Loans Blog

Remember when money used to be all kind of papery and 'money-looking'? Now it's all plasticy and toy-like.

Some schools of thought reckon that this is why so many of us fall foul of the credit-trap; because we are using less and less physical bank notes and coins at the till these days, the outgoing doesn't register as easily in our minds. Even though we all know we're spending our own hard-earned cash, it somehow seems to have less psychological impact on the 'treasurer' part of the brain - so it's almost confused as being 'free money' (when we all know there's no such thing).

If you think you're on the beginnings of this slippery slope, why not try banning yourself from the cards for a while - indulge in the nostalgia of withdrawing some cash from one of those quaint machines and paying with REAL money. You might be surprised to notice what you're actually spending when the money passes physically through your hands...

If you're already too far in to the credit card debt trap, then it's not too late to do something about it. Take control again, and get one over on the credit companies by getting some expert loan advice to help you become debt-free. A popular solution is to take out a debt consolidation loan, but there are other options which a debt advisor can assist you with, tailored to your individual circumstances.

Unless you're lucky enough to have been holidaying under a rock for a number of years, you'll have seen the hilariously patronising TV ads for 'picture loans'. You know, the one where the occasionally Geordie woman cheerily multi-tasks between household chores and a joyously easy phone call to borrow mountains of cash. Or the one where the bloke toes a footy around the lounge whilst giddily borrowing £25,000 (regularly voted most irritating ad on TV).

They were ordered by regulators to scrap the ad, as it was mis-representing the seriousness involved in taking out such a hefty personal loan.

The regulators' point is a fair one, although anyone watching who would have been persuaded to lend by the scenario is probably beyond the help of the Ad Standards Authority anyway! It would have been more commendable if they'd banned it simply for annoying people...

Borrowing money requires very serious consideration indeed, and the best way to be sure of getting the full advice and the best loan arrangement for your individual needs is to talk to a loans expert before making any agreement.

Remember the aloof, complex musical genius that was Vanilla Ice?

Well, he consolidated all of his musical potential into one easily manageable song (Ice Ice Baby) rather than having loads of different bits of talent floating about all over the place.

You can do the same with your debts by taking out a consolidation loan - and YOU won't have to make a fool of yourself doing it. Merge all your debts into one easy payment and take some of the stress out of life. Talk to a loans expert today.

An increasing number of people in the UK are choosing secured loans, due to the increasingly attractive interest rates being offered by providers.

MoneyExpert.com reported an 85 per cent increase in demand for secured loans in the 3 months ending January 2008.

A secured loan (a loan secured against the value of your home) can save you huge payments in interest, according to a recent independent study.

MoneyExpert.com says that the average rate for an unsecured loan of £15,000 is 8.44 per cent, compared with a secured loan of £15,000 which has an average rate of just 5.9 per cent. That difference adds up! Ask a loans expert if you want further advice.

There are some unscrupulous companies out there who are taking advantage of peoples misery and worry. They claim to offer consolidation loans to vulnerable people, desperately in need of debt help, when all they really do is pocket their cash. The usual tell-tale sign for this kind of scam is rates that look too good to be true - as they probably are! They may also ask for money to process the loan - remember, THEY are supposed to be giving YOU the money!!

The best way to find a consolidation loan quickly when you can't afford to waste time, is to talk to a professional loans expert who can advise the best genuine deal available on the market for you.

People with bad credit can find it a tough task getting a loan. In this situation, it is far easier to obtain a secured loan rather than an unsecured loan. To do this, you will usually need to be a homeowner. It is possible to find lenders that will still offer you an unsecured bad credit loan, but the APR will usually be extremely high. The best way to go about getting a loan with bad credit is to talk to a trusted loans advisor.

There are a quite a wide variety of solutions on offer to people with serious debt problems. A particularly effective solution, that will not hamper your credit, is a consolidation loan. You can take out a consolidation loan on an unsecured basis or a secured loan basis if you are a homeowner. Taking a consolidation loan to manage your debts can benefit you in numerous ways, giving you financial breathing space and reducing your outgoings.

Talk to a loans expert today to see how a consolidation loan can work for you.

Unless you're lucky enough to have a rich uncle, or find a few grand lying in a hedge on the way home from the pub, secured loans are still widely considered the most inexpensive way of raising those necessary funds. So when you find yourself in need of cheap financing, secured loans are often the best way to go. However, it is still possible to obtain better loan terms than you might find initially on your secured loans if you do your homework properly. Talk to a trusted loans company and they will find the best deal for you.

