Loans

Whether you’re looking to book a family vacation, carry out some essential home improvements or simply wish to consolidate your existing debts, Credit Raters can help. We’ll help you to compare the latest offers from the country’s leading lenders across a huge range of products, including:

• Payday loans
• Auto loans
• Guarantor loans
• Instalment loans
• Emergency loans
• Peer to peer loans

Choose how you want to do business by selecting a lender that can offer loans by phone, online or in store.

As a time saving tip, remember to check that your chosen lender supports your preferred loan types in your state before beginning the application process.

What Are Personal Loans?

If you’re new to loans then let’s start with the basics. Personal loans is a wide-ranging term that covers the more traditional loan types in the USA. You’ll receive a fixed lump from your lender and will need to pay this back over the length of time that you’ve selected. As well as paying back the amount you’ve borrowed, you’ll also need to repay a small amount of added interest.

No matter what loan types you decide to apply for, you’ll need to fulfill some basic eligibility criteria to be considered. At the very least, you’ll need to be:

• At least 18 years of age
• A permanent US resident living in an eligible state
• A checking account holder so you can receive your funds
• Full time, part time or self employed

Some lenders may also need your social security number and/or photographic identification to verify your details before transferring your loan.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the most common personal loan types that we offer here at Credit Raters.

How Do Payday Loans Work?

As one of America’s most popular loan types, payday loans have fast become an essential resource when it comes to tackling unforeseen financial emergencies. From a broken down car to a forgotten wedding anniversary, payday loans can be used as emergency loans for any purpose.

They’re very quick and easy to apply for, and you’ll simply need to repay the amount you’ve borrowed on your upcoming payday/s. If approved, funds can typically be transferred to your account inside 24 hours with some lenders even able to make same day transfers.

How Are Instalment Loans Different From Payday Loans?

If need to borrow more than what you can reasonably afford to repay on your next payday then it’s well worth considering an instalment loan. Whilst payday loans and instalments loans are both considered short term borrowing solutions, instalment loans will allow you to repay your outstanding balance over a fixed period of a few months.

Here’s a closer look at how the different personal loans from Credit Raters compare with each other.

Loan Types	Short Term Lender?	Typical Repayment Schedule	Cash Advance Available?
Instalment Loans	Yes	3-6 months	Yes
Payday Loans	Yes	Next pay day	Yes
Auto Loans	No	3-18 months	No
Peer To Peer Lending	Yes	1 – 12 months	Yes

How Do Auto Loans Work?

Buying a vehicle is one of the most costly purchases you can make. The fact is that so many people rely on their cars for getting to work, running the kids around and for general transport can make things very difficult when they suddenly aren’t available.

Whether this is your first time buying a car or you’re replacing your existing one, auto loans can help to significantly reduce the financial impact of a large outlay.

With auto loans, you’ll be able to select the amount of cash needed to purchase your next vehicle, allowing you to effectively spread the costs of the car over a convenient loan term. You’ll own the car outright from the start and will have full use of it even whilst you’re repaying back your loan.

What Is Peer To Peer Lending?

With the internet now connecting billions of people around the world, the growth of peer to peer lending was an inevitability. Rather than borrowing money through the more traditional methods of banks and direct lenders, peer to peer lending allows you to borrow from a pool of funds built up by investors.

These investors receive a better return than having their cash sat in a bank account whilst borrowers benefit from highly competitive rates of interest and lightning fast access to cash. It’s win-win for everyone involved.

Your repayments are still reported to credit agencies in the same way as any other personal loan, so punctual repayments will give your credit score a healthy boost.

What Loans Are Available For Bad Credit?

At Credit Raters, we believe that everyone should be able to access credit during life’s little emergencies. We work with a range of lenders who specialise in offering loans suitable for those with a less than perfect credit score.

Just because you’ve had issues with credit in the past won’t automatically exclude you from successfully applying for a traditional personal loan. However, you may find that you’ll need to pay higher rates of interest or will temporarily have access to a lower credit limit whilst you improve your credit score and show your lender that you’re able to make regular, timely repayments.

Guarantor Loans

Guarantor loans are one of the fastest growing loan types for bad credit applicants. Rather than applying for personal loans using solely your own credit history, you’ll be able to nominate someone you know to ‘guarantor’ your loan, meaning that the buck will ultimately stop with them if you’re ever unable to meet your repayments.

They’ll need to have a strong credit history themselves, although by making the repayments on time and in full you’ll actually improve your own credit score. Also, it should go without saying that you’ll need their permission before putting them on your application and the lender will want to confirm this with them before final terms are offered.

How Are My Repayments Calculated?

Whenever you apply for a loan, your lender will take a number of key factors into account to help them decide the interest rate for your loan, including:

• Income
• Employment status
• Credit score

Of course, every lender uses its own set of criteria to determine whether to accept you and what your final monthly repayments will be. Other factors such as your residential status, collateral and the purpose of your loan are also considered by some lenders.

By taking into account this information they’ll be able to build up a good idea of your creditworthiness, financial management and ability to repay your personal loans. This risk is reflected in your interest rate and credit limit with low risk customers receiving more competitive interest rates than those with a poorer credit background.

How Can I Find Loans Near Me?

The most common way to apply for personal loans in today’s day and age is online, however, it’s completely understandable that some borrowers will occasionally want to carry out this process face to face.

Of course, it makes more sense to apply for emergency loans online where they can be processed and issued almost immediately. However, some personal loans may require physical documentation before they can be approved or customers may wish to discuss their options with an adviser, such as if applying for bank loans.

The reality is that loans by phone or loans online can be accessed no matter where you are via your smartphone, tablet or computer, and you’re likely to get a far bigger spread option rather than approaching a bank or store-based direct lender.

How Do Apply For Loans Online?

Back in the ‘old days’ before the world wide web, finding the most competitive personal loan for your circumstances was a real headache.

It meant either taking a chance with the first lender you came across, making an appointment with the bank which could take weeks, or spending days applying to each lender until one came back with a suitable rate.

At Credit Raters, we take the stress out of comparing personal loans by doing all of the legwork on your behalf. It all starts by working out exactly how much you need to borrow and a repayment period that suits your budget.

The longer you choose to repay your loans, the lower your monthly payments will be. However, it’s worth remembering that you’ll usually pay more interest over the course of a longer term loan, so keep an eye on the total amount you’ll need to repay as well as the monthly costs.

It’s then over to us for some internet wizardry as we’ll use the loan requirements you’ve listed along with some further information on your circumstances to bring together a detailed comparison of your most suitable loan options.

Compare interest rates, repayments, loan terms and any fees all in one place and choose the lender that you feel best suits your needs. For a typical applicant, it usually takes less than five minutes to complete your application with a direct lender at which point you’ll receive an instant online decision. It really is that simple.