Are Personal Loans Right For Me If I’m Struggling Financially
Perhaps. If you have income stability and are confident you can pay back what you owe in a timely manner, a personal loan might work for your financial situation. However, it’s generally unwise to treat a personal loan as a solution if you are unemployed or otherwise struggling financially.
You should be especially wary of payday lenders, as they will often charge $15 to $30 per $100 borrowed, which could translate into an interest rate between 300% and $500%. Other types of short-term personal loans may be available at far better interest rates or with lower fees.
If you believe a personal loan might be right for your unique financial situation, there are a few things to consider:
Features To Look For When Choosing A Personal Loan
Fair enough if youâre feeling a little overwhelmed at choosing a personal loan, thereâs a lot to take in. So hereâs a list of features to consider, helping make the decision a little bit easier.
- Low fees:Avoid or keep to a minimal, upfront, ongoing, or early repayment fees.
- Borrowing: Usually the minimum amount is $2000 the maximum will depend on what you can afford. To help figure out what you can borrow try out our personal loan repayment calculator.
- Flexible repayments: Make sure your personal loan provides you with the flexible option of an extra repayments facilityâ¦you never know when you may find yourself with some extra cash.
- Redraw facility: Once you’ve paid off a portion of your bank loan, you can draw that money back out again. This feature may be handy to have for when an unexpected bill or health issue pops up.
- Fixed or variable interest rate: Have a read above for the pros and cons of each.
Benefits Of Choosing A Personal Loan
One benefit of a personal loan is in the name: Its personal. You can use it for any reason you like and you often dont need collateral to get one.
You can use personal loans to cover practical expenses like or remodeling a bathroom to something whimsical like buying a boat or taking a European vacation. The choice is yours.
Personal loans, especially unsecured ones, usually require an application and verification of your financial standing. Though banks or credit unions make personal loans, the new trend is toward less conventional lenders.
Family and friends can be the source of money, though it is advisable to have a formal loan agreement with them to make sure the relationship doesnt go sour.
There also are many peer-to-peer online lending sources like Prosper and Lending Club, as well as sites like Kickstarter.com and IndieGoGo.com that cater to entrepreneurs. The online sites normally charge a fee, but if you need money quickly they represent an option.
Other benefits of personal loans:
- You get the money faster. In most cases approval is much quicker than with conventional loans.
- Dont need a bank. The money could come from a credit union, an online lender, a family member or friend.
- Fixed rate interest, fixed length of repayment and fixed monthly payments.
- Loan amounts available from $1,000 to $100,0000.
- Lower interest rates than credit cards.
- If loan comes from a bank, possible discounts on interest rates.
Also Check: Diy Loan Agreement
What Can I Use A Personal Loan For
In general, personal loans are restricted to use for just thatpersonal uses. Lenders typically extend personal loans to borrowers who want to finance things like home improvement, travel and vacations, weddings, car-related expenses and debt consolidation. On the other hand, banks often restrict the use of personal loan funds on post secondary education costs, business purposes and illegal activities.
While most lenders ask prospective borrowers to provide the purpose of the loan in their application, some banks are more strictrequiring borrowers to use the loan on exactly what they identify in the initial loan application.
Minimize The Impact Of Inquiries
When you apply for credit and a lender reviews your credit report, a hard inquiry is noted on your report. Hard inquiries remain on credit reports for two years, and their impact diminishes over time. However, in the short term, too many hard inquiries on your report can have a negative effect on your credit score.
If you’ll be comparison shopping by applying to more than one lender, be sure to do so in a short time frame to minimize the impact of hard inquiries. Generally, credit scoring models will count multiple hard inquiries for the same type of credit product as a single event as long as they occur in a short window of a few weeks. Don’t stretch your comparison shopping and applications over a period of months.
Another option is to ask if a lender can prescreen or preapprove you for a loan offer. Preapproval often counts as a soft inquiry, which doesn’t affect credit scoring.
You May Like: Can You Use The Va Loan To Buy Land
How Do I Apply For A Personal Loan
Applying for a personal loan through a lending network is easy. Each may have its own process, but in general, it follows a certain order.
The online lender starts by asking you to fill out a loan application. The information it may ask you for includes:
- The reason for the loan
- Name
- Drivers license or state ID number
- Type of bank account you have: checking or savings
- If youre paid via direct deposit or paper check
- How long youve had your bank account
Within minutes, if not seconds, the matching service will identify lenders interested in funding your loan. You may just have to next provide bank details, such as your banks routing number and account number, so it knows where to deposit your loan proceeds.
