Consumers have no shortage of options to pick from when they need to borrow money. If you have been looking for funding, you may have come across many options, including payday loans, Bad Credit Loans, installment loans, and more.
Here, you will learn about CreditNinja, one of the leading lenders when it comes to personal installment loans.
Finding the Right Personal Loans
Whether you are looking to pay for medical bills, home repairs, or other emergency expenses, there are plenty of financial products available to consumers looking for extra cash. With so many options available, deciding which personal loan is the right one for you may seem challenging. But, with a bit of fast prepping, you can set yourself up for success in finding a form of funding to cover your expenses.
Familiarize Yourself With Your Credit Report
Your current credit score can play a significant role in determining what types of loans you may qualify for. To make the most of your loan search, take a look at your most recent credit report and credit score before you start your research.
According to Equifax, one of the three major credit bureaus, consumers can judge the quality of their credit scores based on the following model:
- Score of 800+ – Excellent credit.
- Score within range of 740 to 799 – Very good credit.
- Score within range of 670 to 739 – Good credit.
- Score within range of 580 to 699 – Fair credit.
- Score below 579 – Poor/bad credit.
If your credit score falls within the excellent to good ranges, you may have a wide variety of loans available to you. Borrowers who have fair or poor credit may have to search harder to find a loan deal that fits in with their budget.
How Will Personal Loans Affect My Credit Score?
Most credit bureaus assess five major financial factors when compiling data to determine a consumer’s credit score. Below is more information on those five factors and how they may be impacted by a personal loan.
PAYMENT HISTORY (35%)
Payment history is the most influential and important factor when it comes to your credit score. If you make consistent, timely payments on your loan and other financial obligations, you may see your credit score benefit from such behavior. On the other hand, borrowers can suffer from the negative impacts of missing a due payment for up to seven years!
AMOUNTS OWED (30%)
Your amounts owed, or total debt, will also contribute to your credit score. The more debt you owe, the more your credit may suffer. Alternatively, by paying off a few loans or other obligations you have in your name, you may see a swift improvement in your credit!
NEW CREDIT (10%)
Usually, when you complete a loan or credit application, the lender will perform a hard credit check. With each hard credit check, you may see your credit drop around five points. While this may not be not an incredibly impactful amount, multiple credit applications within a short period of time could cause your score to drop faster.
LENGTH OF CREDIT HISTORY (15%) AND CREDIT MIX (10%)
How long you have had financial accounts open and the types of financial accounts you have will also contribute to your credit score. The longer you have had active financial accounts, the more your credit will benefit!
You may also take advantage of these five tips to maintain good credit or build a high credit score:
- Sign up for autopay so you always make on-time payments.
- Focus on paying off debt; pay more than the minimum amount due when you can.
- Maintain credit accounts and try not to cancel them unless absolutely necessary.
- Avoid applying for too many loans and opening many financial accounts at once.
- Try to diversify your credit mix and keep more good debts over bad debts.
Review Your Debt
You will also want to calculate your total debt. If you already owe an overwhelming amount of debt, you may not qualify for another loan. Lenders and creditors need reassurance that borrowers will be able to pay back their approved loan amount, and if they see a borrower already owes quite a bit of money on other expenses, this may act as a red flag. Instead of taking out another loan and adding more debt to your name, you may want to consider getting a debt consolidation loan instead. That way, you can combine your debts into one payment, and you may even qualify for additional funding to take care of your current expenses.
Consider Other Options
Before you apply for any kind of loan, think about if you have other non-loan alternatives you could take advantage of.
- Tighten Up Your Budget: You may find you don’t need to take out a loan at all, as just organizing your budget may be enough. You can make small changes in your lifestyle to put extra cash into your budget. For example, you can order out for food less and grocery shop and eat leftovers more often. Or, you may try to stop making impulsive purchases with your credit card. Over time, these small changes can free up room in your budget that just might be enough to cover your expenses.
- Earn Extra Cash: You can also get money on your own by finding an additional income stream. You can earn cash by having a garage sale and selling items like old textbooks, clothes, or anything else you no longer need or use. You may also consider getting an additional part-time job temporarily.
