Personal loans can be a great arrow in your financial quiver for consolidating higher interest rate debts, like credit cards or short-term loans, or financing a major purchase or unexpected bill. With predictability built in, personal loans make it easy to budget for repayment for the life of the loan, and for the most qualified borrowers, repayment can extend up to several years. However, not everyone is eligible for a personal loan through banks or online lenders. Because personal loans do not require collateral – an asset, like a vehicle, a home, or a bank account the lender can use to recoup losses due to default – the application process can be stringent. Here are the most common factors banks review when evaluating a personal loan application.

Credit Score

The first place lenders look when receiving a new personal loan application is the borrower’s credit history and score. Credit information is like a financial fingerprint in that it provides a clear picture of who a borrower is in terms of money management and timely debt payment over an entire lifetime. When credit history is clean, and a credit score is above 700, banks are more apt to offer a personal loan with the lowest possible interest rate and budget-friendly repayment term. If credit score and history are on shaky ground due to past late payment, a recent bankruptcy, or a foreclosure, lenders either decline a loan application or charge far higher interest rates to protect their potential for loss.

Employment History

Some banks ask for employment history on a personal loan application, in an effort to understand a borrower’s track record of earnings. When someone has had significant gaps in jobs over the last few years or has had several different employers in a short period of time, lenders may view the borrower as higher risk. Steady employment and increased income over time is what banks are typically looking for to qualify a borrower for a personal loan.

Current Income

Above and beyond a borrower’s past financial record, banks want to understand current income. Borrowers with steady earnings from a conventional job are perceived as a lower risk to most lenders, while those who are paid by commission or a bonus structure are less reliable in theory. Banks also want to understand the reliability of the income stream a borrower has, and how that stacks up against other outstanding debts that require a monthly payment. Even when income is steady, borrowers who have several other monthly payments due may not be a strong fit for a personal loan through a bank.

Amount and Purpose of the Loan

The last common factor in reviewing a personal loan application is two-fold: the intent of the borrow and the amount funded. First, personal loans may have some restrictions on what items or expenses they can be used to pay, typically excluding paying off another loan or financing education-related costs. The most common uses for personal loans that are deemed suitable by a bank include debt consolidation, a large expense like a family vacation or holiday spending, or business financing. Second, banks always review the amount of the loan requested and compare that to the borrower’s income and other monthly obligations. For most personal loan applications, no more than $35,000 can be borrowed at one time.

Using a personal loan to manage your finances can be a smart way to leverage your borrowing ability, but take note that banks are going to review your loan application carefully. Before applying for a personal loan, make sure to have documentation relating to your income, a list of previous employers, and a clean credit history to improve your chances for approval.

When you’re fresh out of college, you are ready to start doing big things like get your first “real” job and buy your first home. You may need to buy a car, or you may want to start your own business. But in order to do some of those things, you’re going to need financing, and as a young person, you’re likely to find the process difficult and maybe even a bit confusing. You may start having this problem even earlier, like when you try to get financing to pay for college or to buy a car.

It’s important that you know what to expect with financing. Here’s a look at some of the most common financing types to help you understand where to start and how to build your credit:

Short-Term Loans

Short-term loans like installment loans online are a common source of funding for students and other young people. Some short-term loans cause more trouble than they’re worth, such as payday loans that have excessive interest rates. Installment loans are personal cash loans that have minimal requirements. You don’t have to have any credit – you just have to have a verifiable source of income and some other documentation. You can get small amounts – up to $1,000 or more, depending on the lender – which you can use to handle emergency needs, like fixing your car or making up the difference on a semester’s tuition.

Credit Cards

Credit cards are another popular form of financing for young people since they are easily obtainable. Some providers want you to have a little credit history before they will approve you, but others provide cards with low credit limits for those with no credit. Gas cards and store credit cards are the easiest to get, and they usually have limits of just a few hundred dollars.

Credit cards are also popular because they give people the freedom to buy whatever they need. However, students often overuse credit cards, so they should exercise caution with them. The high interest rates make it very hard to pay them back. Getting that first credit card can be an easy way to build credit, but if it’s misused, it can also bring down your credit.

Student Loans

Student loans used to be easier to get, but with so many defaults and the weaker economy in recent years, lenders have gotten tougher. You’ll most likely need a co-signor like a parent who has great credit to get approved for a student loan. You won’t have to pay anything on the loan while you’re in school, but six months after graduating, you could be looking at some hefty bills.

Fortunately, interest rates are typically low on student loans, but the monthly payment can be quite high if you borrowed a lot. You’ll have the ability to get on a structured repayment plan or to defer your payments if you find yourself struggling, but student loan debt can almost never be discharged. That means you’ll be on the hook for that debt until you pay it off. Borrow wisely.

