Discover Review

Overall Score
4.4 out of 5
Trustpilot
1.8 out of 5
Loan Volume
4.8 out of 5
Editorial Rating
4.3 out of 5

Summary

When it comes to refinance loans, Discover aims to provide a transparent financial service that gives customers the freedom to achieve their goals. Whether you need to lower your monthly rates or need cash to pay for home improvement projects, Discover can help.

Highlights

Review
  • A top-performed lender with billions of dollars lended
  • No origination or closing fees
  • Informative website that gives customers a clear idea of their options
  • Customer service is available seven days a week
Overall
As long as your credit score meets their requirements, Discover is definitely a company to consider for your refinance loan. Given their commitment to not charging origination or closing fees, their costs make it worth the effort to get a quote from them -- and their straightforward application makes doing just that simple.

Discover Ratings

The team at BestRefinanceRates.com considers a variety of sources and methods to determine an overall ratings score. First, a lender's Trustpilot score (or TrustScore) is factored in, when available. Truspilot, a third-party review site, is a leading source regarding customer satisfaction and consumer sentiment. From there, for lenders that publicly release their financial statements, we research loan origination volume. Loan origination volume is one way to understand a lender's solvency and transactional reliability. Next is brand strength. For lenders who have met a certain threshold of engagement on BestRefinanceRates.com, we measure their relative popularity among our consumers. And finally, we offer our editorial ratings, which rely heavily on in-depth brand research and secret shopping.

Editor Ratings

Loan Variety
Loans Offered Include: Fixed, conventional cash-out, 10 to 30-year terms
Discover's loan options are fairly well-rounded so long as you want a fixed-rate loan. They have several terms available so homeowners can customize a loan to their unique needs. If you want an adjustable-rate refinance, however, this may not be the choice for you.
Fees
As far as costs go, Discover comes out about average overall -- they have slightly higher APRs generally, but they do not charge origination or closing fees, which can help even things out.
Customer Service
Customer service with Discover gets a high rating. Their site is informative and full of resources, including helpful cost calculators for homeowners to use before committing to a loan. Additionally, their customer service is available seven days a week via phone, and customers that do apply for a refinance will have a team of licensed professionals assigned directly to them.
Company Reputation
As a whole, customers are satisfied with Discover's refinance services. Their customer support is usually swift with responses and their website is intuitive. As with any company, it's important to always read the fine print when you take out a loan to make sure you're aware of all of the terms.
Ease of Application Process
As far as applications go, Discover's is one of the easiest, as it can be completed online within a few minutes. Information you will be asked to provide include your current home value, your current mortgage, and your contact information, which is consistent with other lenders. They offer refinance loans in all 50 states.
For Lower Credit Scores
Minimum Credit Score: 620
While Discover doesn't offer loans to homeowners with the lowest scores, their requirements aren't excessively strict either. Depending on the loan type and the specific terms attached, they're still a fairly good option for homeowners with a lower credit score.
For Higher Credit Scores
Discover is average when it comes to this category. As with any lender, they lower their rates for homeowners with good credit scores, so homeowners should definitely check their website to see what options they have.

Additional Ratings

Trustpilot Rating
  • Discover's Trustpilot rating currently sits at 1.8
  • Some customers find the loan terms to be overly complicated, though most reviews are concerning the company's credit card line rather than their mortgage lending services
Loan Volume Rating
  • Discover has one of the highest loan origination amounts in the country, with its 2022 origination number sitting at $112 billion*

Company Background

Founded in 1985, Discover sparks instant recognition in anyone who sees its logo -- which makes sense, given they're the third largest credit card brand in the country. Besides playing a huge role in the credit card business, they also provide quality banking, personal loans, student loans, home loans, and refinancing services to all of their customers.