The best personal online loan should offer convenience, value, and speed. However, you’ll soon find that amongst the many lenders that offer personal online loans, few deliver all three.
Some lenders have a very complicated process. Others charge far more interest than their competitors. Still others take far too long to make a decision, never mind release funds.
Fortunately, a few good lenders do exist. They’re reputable and offer a streamlined lending process. Their rates are also highly-competitive, so you know you’re getting the best personal online loan available.
So, how do you find the best personal online loan now? Just check for the following factors and you’ll connect with a great lender and a great loan.
Check for a Simple Application Form
We mentioned that some lenders have a very complicated process. That’s particularly true when you deal with a traditional brick-and-mortar lender that now operates online too.
Why is this an issue? Unfortunately, traditional lenders tend to rely on the same forms, processes, and procedures that they use for their in-person loans. Consequently, you can expect to fill out a lengthy application form which asks for information on where you lived, worked, and banked over many years.
You can also expect that a traditional lender will review each application manually. As a result, you inevitably end up waiting much longer than necessary.
Luckily, the best personal online loan end sidesteps all this nonsense. You complete a short application form online. It takes far less time to complete since the lender is only interested in where you stand now. Consequently, you can usually complete it in less than 15-minutes.
Choose an Installment Loan, Not a Payday Loan
Regrettably, many online loans are payday loans. These loans have a very quick repayment term (usually within weeks), very high interest rates, and your repayment won’t strengthen your credit score.
Fortunately, the best personal online loan is an installment loan instead. It has a much longer repayment term (often 12-months), a lower interest rate, and your timely payment are reported to the credit reporting agencies.
Since you do not have to repay your entire loan in one shot, it is usually much easier to manage your finances too. You also know precisely when you’ll pay off your loan, if your goal is to be debt-free.
Digital Income Verification
Unfortunately, many lenders still want you to provide pay stubs or a letter from your employer to prove how much you earn. As a result, you end up wasting your valuable time and then you must scan these documents and upload them to the lender’s website. That’s clearly inconvenient.
Fortunately, the best personal online loan uses a better process. Digital income verification allows a lender to quickly and securely confirm your direct deposits through your bank. All data is highly-encrypted and the process occurs almost instantaneously. Consequently, the loan process takes far less time and it does not cause you inconvenience.
Soft Credit Inquiry
The best personal online loan utilizes a soft credit inquiry and a pre-approval process. Why is this beneficial to you? First, the lender only accesses a brief overview of your credit report. This less intrusive method relies on a soft credit inquiry that does not affect your credit score.
Second, choosing a lender that uses a pre-approval process allows you to see what the lender’s offering, without obligation. Should you decide you want to look elsewhere, you can do so without worrying about your credit report.
However, tread carefully. Many lenders do not use a pre-approval process. Instead, they ask you to fill out an application form and then do a hard credit inquiry. This hard inquiry provides them with all details on your credit report.
Every hard inquiry is considered a serious attempt to attain credit. It stays on your credit file for up to 3-years and lowers your credit score by as much as 12-points. While this reduction may be “temporary”, none of the credit agencies specify how long that is.
Should you decide you don’t like what the lender has offered you and apply elsewhere, the new lender could use a hard inquiry too. Repeated hard inquiries can make it look like you are struggling to obtain credit, instead of shopping for the best personal online loan.
Artificial Intelligence Assessment
The best online lenders tap into the power of technology to speed up the loan process. They also consider many factors, not just your credit.
Always look for a lender that mentions they use an artificial intelligence assessment. This indicates they do not have a minimum credit score requirement, which can automatically eliminate those with less than pristine credit and those with a short credit history.
Unfortunately, many lenders do emphasize credit above all else. Consequently, new borrowers, students, and those trying to build their credit are often turned down.
Fortunately, the best personal online loan considers much more. Your income is a primary factor as well as recent work, banking, and residence stability (usually at least 2-months). As a result, if you earn a steady recurring income paid by direct deposit, you could qualify.
Speedy Process
Looking for a short, easy application form is only part of the equation. The best personal online must be fast, from start to finish. This includes making a decision, sending you your loan contract for signature, and releasing the funds.
The best personal online loan offers a decision within minutes, not hours or days. It also offers a fully-automated digital process when it comes time to sign your loan contract. Finally, it must get money into your hands very quickly.
If you sign your contract during business hours, you should have your money within 24 hours. If you sign on a weekend or holiday, you should have funds the next business day.
No Unnecessary Fees
The best personal online loan does not involve unnecessary fees. If you meet your loan obligations, you should only pay the loan amount, plus interest.
Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Some unscrupulous lenders try to up their revenues by charging certain fees. They often make them seem as if they are accepted costs of borrowing within the industry too, when they’re not.
The first of these trumped-up costs is an “origination” fee. This is a fee the lender passes onto you for the time it takes to set up your account. This fee can range between 0.5 – 8.0% of your loan amount. This should be an administrative fee the lender absorbs as a normal expense when doing business.
Another common fee lenders often charge is a pre-payment penalty. This applies if you want to pay more on your installment loan than just your scheduled payments. It compensates the lender for lost interest they would have earned had you paid your loan normally. Clearly, you shouldn’t pay this either.
Luckily, the best personal online loan does not charge an origination fee. A good loan is also “open”, meaning you can pay extra at any time, without penalty.
Multiple Customer Service Options
With so many lenders available, why choose one that only offers email customer service? You’re borrowing online, so the lender should provide you with multiple ways to connect.
Perhaps you want a quick answer to a question. Does the lender have an in-depth FAQ page? Can you find information regarding the application process, qualifying, payments, and more?
What if you want to talk to an actual person? Does the lender offer a toll-free number? What do their customers say about their service and attitude? The best personal online loan always includes friendly customer service representatives, eager to help you.
The Best Personal Online Loan Through FlexMoney
If you’re considering a loan, here is a brief summary of why we are your best choice and why we offer the best personal online loan:
- Personal installment loans of between $200 and $2,000
- 12-months to repay
- Regular scheduled payments
- Lower interest rates than payday loans
- Fast process from start to finish
- Digital income verification
- Soft credit Inquiry & pre-approval process
- Artificial intelligence assessment
- No origination fee or pre-payment penalty
- Excellent customer service
Our Basic Qualification Requirements
FlexMoney is a transparent lender. As a result, we’re happy to provide our basic qualification requirements for our best personal online loan:
- Name
- Address
- Valid and Active Email
- Phone Number
- Valid Social Security Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number
- Proof of a steady source of recurring income (we consider employment, self-employment, disability, and pension income)
- Proof of active account with an American financial institution with at least two-months of transactions
Sorry, we can’t help you if you are currently enrolled in an active bankruptcy, consumer proposal, or credit counselling program.
FlexMoney is a highly-experienced online lender with the best personal online loan. If you want to start the application process now, please visit website. You can also find more details on our installment loans here.