Auto Financing

If you’ve used credit cards responsibly during your time in college, you may have enough of a credit history to be approved for auto financing to buy a car. Lenders will also consider your income when they review your application, so if you have a nice-paying first job and you have some credit, you have a better chance of getting approved for a moderate loan. But if you’re trying to buy a BMW on an average starting salary, you can forget about it.

Mortgage

Buying your first home is a momentous occasion, but you’ll have to have a lot of credit history to get approved. Mortgage lenders take a fine-tooth comb to your financial portfolio when considering your application. They will look at your job history, your credit history, your outstanding debt, and other financial issues. You must have a good history, a strong down payment, and a low debt-to-income ratio. The best thing you can do when you get out of school is start saving for your down payment and be sure to borrow responsibly.

Building your credit can be easy, but you have to take it slow. Start with small cash loans when you have an emergency, and use other credit cards and loans strategically to get what you need while building a positive payment history.

How to Improve Your Credit Score

Do you ever think about your credit score? Chances are you have if you are in the market for a new car or even to buy a house. Your credit score doesn’t seem important when you are young and don’t have a lot of responsibilities, but it is. College students are famous for racking up credit card debt in college that will stick with them until later in their life and ruin their credit.

If you are thinking about your credit score, you are probably trying to come up with ways to improve it. Doing this is actually not as hard as you probably think it is, but it will take some work in both the short and the long term. A lot of this depends on how bad your score is to begin with, but there is no mountain too high to climb in terms of credit.

Four Ways to Improve Your Credit Score

Be Fastidious with Your Credit Report – Don’t just look at your score and throw your report away. There could be damaging things on it that are incorrect. Consumers have the right to challenge anything on their report that they thing doesn’t belong. You might be surprised at how much your score goes up when even small debts are taken care. They really add up. Credit agencies are more than willing to work with you to help get rid of these if they are proven to be wrong.

Start with High-Interest Accounts – If you have multiple loans or credit accounts you are trying to pay off, start with the higher interest ones. This makes sense because the higher the interest rate, the more money you are going to pay to get rid of it. People don’t always realize how much interest really racks up on their credit accounts.

Get a Credit Card – A lot of people have probably told you to never have a credit card because they are trouble. There is some truth to this, but in order to have a good credit score, you must have some credit in the first place. The only way to build your credit score is to borrow money and pay it off. This will also create a history that lenders can look at to see if you are a viable option for a loan. In short, you can’t have a good credit score if you don’t have any credit. This seems obvious, but a lot of people don’t understand it.

Many people often complain about their student loan repayments or credit card payments. There are some people who do not have their own house because of their overwhelming debts. We need to spare a thought and see how college students are going in the wrong direction.

You cannot sit down and teach a young person how to manage his personal finance. This is something that he will have to learn on his own. Over the period of time, with experience, he will come to know how to use his credit, interest, debt, saving over the period of time.

A good number of college students do not understand the consequences of excessive use of credit cards. An average undergraduate had four credit cards with a debt of $2000. Seniors had the highest balance, perhaps because it was adding with interests and fees over the period time. His average debt amount was close to $5800. They simply don’t realize that by the time they end up paying the full balance, it will be close to some $40000. That makes credit cards the first mistake made by college students.

The second mistake of the college students is the precious student loans. Many parents think that those loans are going to college expenses. But in fact, many students use it for other personal expenses, like buying a TV or a fridge for personal use.

The purpose of student loans is to fulfill tuition, room, board and book expenses. It is not suggested to take out more than required. If you have extra money left, you can invest it in a nice money market account and that will be useful for your next semester’s expenses.

A large number of students are not able to handle their student loan payments. There are some who are paying more than $400 a month on these loans. When you take out these loans, you pay it back in 20 years, so take them out wisely.

The third common mistake made by many college students is excessive use of credit cards and student loans. As a result, it is tarnishing your credit scores. Therefore it is important to use your credit wisely.

Your credit card debt is something that will follow you for the most of your life. If you have used your credit card too much and don’t pay it on time, you will have a hard time in getting new credit, maybe a car loan, or a home loan. In some cases, many people have a hard time in finding a job. Hence, you should know all about how to use your credit and what affects it.

Many college students find it tough to live on a fixed budget. In fact many students feel that if you are budgeting, it means that you will never have fun again. Budgeting is not a restraint; it is a good planning tool for your healthy future. You have to learn how to handle your money in the best possible ways. This will not only help you in your college days, but for the rest of your life. If you can use your finances properly, you will not only pay off your student loans in time, but also save for your retirement.