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Personal Loans For High Debt

Get personalized loan rates in 60 seconds for debt consolidation with no impact to your credit score

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4.6 out of 5 based on 1134 reviews

Personal Loans For People With High Debt and Bad Credit

Can I get a personal loan for high debt?

If you’re holding unpaid debt, it can impact your credit score and impact your chance of qualifying for a personal loan. In short, there may still be ways to qualify for a personal loan with high debt. To help you understand why it may be hindering you, let’s review what contributes to your FICO® score. 

  • 30% amounts owed
  • 35% payment history
  • 10% new credit
  • 15% length of credit history
  • 10% credit mix

Now, let’s review what lenders can consider when approving a personal loan. 

  • Income
  • Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio 
  • Credit score
  • Credit history

Given the above information, you can see that outstanding debts can drive your credit score down. In addition, you can see that lenders may evaluate your current debt obligation in comparison to your income. When approving personal loans, lenders are looking to determine the creditworthiness, or likelihood of repaying a loan. High debt can be a cause for concern. Ways to increase your chance of approval can include applying with a co-signer or paying down debts.

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Where can I find personal loans for people with high debt?

Online lenders may have less strict requirements due to decreased overhead and increased competition. If you have factors such as high debt working against your ability to qualify for a personal loan, you may need to consider more lenders. The requirements to qualify can vary by lender. Just because you don’t meet the requirements for one lender, does not mean you can’t qualify all together. When shopping online, do your due diligence on the website or lender before sharing information. To compare offers with peace of mind, turn to Acorn Finance to check rates from top national lenders with no credit score impact.

What is a debt-to-income (DTI) ratio, and why is it important?

DTI is a ratio that reflects the percentage of your current monthly income that goes toward existing debts. It’s a way for the lender to evaluate how much more monthly financial commitment you can assume. The general recommendation is to maintain a DTI ratio below 43%, but oftentimes lenders prefer to see a DTI closer to 35% or lower. It’s important to be mindful about how much debt you’re holding as it can impact your credit score, and hinder your ability to qualify for financing. In addition, it can start to feel heavy to stretch your monthly budget trying to keep up with debt. 

How can a personal loan help me manage high debt?

Personal loans can be used as a lending product for debt consolidation Here’s how.

  1. Calculate the total amount of debt to consolidate: First, calculate the total amount of debts you intend to consolidate. The end goal here will be to pay off higher interest debts, and instead repay a lower rate personal loan with a fixed structure. Personal loans are an installment loan that can be funded as a lump sum and repaid in fixed installments over a predetermined period with interest. 
  2. Obtain a personal loan: Next, you’ll want to complete the approval process and receive funds for a personal loan. 
  3. Pay creditors: With personal loan funds available, you can use them to pay off debts you are consolidating. 
  4. Repayment: With fewer payment obligations, you can focus on paying down the personal loan to find some relief from debt.

What interest rates should I expect with high debt?

High debt can translate to more risk through the perspective of a lender. Therefore, you may face higher rates. The best way to determine what’s fair based on your qualifications is to compare real offers. While lenders may advertise rates online, these are often what rates start at. To know what you’ll actually qualify for, you’ll need to get pre-qualified. As you consider the total cost of borrowing with a personal loan, keep in mind that the interest compounds annually, not daily like credit cards. This can help keep the cost of borrowing lower than credit cards. 

Can I qualify for a high debt personal loan with bad credit?

Bad credit can mean fewer options and a higher cost of borrowing. While the best way to increase your chance of approval is to pay down debts and boost your score, we know this is not always an option. In addition, you can apply for a loan with a co-signer that’s well qualified. However, this too may not always be an option. If you’re on your own and need money quickly, some lenders may have less strict requirements, thus allowing them to help those with bad credit. Finding the right lender is key to getting a loan with bad credit. 

How much can I borrow on a personal loan for high debt?

Personal loans are available for as little as $1,000 and as much as $100,000, depending on credit score and the lender. Lenders can have varying minimum and maximum loan amounts they can offer to qualified borrowers. As for how much you can borrow will depend on your qualifications. You can request the amount you need, and if the lender is unable to offer that amount they can counter with a lower loan amount. 

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What can I do with a $1,000 personal loan?

A $1,000 personal loan has a number of uses, including (but not limited to):
Home improvement Buying a car Wedding costs
Debt consolidation Medical bills Startup business costs

Still have questions?

Best Debt Consolidation Options

Approval times can vary, and approval is one of the last steps before receiving funds. Before getting approved, most lenders will extend a pre-qualified offer. You may request the pre-qualified offer or the lender may solicit you with one, either way pre-qualified offers can be issued in as little as seconds. If you have an existing relationship with a lender and technology tells them you may be in the market for a personal loan, this can trigger systems to provide you an offer. To extend a pre-qualified offer some lenders only do a soft credit pull which does not impact credit score. If you choose to accept the offer, the lender can then request supporting documentation, verify information, and do a hard credit pull to approve the loan. Approved loans can be funded in as little as 1-2 business days, although funding times may vary. 

Acorn Finance partners with top national lending partners to deliver personal loan offers to consumers. If you have high debt or bad credit,  expanding the number of lenders you reach out to can help increase your chance of finding one that can help. At Acorn Finance, you can check rates in seconds with no credit score impact. Whether you’re ready to commit, or just curious what offers are available, our lending partners are here to help. 

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