Something unexpected has come up and you don’t have enough money to pay the bills what do you do? One might think about applying for a personal loan. Do you know what you need to apply for a personal loan? Do you know what you get for a personal loan? Where do you get a personal loan? These are all the questions we will answer in this article on how to get personal loans.
What is a Personal Loan?
A personal loan is a form of credit that can help you with a large purchase or consolidate any debts you might have. Typically personal loans have lower interest rates than credit cards so they can be used to consolidate several credit card debts into a lower-cost single monthly payment.
How Do Personal Loans Work?
A personal loan is considered to be an installment loan so that means you borrow you fixed amount of money and pay the loan back with interest in monthly payments over a certain time period. For instance, you need a personal loan to cover medical bills and you take out a loan of $10,000 and you have 84 months to pay back that loan.
Personal loan amounts and terms will vary by institution as each lender has different qualifications to apply.
To Apply For A Personal Loan You Will Need:
- Proof of Income – Pay Stubs, Bank Account Statements or W2
- Personal Information – Social Security Number, Address
- Debt or Bills – Most will ask you how much debt you have and some will ask for other bills such as housing costs
- Credit Score – The better your credit the better loan terms will you get but you can still apply for personal loans if you have bad credit
Related: What Is A Good Credit Score
What Can You Use A Personal Loan For?

- Debt Consolidation – Credit card debt
- Home Renovations – Kitchen remodel, bathroom remodel, a new pool
- Medical Bills – medical debt that your insurance doesn’t cover
- Wedding – Use a personal loan to help pay for your wedding
- Auto Repairs – Unexpected auto repairs
Where To Get Personal Loans?
Personal loans are offered in so many different places such as large banks, small local banks, credit unions, or online. Each bank offers different loan amounts at different interest rates so shop around to find the one that fits your needs the best and is most beneficial and convenient for you.
Which Banks Offer Personal Loans?
If you have a good relationship with your bank, such as having a credit card or business checking account, it could be a great option to apply for a personal loan.
Bank Of America Personal Loans
Just like some other large U.S banks, Bank of America does not offer large personal loans. They do however offer a small-dollar loan that is called Balance Assist. This loan is up to $500 and is only available if you have a Bank of America checking account.
Chase Personal Loans
Chase offers My Chase Loan which takes advantage of your available credit on your Chase credit card to get a flexible loan that is deposited directly into your bank account. They only use some of your credit limit so you can still continue to use your credit card at the same time.
You can choose your loan amount with a minimum of $500, then you choose your payment duration up to 24 months depending on the amount of your loan, finally you will receive the money directly into your bank account in 1-2 business days.
To apply for My Chase Loan you must be an eligible card member with Chase, there is no application or credit check as you are borrowing money from an account you already have with fixed rates.
Discover Personal Loans
Discover offers loans that are designed around you. Tell them how much you need and what you need the loan for such as, auto repair, wedding, taxes, medical expenses, debt consolidation, or a home renovation, and tell them the loan term you need from 36 months to 84 months. They also have fixed rates from 6.99% to 24.99% APR and your monthly payment will never change. They have no fees of any kind as long as you pay on time. In most cases, you will get a decision the same day and money in your account in the next business day. It will not affect your credit score.
Wells Fargo Personal Loans
Wells Fargo offers customizable loans starting from $3,000 up to $100,000 with flexible terms from 12 months to 84 months. Rates start as low as 5.74% APR with no origination fee, closing fee, or prepayment penalty. Funds arrive into your account on the same day or next business day and it has no impact on your credit score.
Personal Loans USAA
USAA offers personal loans up to $20,000. Use these personal loans for emergency bills, home repairs, managing your debt or other large purchases. Loan terms range from 12 months to 84 months. Rates will change up will not exceed 18% APR and vary based on approved credit and loan amount.
Related: What Credit Score Do You Need To Buy A House?
Credit Unions With Personal Loans
Credit Unions are a great place to get a personal loan as they are not for profit unlike banks so they normally have better rates and easier processes. One credit union that offers several types of personal loans is Navy Federal Credit Union.
Personal Loans Navy Federal
Navy Federal offers personal loans from $250 up to $50,000 for any of your needs such as auto repairs, vacations, or major purchases. They offer terms up to 36 months at 7.49% – 18.00% APR or 37 months to 60 months at 14.79% – 18.00% APR.
Besides personal loans, Navy Federal also offers Home Improvement Loans, Debt Consolidation Loans, Savings Secured Loans, and Certificate Secured Loans.
Personal Loans For Bad Credit?
If your score is 580 or lower it is considered a bad credit score and that could affect your chances of getting approved for a personal loan. The best chance you have of getting a personal loan approved is to increase your credit score. There are several ways you can increase your score fast using The Credit Repair Blueprint Course that will show everything you need to know about your credit and how to fix your credit on your own for life.
But if you’re in a pinch and can’t wait to increase your credit score before you apply for a loan there are several options for loans if you have bad credit. We have a list of the best loan companies that offer personal loans for bad credit.
Related: Best Loan Companies For Bad Credit

