-first methodology built around real financial outcomes. We evaluate lenders across six weighted categories—including cost, protections, flexibility and accessibility—using a structured scoring model grounded in what matters most to borrowers.
Our ratings are developed independently and regularly updated to reflect current rates, terms and lender policies, helping you compare options with clarity and confidence. Take a look at our Methodology page for an even more in-depth view of our scoring process.