There are lots of ways to get a personal loan. The highest number of choices in where to go typically belong to those with verifiably very good to excellent credit. Fewer choices exist as credit score drops. Yet even with bad credit it is possible, although possibly no advisable, to get small loans.
At the top of the list in how to get a personal loan are banks, credit unions, savings and loans and institutions called peer-to-peer lending. With very good credit, people may be able to apply at their bank, credit union or the like and get a decent offer on a personal loan. This usually takes a few days for approval, but interest rates especially at credit unions can be good. Those who want to get a secured loan with better rates can take a longer route and obtain an equity line of credit, which is removed from equity in a home or other property or they can refinance a home and simultaneously remove some equity.
Another option is joining a peer-to-peer lending group to get a loan. This allows borrowers to get small loans at fairly low interest rates. People invest money as lenders or they request a loan and become part of a network of borrowers or lenders. Some people find this type of group a good option for investing. Credit scores required to participate are usually quite high.
If the loan amount required is small, a person could get a personal loan by obtaining a credit card account with a balance needed to accommodate the amount of a personal loan. Again, people might obtain this through a bank, but they can also look online at credit card offers to find the most advantageous ones. This option won’t be available to everyone unless they have excellent credit. People who need much higher loan amounts might not be able to get what they need with a credit card.
Those who don’t have great credit history might look into the credit card option too. This is still more available to consumers than is getting personal loans from banks or peer-to-peer lending, which might require a fairly high credit rating. Alternately, borrowers can look to other lending companies that will give what is considered a “higher” risk loan that has correspondingly higher interest rates.
For those unable to get credit cards with a high enough amount or to get a personal loan of any other type, another option is the bad credit or payday loan type. These may be available in amounts up to about $1500 US Dollars (USD), but they can charge huge fees to originate the loan and during payback, especially if the loan is repaid in installments. An additional option would be to try to obtain loans from family members or friends, with a clear contract on repayment.