Personal Loans With No Credit Check
If you really need a personal loan immedietly and don’t have any credit or have a bad credit score and don’t think that you will be approved due to your credit history you can still apply for personal loans. There are several companies that do not check your credit score when applying for a personal loan, they will need more information from you and might have to pay higher interest rates. These are the companies that don’t check your credit score
Best Personal Loans Online
Applying for a personal loan is even easier and more convenient for you with the help of online loan companies. There are so many online loan companies to choose from so we did some research and found the best of the best. Below are the top picks of the best personal loans online.
SuperMoney Personal Loans isn’t a lending company but a website that compares all personal loans so you can see what they offer and what loan is best for. It’s called the kayak of personal loans.

PayOff

- A loan to pay off your credit cards
- One simple monthly payment
- No application fees, no early or extra payment fees, no late fees, no returned check fees
- Loans from $5,000 to $40,000
- Fixed rates from 5.99% to 24.99% APR
- Terms of 2 and 5 years to payoff
- Boost your FICO credit score by 40 Points
Related: All You Need To Know About The FICO Score
Opp Loans

- Quick approval instantly with an easy online application
- The application will not negatively affect your FICO credit score
- Get $500 to $4,000
- Next business day funding
- Over 500,000 happy customers
- In order to apply you will need: 18 years old or over, regular source of income, checking or savings account, and direct deposit
LeapCredit

- If you need money fast LeapCredit is the way to go
- Fast application process that can be done from anywhere
- Top of the line security measures
- Money deposited into your bank account within one business day
- LeapCredit offers small loans ranging from $200 up to $3,500 depending on your state, making it ideal if you need money for auto repairs or other debts
- Interest rates are high as these are short term loans that will be paid off in less than a year
Honest Loans
- Loans range from $400 to $50,000
- Fast approval and money deposited into your account within 1 business day without ever stepping foot into a store or waiting in line at a bank
- Bank-level encryption of your data so your personal information is safe
- They offer personal loans, cash advance loans, installment loans, and emergency loans
- These are short-term loans that can help you avoid paying late fees, overdraft fees or other penalties if you are short on money to cover your bills.
Even Financial
- Get matched to personal loan offers in less than 60 seconds
- Loans from $1,000 to $250,000
- Loan terms from 24 months to 84 months
- APR from 2.49%
- Fill out the form with your personal information, state the reason for the loan and based on the information you provided Even Financial will match you with the best options for your situation
Other Info – How does Credit Saint Work and How much it Costs?
Final Thoughts
If you are in need of personal loan to help pay down debt, help with medical bills, home renovations, weddings, a pool for your backyard or any other personal reason you have many options to choose from. Personal loans are offered everywhere from large banks to credit unions to online. Research loans to see what are the best rates for the amount you need to borrow and what benefits you the most. If you have bad credit you can still get approved for personal loans but those loans will have higher interest rates and will let you borrow less money.
Do you have bad credit, no credit, or want to learn how to become a credit expert?
Check out our credit repair training and learn:
- What your actual credit score is
- How to get a copy of your free credit report
- How to get your credit back on track today
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