You might’ve recently received a mailer (similar to the one below) from FreshRate Funding who are offering a debt consolidation loan that you’ve apparently been “pre-approved” for. The company claims that you’ll be able to receive a personal loan of “up to $40,000 with a fixed rate as low as 5.99%”. They also mention that with this loan you’ll be able to save $674 a month.
To get to the bottom of things, we decided to do a deep dive on the company to figure out everything we can about this company. We’ll cover everything from their background, products, business practices, and customer reviews.
By the end, you’ll have much more knowledge about FreshRate Funding as a company and will hopefully be able to make a more informed decision when it comes to working with them. Continue reading to find out more!
What is FreshRate Funding?
FreshRate Funding History
From the business’s BBB page, we were able to collect a few pieces of information on the company’s background. It was founded and incorporated on 5/9/2022, is located in Newport Beach, CA, and is run by a man named Mr. Eric Heller.
We can also see from a quick Google search that the company operates two websites, one of which is a one-page landing website used for people to collect offers that they’ve received through mailers. The websites are freshrate.com and myfreshrate.com and were created on 04/23/2009 and 11/10/2023, respectively. This could possibly mean that the original domain was purchased from an older company while the new domain was recently added as the business expanded its operations.
We are also shown that the company’s full address is 260 Newport Center Dr Ste 419, Newport Beach, CA 92660-7520. After searching this up on LoopNet, we can see that this building is a coworking space. This means that employees of various companies share this office space which would make sense for a small company like FreshRate Funding.
Furthermore, it is listed that FreshRate Funding is operating under the alternate business name of “UniFi Funding, LLC”. After checking the company’s terms and conditions, we can further see that UniFi Funding, LLC is “dba FreshRate Funding”, which means that FreshRate Funding is simply an alternative name that is under the umbrella of the other company.
UniFi Funding, LLC seems to be very similar to FreshRate funding in many aspects. They are both located at the same address, were created/incorporated on the same day, and are operated by the same individual. This might beg the question of why UniFi Funding wanted to create an alternate business name and what purpose does the other business serve?
Nonetheless, we wanted to touch on another important aspect of the business which is whether or not it has a California Finance Lender and Broker license. This is especially important since it’s a debt consolidation loan company and this license would be a requirement for it to actually issue loans. Oftentimes, companies advertise loans but do not actually have the capability to underwrite loans, meaning they most likely stand as a marketing agent to actual loan companies. In the case of FreshRate Funding, however, they have their license number listed at the bottom of the website which was confirmed by the search below.
Lastly, we wanted to highlight a few sentences from the company’s fine text at the bottom of their website. They state that “We may be unable to extend credit, if, after you respond to this offer, the lender determines that you no longer meet the criteria established prior to this offer”. In some ways, this might be misleading since the mailer clearly says that the recipient has been “pre-qualified” for their loan. Furthermore, they also write that “loans may be funded by third-party lenders and loan funding sources and/or Unifi Funding, LLC”. This could mean that FreshRate Funding might also refer clients to other lenders, which is something to keep in mind.
FreshRate Funding Reviews
Now that you have some background information on the company itself, we wanted to highlight reviews from different sources. This will give you a better idea of the experiences that people have had with FreshRate Funding and what you might be able to expect yourself.
BBB
We first checked the company’s BBB page where they are rated 5/5 with 24 customer reviews. They are also rated A by BBB themselves and have been BBB accredited since 2/20/2024. Below are a few reviews that are representative of what most people are saying about the company.
These recent reviews all show that the individuals had good experiences speaking with FreshRate Funding’s representatives, and that those individuals were helpful in answering questions. We can also see that one reviewer was able to get a loan, which speaks to the fact that FreshRate Funding might actually be offering loans themselves as opposed to just referring people to other companies.
On Google, the business is rated 5/5 with 15 reviews. Once again, below are some reviews we wanted to highlight.
All four of these individuals state good things about their experiences with FreshRate Funding. Some mention that they were able to get an approval for a loan the same day while others praise the company for having “highly trained” representatives that are “super helpful, knowledgeable, and informative”.
Trustpilot
The last website we checked was the company’s page on Trustpilot. Here, they are rated 4.4/5 with 17 reviews. Below are a few reviews highlighting peoples’ positive and negative experiences with FreshRate Funding.
The first review we came across seems to carry the same theme of what people have been saying so far about the company. This person mentions that they were buried in credit card debt but thanks to FreshRate Funding, they were able to approve this individual within minutes with a solid rate and was able to fund their loan the next day.
This other individual, however, did not have as great of an experience with the company. They mention that the company’s email address is being “used for phishing emails” and that they are convinced the company is “involved with nefarious people”. If true, this is of course a terrible sign for the company and their business practices. However, it’s important to conduct your own research and dig into the truth of claims like these.
Important Distinction: Debt Consolidation Loans vs Debt Consolidation Programs
After having read about the company’s background and reviews, we wanted to bring up a point that we believe is important for people to know when discussing debt consolidation loan companies. The important word to highlight here is “loan” company. With that being said, many companies that claim to offer loans actually partake in a bait and switch tactic to get clients to sign up for debt consolidation loan programs instead. Therefore, we wanted to write about the difference between the two so you are aware going forwards.
Firstly, a debt consolidation loan is a loan offered by a lender which will allow you to pay off your existing debts and consolidate them (like the name says) into one payment. This new loan will also mostly likely have favorable interest rates that will allow you to reduce the total average interest rate that you are paying on your debts, allowing you to save money in the long run.
Debt consolidation loan programs, however, are much different. With these programs, a company will tell you to fall behind on your outstanding debts so that your creditors might start to believe that you will not pay your debts at all—building up your leverage to negotiate. Then, the company will reach out to your creditors and attempt to settle your debts for about 50% of what you still owe on them. After this is done, the debt consolidation loan company will also take a fee of approximately 15-25% of your debt. This will leave you with about 75% of your total debt amount left to pay back, meaning you will save ~25%. However, with this method, it is extremely important to understand all the terms and conditions. There oftentimes might be hidden origination fees, balance transfer fees, closing costs, and annual fees—all of which will reduce the amount of money you save. Lastly, it is important to consider that although your monthly payment might decrease, a new loan with a longer term could result in your paying an increased amount in overall interest payments compared to your current outstanding debts.
Closing Thoughts
After having read this article, hopefully you have a better understanding of the company and their business practices. It is positive that they have a lender’s license, and we encourage you to ask all the questions necessary if you plan to work with this company to ensure you know exactly what you’re getting into.
We always recommend you to do your own research as well so you can build a comprehensive and solid understanding of these companies. Hopefully, this will help you make a more informed and accurate decision for yourself. Thank you for reading!
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