Competitive Loan Company
What is a debt consolidation loan?
A debt consolidation loan is where you take out a loan to pay off existing debts. So in effect you are lumping together all your existing debts, clearing them with a debt consolidation loan and then making just one payment a month to clear the outstanding balance.You may find that you save money too, as taking out a 9% APR loan to clear a credit card with a balance accruing interest at 16.5% APR makes sense. There is also the psychological factor of only having one monthly repayment to manage rather than lots.
What is a prime lender?
Prime lenders are suitable for people who have an excellent credit history. Prime lenders typically offer the lowest interest rates and the lowest fees for borrowing, subject to you meeting their criteria. If you have late or missed payments on other credit within the last six years, it is unlikely that you will be accepted by a prime lender. If you do get accepted and your credit history is less than perfect, then you will probably pay a few percent more than your contemporaries with an excellent history.
What is an APR?
APR is short for 'Annual Percentage Rate' and it is a legal requirement for lenders to display the APR when advertising interest rates.It shows the true cost of borrowed money on mortgages, loans and credit cards. How it works is that the APR calculation takes into account all the costs associated with the borrowing (such as the basic interest rate, any costs you have to pay and any initial fees).Because lenders calculate APR the same way, it means that you can make significant cost comparisons between products.
What is a credit score?
A credit score is a method that potential lenders use for calculating the credit worthiness of an applicant. They will look at the applicant’s credit report, the information on their application and the actual borrowing required. They will then use a mathematical scoring system to evaluate the amount of "risk" involved in lending to the applicant.
What is a bad debt?
A bad debt is borrowing where the money has not been paid back subject to the terms and conditions of the lending agreement. A debt tends to become ‘bad’ where it is unlikely that the creditor will be able to recover the money.Having a bad debt on your credit file will make it harder for you to borrow money in future.