- Ask a Close Friend or Family Member For a Loan: If there is no wiggle room in your budget and you are unable to earn extra cash, you may consider asking a friend or family member for money before you apply for an official loan. Getting a loan from family or a close friend can help you get your cash faster, as well as save money on interest rates and other loan fees.
Create a Financial Plan
If you have decided that a loan is the best option for you, create a financial plan for yourself. Think about how long you want to take to pay off your loan, what expenses you are looking to cover with your approved funds, how much you can afford to repay each month, and if you are willing to use any of your assets as collateral. Loans that require collateral are referred to as secured loans, while loans that don’t require borrowers to offer property as collateral are called unsecured loans.
How to Research Lenders and Compare Loan Offers
After prepping your finances a bit, it’s important to compare multiple loan offers to make sure you are making the smartest financial decisions for yourself. Most loans share a few core elements which you can compare against each other. Below are some factors to consider while researching lenders and comparing loan offers.
Approval Requirements
Lenders can vary greatly when it comes to the application process, approval requirements, and more. For example, lenders who have brick-and-mortar locations may allow consumers to apply online, over the phone, or in person. Exclusively online lenders, on the other hand, may only have a virtual application available for consumers. Lenders may also have varying requirements when it comes to credit scores. Traditional institutions like a bank may only work with borrowers who have higher credit scores. In contrast, lenders for products like bad credit installment loans may be willing to work with a wider range of consumers.
To find out what kind of approval requirements each lender has, check out their FAQ pages online or call an agent directly.
Loan Amounts
The expenses you are looking to cover should help you determine what type of loan amount will work best for you. Keep in mind that you never have to accept a loan for more money than you need. In fact, requesting a smaller loan amount may help you save money on interest rate charges, reduce your monthly payments, and pay off your loan faster. Just make sure your approved loan amount covers all your anticipated expenses, so you won’t have to reapply!
Interest Rates and APR
You will also want to get as much information as you can about the interest rate and the APR charged by each lender you are considering. You may find that the APR is higher than the interest rate on your loan because regular interest rates are calculated using the current balance of a loan, while APR is calculated using the principal plus any additional fees or charges included with the loan.
Different types of interest rates you may come across when researching loans are:
- Fixed Interest: Rates stay consistent throughout the loan terms, resulting in fixed payments due each month.
- Variable Interest: Rates fluctuate with market conditions, resulting in higher or lower loan payments depending on the market.
Loan Terms
The type of lender you decide to work with, as well as your total funding amount, will help determine your loan term. Typically, higher loan amounts require longer loan terms, while lower loan amounts can come with more brief repayment terms. It is also common for lenders to have minimum and maximum requirements when it comes to repayment schedules. To ensure your loan is manageable and affordable, make sure your lender’s loan term requirements fit in well with the financial plan you had in mind.
Monthly Payments
Your monthly payment is perhaps one of the most important aspects of your loan and will determine how much of your budget you must designate towards paying off your loan each month. While you may be tempted to choose the highest monthly payment possible in order to pay off your loan balance quickly, this may not be the wisest decision. It may be better to choose a lower monthly payment you know you can afford and contribute extra funds towards your balance when you can. That way, you aren’t on the hook for contirubting high loan payments but can still do so if you want to– just make sure your lender doesn’t charge prepayment penalties!
Know Your Rights
Certain people may be entitled to extra benefits when it comes to loan funding. For example, thanks to the Military Lending Act, active duty service members, spouses, and certain dependents can take advantage of the following perks:
- Interest rate cap of 36% (some exclusions apply).
- No mandatory waives of certain legal rights (such as those provided by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act).
- No mandatory allotments (an allotment is a type of direct payroll deduction).
- No prepayment penalties (applies to partial or full loan payments, as well as balance repayment).
Know Your Funding Options
Below are some financial products that are available to consumers when they need to borrow money.
Personal Loans
One of the most common types of funding for borrowers is personal loans. Personal loans can come in many forms, including installment loans, bank loans, credit union loans, and more. Unlike other types of funding like auto loans, borrowers can use funding from a personal loan for just about any financial expense. Furthermore, personal loans may offer high or low loan amounts, flexible terms, and competitive rates, making them an ideal loan option for a wide variety of borrowers.