The matching service will then likely transfer you to the lenders website, where youll finish the application process by providing more information. This may include the lender asking your permission to conduct a credit check.
The lender should be able to do a credit check within minutes. If you meet its minimum credit score requirement, among other things, then you will receive a loan agreement with the rate and terms of the loan. Read the loan terms and make sure you understand all of them youre under no obligation to accept the loan offer.
Personal Loan In The Netherlands
A personal loan can be a great way to create extra financial capacity. You can use a consumer loan for many purposes, such as to renovate your home, buy household appliances or buy a car. Whether youre interested in knowing if you can save money on your current personal loan, you want to apply for a loan or you just want a second opinion on interest rates, we are here to help you out.
Borrowing money in the Netherlands how does it work?
First things first, what is a personal loan? Simply put, a personal loan in The Netherlands is a type of consumer credit that has monthly instalments, interest and a fixed term. Mostly, the loan is directly paid out to you as the borrower through a single payment. This form of lending provides the necessary certainty. This is because the amount of money you have to pay off the loan every month, is laid down beforehand.
Interest on a consumer loan
When taking out a loan in the Netherlands it is very important to pay attention to the interest rate you will have to pay. The higher the interest rate, the more expensive your loan will be. The monthly instalments are made up of a repayment and the interest payment and will be fixed throughout the term of the loan.
Applying for a personal loan
To apply for a personal loan as an expat in the Netherlands. Most lenders want you to meet the following requirements:
Don’t Miss: Usaa Car Refinance Calculator
What Type Of Loan Has The Lowest Interest Rate
Even among loans of the same type, loan interest rates can vary based on several factors, such as the lender issuing the loan, the creditworthiness of the borrower, the loan term and whether the loan is secured or unsecured. In general, though, shorter-term or unsecured loans have higher interest rates than longer-term or secured loans.
Your credit score and debt-to-income ratio can affect the interest rates you’re offeredgetting low interest rates usually requires good to excellent credit.
- Mortgages usually have the lowest interest rates because they are secured and repaid over a long period. As of September 30, 2021, the average mortgage rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 3.01%.
- Interest rates for federal student loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2021, and before July 1, 2022, range from 3.73% to 6.28% private student loan interest rates range from 1.04% to 12.99%.
- For a 48-month auto loan, the average interest rate was 5.28% as of May 2021.
- The average APR on a two-year personal loan was 9.58% as of May 2021.
In comparison, the average credit card APR was 16.3% as of May 2021.
Personal Loans And Your Credit
It’s important to manage any type of credit you use wisely, including a personal loan. Personal loans can be helpful when managed well, but taking on debt should never be something you do lightly – or without looking carefully at your overall financial picture before you pull the trigger.
Before you make any kind of important credit decision, it’s best to check your credit report so you understand your current credit standing. Plus, reviewing your report can help you better understand how your decision may affect your credit in the future.
Don’t Miss: How Does Someone Take Over A Car Loan
Personal Loans Vs Credit Cards
While personal loans are fixed amounts borrowed at an interest rate, credit cards give you a revolving line of credit, up to a specified limit and usually at a higher interest rate.
See: Personal loans vs credit cards
For more information on credit cards, including how credit card interest works and the different types of credit cards, visit our .
When Does The Payback Period Begin For A Personal Loan From A Bank
As with most loans, like for a home or a car, you will begin to repay your personal loan approximately one month after you sign the paperwork. For example, if you sign the loan documents on June 15th, you can expect your first payment to be due somewhere around July 15th.
This can differ slightly from one bank to the next, so be sure to clarify it from the start.
Tip: You may be able to request a specific due date if something in particular works best for your budget.
Recommended Reading: How To Find Out Where My Student Loans Are
All Loans Arent Created Equal If You Need To Borrow Money First Youll Want To Decide Which Type Of Loan Is Right For Your Situation
As you begin comparing loans, youll find that your credit is often an important factor. It helps determine your approval and loan terms, including interest rate.
To help you get started, well review eight types of loans and their advantages. Well also discuss things you should watch out for as you make your decision.