Combining all your debts into one is not a difficult thing to achieve. In fact, not only is it simple, but extremely beneficial in terms of the financial implications involved. You can save a significant amount of money by repaying all your high interest debts with the help of a consolidation loan which comes with a relatively cheaper rate. Talk to a loans expert today for some professional advice.

There are multiple solutions to the problem of debt. No two debts are the same, so your personal solution can be tailored by a responsible and professional loans company who can advise on the best way forward to suit your individual circumstances.

That may be a debt consolidation plan, where you combine your various debts into one single loan arrangement. Through this single loan, you pay off your outstanding debts in single, affordable monthly installments without having to deal with each individual lender.

If debt consolidation is not the way forward for you, there may be other arrangements to suit your needs. You may decide to make an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA), or choose another route entirely...

It's obvious advice, but so many people ignore it and get into further difficulty - ALWAYS seek expert loans advice from a professional company before making any agreement, as it is still the most efficient way to get the best available deal for you and put you on the road to becoming debt-free.

People are often very cynical about consolidation loans, saying they sound too good to be true, but for many people debt consolidation really does provide the answer to their debt nightmares.

Of course the company providing the loan is going to make some money in the long run - it's a company, not a charity - but the key function of this type of loan is to reduce your monthly payments and make life affordable. It's not a situation anyone dreams of being in, but when uncontrollable debt has become a reality, a consolidation loan can be a genuine lifeline.

The problem is that debt can become such a part of life for many people that the bad habits continue. Recent research from uSwitch shows that out of the 3 million people who took out a consolidation loan, 65 per cent continued to accumulate debt.

The long-term goal of a consolidation loan should always be to become debt-free, so if you continue to stack up extra debt on top of this then it can become pointless. If you are realistic about your personal circumstances and financial needs when taking out a consolidation loan, you can avoid the need for further borrowing and make your debt-free plan become a reality.

The best way to ensure you are on the road to success is to start by talking to a loans expert who can help you avoid setting unrealistic goals and therefore avoid the need for further borrowing.

The start of a new year is always the time when we most think about getting things in order, particularly our finances. (Although, if you're anything like me, you'll still be getting around to 'actioning' those positive decisions you made at the start of 2008!) This trend is supported by research, recently carried out by Halifax Unsecured Personal Loans, which shows that January is the month in which the most unsecured personal loans are taken out.

The uptake of debt consolidation is also higher in January – the most popular month for this particular kind of loan

The head of Halifax Unsecured Personal Loans, Neil Chandler, is reported as saying, "For many people, the start of the year is a time to get personal finances in order – transferring debt from more expensive products such as store cards or other loans. Our research shows that this is certainly the case, with the number of loans taken out for debt consolidation increasing.

Using an unsecured personal loan for debt consolidation means you have just one fixed monthly payment for all your debts making it easier for people to manage their finances."

Some other interesting facts that came out of the research are that men are more likely to apply for debt consolidation than women - at any point in the year, and people aged 20-29 are most likely to seek a debt consolidation loan, with people aged 30-39 coming a close second.

The head of Halifax Unsecured Personal Loans also says, "We have seen more and more people choosing to organise their finances by either comparing or applying online. Typically, an online application takes less than 10 minutes to complete and can be done at any time of the day. This convenience and greater access to the internet means that this trend is set to continue."

The man talks sense - an online loan application is by far the easiest and most efficient way to get a no-obligation loan quote that will best suit your individual circumstances.

With an Unsecured Homeowner Loan, the interest rate is calculated on an annual basis. The interest rate payable (APR) is shown in the lender's quote when you check out their loan deals online. Obviously, the best deal is found by comparing as many quotes as possible from different lenders.

It's worth knowing this, though - aside from the interest rate, many lenders will charge you a 'loan processing fee' as well - which is not included in your online quote (another 'hidden charge'). So you should always enquire about hidden charges before making any loan agreement - an attractive headline rate is often not what it seems.

Some unsecured loan deals allow payment holidays, but some also add on penalty charges for early loan repayment. This means you could actually end up paying more overall for repaying sooner, rather than reducing your repayments by doing this.

In conclusion, the advice is obvious but often overlooked - make sure you are fully informed of all the loan deals currently available on the market to suit your needs, as this is the only way you will have a real chance of securing the best deal for you. The quickest way to do this, rather than physically approaching hundreds of loan companies, is to use a loans expert who will do all the hard work for you and will know the ins and outs of the unsecured loans market, avoiding the common pitfalls that trap so many people into unsuitable loan deals.