Payday Loans
A payday loan is a type of unsecured loan typically marketed toward consumers who have less-than-ideal credit. Many borrowers use a payday loan as supplemental income while in-between paychecks. However, the high rates and short terms that usually accompany payday loans make them somewhat of a debt trap for people who struggle with their finances.
Credit Cards
You may also be debating between personal loans or credit cards. While a personal loan is one lump sum payment delivered to approved borrowers at one time, credit cards are revolving lines of credit where funds are available to account holders each month. With credit cards, borrowers have renewed access to a credit limit every month, allowing them to take care of recurring expenses.
In order to avoid accumulating too much credit card debt, pay close attention to the total balance of your credit card. Monthly balances can add up quickly if you are continuously spending on your credit card and only making minimum payments each month. It’s not uncommon for some credit card balances to get so high that the minimum amount due isn’t enough to lower your balance after interest rate charges go through. And so, paying off your total balance as often as you can is vital to using a credit card wisely.
Cash Advances
Consumers may also be able to get a loan through a cash advance. Consumers can access cash advances via most credit cards, as well as through many payday advance apps. Similar to payday loans, cash advances typically have very brief repayment terms and low funding amounts. So, if you are looking for a long-term sustainable financial solution, a cash advance is most likely not the best choice for you.
Home Equity Loans
A home equity loan is a secured loan that uses the borrower’s home or other qualifying real estate property as collateral. Like most secured loans, the funding amount for home equity loans is largely based on the equity in the collateral. Since homes and real estate properties tend to be extremely high in value, loan amounts for home equity loans can be for thousands of dollars or more. However, keep in mind that since borrowers typically use their own property as collateral for home equity loans, they risk going into foreclosure and losing their home if they default on their loan agreement.
Car Title Loans
A car title loan is another type of secured loan that requires borrowers to use their free-and-clear vehicle title as collateral. Title loans also usually come in very low loan amounts of a few hundred dollars or less and are also known for having extremely high-interest rates.
When they approve borrowers for funding, car title loan lenders will sign onto the borrower’s vehicle title as a lienholder. Being a lienholder gives the lender partial ownership of the borrower’s vehicle during their loan term. While borrowers are usually allowed to keep their car while they repay their title loan, lenders may require the borrower to have a GPS tracker in their car so the lender can track their vehicle usage and location.
Pros and Cons of Installment Loans vs. Payday Loans
As two of the most popular forms of funding, it’s important for borrowers to understand the pros and cons of installment loans and payday loans.
Let’s break down the different aspects of a loan and how they can differentiate between a payday loan and an installment loan.
- Loan Amount – Installment loans can come in various forms of funding, including high or low loan amounts. A payday loan, on the other hand, comes pretty much exclusively in low loan amounts that are about a few hundred dollars or less.
- Interest Rates – Personal installment loans may come with varying interest rates based on the borrower’s income, credit score, assets, ability to repay their loan, and any other financially relevant factors. Comparatively, a payday loan almost always comes with very high-interest rates, regardless of the borrower’s credit score.
- Repayment Terms – Since personal loans were designed to be convenient for many different types of borrowers, this type of loan can come with either long or short repayment terms. Payday loans are drastically different when it comes to repayment terms and usually require borrowers to repay their entire loan in full within about two weeks or less.
CreditNinja: What You Need To Know
CreditNinja is an online lender specializing in personal installment loans. We have been a proud lender since 2018 and have been able to help over 275,000 people during our time in the industry. CreditNinja also caters to bad credit borrowers who may not have affordable or reliable loan options available to them. Instead of resorting to potentially predatory options, such as payday loans, borrowers can turn to CreditNinja for friendly service and better personal loans.
Benefits of CreditNinja Personal Installment Loans
Borrowers may enjoy the following benefits with online loans from CreditNinja:
- Easy Application: The CreditNinja application is quick and easy. You can complete the entire form in just a few minutes or less.
- Quick Approval Process: After receiving your application, CreditNinja will give you a decision right away. You shouldn’t have to wait around for approval when you are going through the middle of a financial emergency!
- Fast Funding: Along with a fast application and approval process, CreditNinja also provides efficient funding. Upon approval, you can receive your loan proceeds in your account as soon as the very same or the next business day.*
- Flexible Repayment: CreditNinja wants your loan to fit in with your specific financial situation. That’s why we provide flexible repayment options that results in manageable monthly payments.
