At some point or another, many of us find ourselves drowning in credit card and other consumer debt. Generally, something happens like a major car or home repair, job loss, or an illness, and things spin out of control from there.
The good news is that no matter what the cause of your financial issues, there is always a way to dig yourself back out. For some people the solution lies in bankruptcy, for some it lies in talking a second job, and for others getting a personal loan and consolidating debt is the best answer.
What Exactly is a Personal Loan?
A personal loan, also sometimes referred to as a “signature loan”, is a loan option which allows you to borrow money without having to put up collateral (like your home or vehicle) to back the loan. Similar to a credit card, a personal loan is an unsecured form of debt which you can obtain based on your credit scores and income alone.
Why Would You Want to Obtain a Personal Loan?
Many people choose a personal loan, over a traditional credit card, because they can borrow money at a lower interest rate. Personal loans generally carry a fixed rate at a lower rate than many of today’s credit cards. For this reason, many people choose to get a personal loan and use it to pay-off all of their credit cards and consolidate them into one monthly payment. This one personal loan payment is generally lower than the total of their other credit card payments for each month, because of the lower interest rate and because the payment is made to only one lender. Also, having to make only one payment to one lender each month saves you both time and postage as well which can be an advantage in today’s busy world.
Where Can You Get a Personal Loan?
Today nearly every major lender in existence allows you to easily and quickly apply for a personal loan on their website. You simply go to their website and fill out an online application and they let you know if you are approved for a loan or not. As an added bonus, if you are planning on using your personal loan to pay off consumer debt, you can often enter the information into the loan application and have the payments made electronically at the same time your loan is approved.
Is a Personal Loan a Good Option for You?
Getting a personal loan is a good option if you have a decent credit rating and need to either consolidate consumer debt or make improvements to your home. A personal loan, because it is unsecured, does not put your home or other assets at risk if for some reason you are unable to pay it back. A personal loan is able to be discharged in bankruptcy if something catastrophic should happen and you need to file. While it is not ever a desired thing to file bankruptcy, with a personal loan you can have it discharged if you should ever find yourself in a bad financial situation, whereas with a home equity loan you cannot have it discharged and risk loosing your home.