A recent report claims that UK borrowers could be paying way more than they should be, due to some lenders pushing up interest rates far higher than the Bank of England base rate rises over the past year. Despite interest rates being reduced last December, there were five increases between August 06 and July 07, taking the base rate up to 5.75% before it was eventually reduced to 5.5% by the end of 2007.

However, according to the report, some lenders are guilty of hiking up rates over and above the base rate rises since November 06. This means some customers have been subjected to interest rises far in excess of the base rate. The report claims that those borrowing in the region of £3,000 would be most affected, with average rises of 2.5% since November 06.

It is usually true that the more you borrow, the lower the interest rate, but the report claims that even people borrowing large sums have been severely affected.

As the cost of living continues to rise, the obvious choice for those feeling the financial squeeze can be to take out a personal loan to make up the shortfall. But as this report emphasises, it's always best to be fully informed and aware of the overall cost when taking out a loan to consolidate debts or make a significant purchase.

Not so long ago, they were more commonly found gathering dust as a fearful last-resort when a major unforeseen bill came along for a collapsed roof or a dead car. But it's an indisputable fact of modern life that we've all become far more 'plastic happy' in recent years - many of us are now whipping out the credit card at the till without giving it a second thought.

The down side of this change in attitudes is the increasing ease of slipping quickly into the debt trap, sometimes without even noticing until it seems too late to undo.

Eliminating credit card debt can seem an impossibility to many people, and the worry it brings can quickly have a detrimental effect on health, relationships and life in general.

However, it is important to realise that getting free of credit card debt is NOT IMPOSSIBLE, and you are NOT ALONE in dealing with it. With the right help, you will quickly feel the huge weight lift and see how your debt will be eliminated.

When a loans company provides you with credit card debt consolidation, they will consolidate all your credit cards bills and any other personal loans into one single payment, offering various options and flexibility to suit your individual needs and help you become debt free within the shortest period of time possible. Instead of having to keep on top of paying your various creditors, you will only need to make one payment to the debt consolidation company, who will then take care of your various creditors, leaving you stress-free and on the road to being debt-free too.

Debt consolidation will not reduce your total debt, but the loans expert at your debt consolidation company can bargain with your creditors to reduce the interest rate, making significant savings over time.

There are many debt consolidation companies in the market (just ask Carol Vorderman!) but rather than approaching any of them directly, it is wise to seek independent advice from a debt consolidation adviser who can offer you the best no-obligation advice, and search many companies to find the best deal on the market for your individual circumstances. This will also save a great deal of time, effort and stress.

By taking note of some simple tips, you can ensure that home loan re-financing will be successful and achieve your aims: lower monthly payments, lower interest and better loan terms, with the potential of becoming debt-free quicker.

Get Everything in Order First

To get approval for your re-finance home loan on the best possible terms, you should first ensure that you make yourself as eligible as possible for approval. You should get a copy of your credit report, if you don't already have one, and check your credit history for inconsistencies. If you discover any negative points on the report that you feel should be corrected, you should contact the credit agencies straight away and have the details corrected. A statutory credit report by post should cost you £2 - there are three main credit reference agencies in the UK (Callcredit, Equifax and Experian).

You should also have the required documentation ready. You're likely to be asked for proof of income. This will be copies of your wage slips, if you are employed, or suitable tax and accounting documents for the self-employed. If you are neither of these, don't assume you are ineligible - lenders will still consider your application and may require other forms of income proof (eg disability benefit).

You will always need to check with the specific lender which sources they require for approval and what they will accept as proof, as this can vary. But having this documentation to hand to begin with will make the process much easier.

Contact The Lenders

Re-financing is basically swapping a current loan for a new one with better terms. With this being the aim, you should consider as many different lenders as possible and compare loan quotes from all of them, paying particular attention to their interest rates and loan terms, looking out for any hidden charges. This can be a lengthy process, if done the old-fashioned way, so it's wise to save a great deal of time and effort by contacting a personal loans finder who will be able to do a full search of the current market and find the best deal for you.

There are many different mortgage loans out there to choose from, so consulting a loans expert is the best way to ensure that you are well-informed before you make a decision. Whatever you do, don't enter into any loan agreement without fully exploring your options, as the results could be seriously damaging to your finances.