- Bad Credit OK: CreditNinja considers other factors besides credit scores when approving borrowers. People with bad credit, no credit, and even past bankruptcy are all encouraged to apply with CreditNinja when they need a loan.
- NO Hidden Fees: CreditNinja won’t bog you down with hidden fees or unnecessary charges like prepayment penalties. In fact, CreditNinja encourages all borrowers to make payments and pay off their loans early if they like!
How Does an Online Personal Loan From CreditNinja Work?
CreditNinja has perfected online funding into a simple and streamlined process. To start, head over to our website and fill out a quick application. This application will ask for some personal information such as your name, address, and desired loan amount. CreditNinja will also use IBV and MFA to secure your application.
After we have reviewed and accepted your application, we will send a loan contract for you to sign. Before signing your loan agreement, be sure to read it over carefully and ask a loan agent if you have any questions. CreditNinja is staffed with experienced and knowledgeable loan agents who are happy to provide clarification on anything you need!
Once you sign your loan agreement, CreditNinja will deliver your approved funds to your bank account via direct deposit.
What Is Instant Bank Verification (IBV)?
CreditNinja requires borrowers to have an active bank account. We will use your bank account information to perform what is called Instant Bank Verification, or IBV. IBV is considered one of the most secure ways to confirm an applicant’s income and financial status.
The information used for IBV will also allow CreditNinja to deposit your approved funds directly into your checking account. Other lenders may send borrowers their approved funds via a check in the mail or may even require them to visit a brick-and-mortar location to pick up their funds in person. CreditNinja allows borrowers to bypass that hassle and receive their money directly in their bank account quickly and easily.
In order to complete IBV, you just need to provide your bank account and routing numbers.
- Bank Account Number: Your bank account number consists of nine to twelve numbers and indicates your specific account within the financial institution you bank with.
- Routing Number: Your routing number consists of nine numbers and notates the general financial institution you bank with.
You can find both your bank account number and routing number at the bottom of any personal check associated with your bank account (your routing number will be on the left, and your bank account number will be on the right) or via your online banking account.
What Is Multi-Factor Authorization (MFA)?
Multi-factor authorization, also called MFA, is a way of confirming someone’s identity in order to grant them safe access to an application or other online portal. MFA typically requires two or more forms of verification. Many financial institutions use MFA as it is considered one of the most reliable ways to keep user activity safe and confidential when it comes to their financial accounts or other private information.
Typically, MFA requires a combination of the following verification factors:
- Something You Know – This may be a password, PIN, or security question. When setting passwords, creating PINs, or answering security questions, try to be unique and choose a set of characters or answers that are significant only to you. For example, using “password123” as your security password or choosing “When is your birthday?” as a security question may not provide you with sufficient security. Instead, try to pick a random set of letters and numbers as passwords and store that information in a safe place. Or, pick niche security questions that a casual acquaintance wouldn’t be able to answer, such as “What was the name of the imaginary friend you had as a child?”
- Something You Have – This is usually an email address or mobile phone. MFA using an email or smartphone may consist of receiving a call, text, or email with a security code. You would then use this security code to access an application or be admitted into an online portal.
- Some Form of Biometric Factor – Biometrics for MFA simply means you would use some aspect of your physical characteristics to confirm your identity. For example, common biometrics used for MFA are fingerprints, palmprints, face recognition, or voice recognition. In some cases, you may also submit a form of government-issued photo identification.
How Do I Know if CreditNinja Is Right for Me?
Online installment loans through CreditNinja are meant for consumers who are going through a financial emergency and have no other options available. Ditch the hassles that can come with many bad credit loans and get the financial freedom you deserve with the help of CreditNinja!
*Applications approved before 10:30 a.m. CT Monday-Friday are generally funded the same business day. Applications approved after this time are generally funded the next business day. Some applications may require additional verification, in which case the loan, if approved, will be funded the business day after such additional verification is completed.
References:
Military Lending Act (MLA) | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
What Is A Good Credit Score? | Equifax®
Multifactor authentication (MFA) | CISA
Additional Loan Options