Advantages Of Guarantor Loans
- Guarantor loans are ideal for those who have a less than perfect credit rating
- These types of personal loan tend to be cheaper than payday loans and cheque cashing finance
- Guarantor loans arent generally linked to assets, such as the guarantors home
- This form of finance can improve the applicants credit rating if they keep up with all of the repayments
Recommended Reading: Loan Officer License Ca
Borrowing From Friends And Family
Borrowing money from friends and relatives is an informal type of personal loan. It can result is considerably less interest and administrative fees for the borrower, but it isnt always a good option. A few missed payments may strain a relationship. To protect both parties, its a good idea to sign a basic promissory note.
Learn more about borrowing from friends and family.
Fixed Vs Variable Rates
Whether your loan is unsecured or secured, theres the matter of interest, which is your primary cost to borrow the money. A fixed interest rate means the rate remains the same for the life of the loan.In contrast, a variable interest rate means the rate will change over the life of the loan in response to the ups and downs of a financial benchmark determined by the bank typically the London Interbank Offered Rate or the Prime Rate. , and could be replaced by the Secured Overnight Financing Rate or SOFR.)
Most types of loans come with fixed interest rates, but the rate you receive for either will be based on your credit score. Again, the higher your credit score and stronger your finances, the lower the interest rate you can expect.
Fixed interest rates allow you to know just how much the loan will cost you in its entirety and allow you to budget accordingly. Variable interest rate loans may save you money if interest rates go down, but if they go up, they could end up costing you more. While they do have ceilings to protect borrowers from astronomical jumps in the market, those ceilings are generally set quite high.
| Fixed |
Don’t Miss: Using Va Home Loan For Investment Property
Interest Rates And Other Fees
Interest rates and fees can make a big difference in how much you pay over the life of a loan, and they vary widely from lender to lender. Here are some things to consider.
- Interest rates: Rates typically range from around 5% to 36%, depending on the lender and your credit. In general, the better your credit, the lower your interest rate will be. And the longer your loan term, the more interest youre likely to pay.
- Origination fees: Some lenders charge a fee to cover the cost of processing the loan. Origination fees typically range from 1% to 6% of the loan amount.
- Prepayment penalties: Some lenders charge a fee if you pay off your loan early because early repayment means that the lenders are missing out on some of the interest that they would have otherwise earned.
Before signing on the dotted line, consider adding up all the costs associated with the loan, not just the interest rate, to determine the total amount of money youll be responsible for repaying.
Fixed Vs Variable Personal Loans
Personal loans can also come with either fixed or variable interest rates: A fixed loan means your interest rate is locked in for the duration of the personal loan, while a variable personal loan means your interest rate can change on the whims of your lender or movements in the broader market. At the time of writing :
-
Fixed-rate loans tend to have slightly higher rates and fees – for example, they tend to charge exit fees for breaking the fixed term – but can offer you secure repayments, whereas
-
Variable-rate loans often have lower rates and fees, but this could change if the interest rate on your loan is increased by the lender
Either a fixed or variable rate loan may work better depending on what youre using the money for. Fixed loans might be better for bigger purchases as you can have more structured repayments, but a variable personal loan could be the better solution for a smaller loan amount, like if youd borrowed for a holiday that you want to pay off quickly.
Don’t Miss: How Long Sba Loan Take
Check Out The Details
Now that you know you are prequalified, its time to prequalify the lender. Go through information and disclosures in your preapproval letter and revisit the website to look for the following:
- Expected Loan Amount, APR, Monthly Payment, and Loan Term. It may or may not be exact, but it will give you something with which to compare other preapproved loans.
- Fees and Penalties. Will this loan have an origination fee? If so, how much? What are the penalties or fees for late or missed payments? Are there any other charges?
- Type of Interest. Is the interest rate fixed or variable? Do I have a choice, and, if so, whats the difference in rates?
- Unsecured or Secured. Will this be an unsecured or secured loan? For a secured loan, what is required collateral?
- Automatic Withdrawal. Are automatic withdrawals of monthly payments mandatory or optional? If optional, will I get a lower interest rate if I agree to automatic withdrawals?
- Arbitration. In the event of a conflict, is arbitration mandatory, or can I take the lender to court?
- Prepayment Penalty. If I pay my loan off early, will I pay a penalty?
- Fine Print. Theres always fine print, even in preapproval letters. Look for anything not answered above or anything you hadnt thought of.
