Learning about financial loans has become a necessity for those who want to get the most out of life. It would be nice if children were taught these financial truths, but the reality is that many of these concepts are very sophisticated and complicated. We will discuss what you need to consider when choosing and paying off a financial loan.
Everyone has a different reason for needing money. Finding the best fitting loan should be the goal when you borrow money, and luckily for you, BoomerBuyerGuides can help you with that. This complete online guide to choosing and paying off a financial loan will compare traditional and alternative lenders, so you can find the best loan.
Choosing Financing Products
The finance industry continues to divide itself into more sub-categories. Everyone is aware, conscious and familiar with the traditional banking sector. Traditional bankers tend to be very conservative, requiring a lot of paperwork and creating an application process full of red tape.
Gradually, the increase in wealth throughout the world has led to more alternative lenders being available. Those with bad credit might want to consider creative financing. These are the primary factors for choosing the right loan:
- Characteristics
- Needs
- Speed
- Length
- Cost
Sit down and list your own personal preferences for each of these factors. Use this list to separate lenders from one another.
Characteristics
Traditional lenders (i.e. banks) have a very rigid application process looking at your income, assets and credit score. Some of their processes have become very robotic. They have a lot of red tape, but can usually offer larger loan amounts.
The alternative lending sector has arisen as a counterpoint to the stodgy banks. With alternative lenders, there is more flexibility in how borrower characteristics are assessed. For example, most non-traditional lenders require less paperwork.
Needs
Amazingly, many banks think that they have a right to know what you are spending the money on. In fact, for the top businesses, Wall Street banks will restrict how they can spend their money. Some banks think they are your boss.
The problem with this is manifold. While some banks might think they are experts at everything, they are actually quite limited in their knowledge. They might be able to crunch numbers, but you know more about your needs than they do.
In contrast, most alternative lenders really don’t care how you spend your money. It belongs to you. They simply want you to repay the funds on time.
America was founded on the freedom to work hard and be productive. You can use your funds to pay off credit cards, plan a vacation or start a business. The best alternative lenders will treat you as mature individuals, responsible for spending your money wisely.
Speed
Many individuals and financial experts have noticed that large mainstream banks have created a slower, more bureaucratic process for loan applications. This might be due to lingering economic problems or their increased internationalization. Some of the largest banks have headquarters in distant cities; sometimes, the headquarters are even in foreign countries.
Unfortunately, due to the large vertical structure of many traditional lenders, the loan authorization process has become vastly lengthened. You might not be able to get authorization from a local branch manager; your paperwork might be sent to headquarters for authorization. All of this takes time.
Online lenders will tend to have a more horizontal, flat organizational structure. They understand that one of the expectations of online lending is speed. Therefore, they will create a loan authorization process that is faster.
Compare these loans to find the one that best fits your needs. Sometimes, there is a very lucrative opportunity that might not last for a long time. If you get the money you need, you can make a healthy profit. But, time is of the essence.
Length
The loan length for most traditional lenders tends to be quite varied. This is definitely a lucrative benefit of the largest banks. They might offer loan financing for months or years.
Many large banks have a myriad of lending clients – governments, corporations and individuals. Governments and corporations will tend to require a longer time frame for their loans. Most individuals will prefer short-term loans.
Alternative loans will tend to be for shorter periods of time. Therefore, they are ideal for those who need money fast. The alternative lenders are less likely to establish long-term lines of credit.
Cost
Many banks have numerous brochures listing a cornucopia of financial products. Generally, these financial packages are created by corporate headquarters and sent to the branches. Therefore, you will have more cookie-cutter loan variations.
The large traditional lenders will want you to fit their lending parameters. They are not likely to adjust their financial packages to fit your needs. Large financial institutions have a take it or leave it mentality. They are more likely to reject loan applications from those with bad credit.
This is in contrast to how most alternative lenders work. Many of them are flush with cash. They need to make loans to ensure that their money is fully invested in productive purposes.
Therefore, they will focus on finding a way to provide you with money. Risk management is a key element of all bankers, but the alternative lenders have more control over their risk management. Thus, they are more likely to lend to high risk, no credit or bad credit borrowers. Alternative lenders will try to adjust the cost of the loan, so that the loan can be approved.
Best Fitting Loan
So, be completely honest about your financial characteristics. Many will want to borrow more than they need; but this can lead to serious problems, if you cannot pay it off. Find an affordable loan.
Carefully balance your needs and wants. Choose a financial loan that fits your capacity to pay it off in a timely manner. When you do that – everybody will be happy with your financial loan choice.