Compare Secured Loans

These loans can be used for any number of reasons which require a large sum of money. You will always need to tell the lender what you intend to use the money for. For example, they can be used to fund home improvements such as a new kitchen or bathroom, a conservatory, replacement windows and doors, garden landscaping or even an extension to your property. Other homeowners take out a secured loan to buy a new car, pay for a wedding or to consolidate existing debt, perhaps over a longer repayment period. Consolidating credit cards and personal loans can help you budget by having just one monthly repayment to make, and the interest rates can be lower than credit card borrowing.

Each lender will have their own eligibility criteria. However, most will have upper and lower age limits and require you to be a UK resident. You will need to be able to prove to the lender that you have a regular income to enable you to meet loan repayments. You are more likely to be approved for a loan if you have a stable address history

This will depend on the reason for the loan. You can discuss this in greater detail with our advisors. The terms a lender will offer will also depend on your age. Typically, if you are older you will not be able to spread your borrowing over quite such a long term. You should bear in mind that the longer the term of the loan, the more you will pay in total for the loan because you will be paying interest for a longer period. It is cheaper in total to borrow at the same interest rate over a shorter loan period.

Yes, you can still apply for a secured loan. These home-owner loans are available for self-employed homeowners as well as those who are employed. If you are self-employed you will need to provide the following documents in order to apply for a secured loan:

• 1. Proof of your income
• 2. Bank statements (your business bank statements, to show your income from self-employment)
• 3. In some cases, a lender will want to see 3 years' worth of your business accounts.

We own our property as joint property owners - do we both need to apply together for a secured loan?

Yes, if you own a property jointly with someone else then you are required to make a joint application. Both owners will be liable for making repayments and paying the full loan within the agreed terms.

As part of an application process, the lender will carry out a credit check. This process helps lenders to decide how much they can lend and how long for. Lenders are also required to lend responsibly, and only lend money to people who can afford to pay it back. There will not be a credit check based on the application on this site, it is only when you have discussed the application with an advisor and agree to move forward that the check will be made.

The amount that you are able to borrow on a secured loan will depend on how much equity you have in the property you want to borrow against. Equity is the value of the property after the cost of repaying any existing mortgage has been taken away. For example, if your property is worth £200,000 and you already have a mortgage with £150,000 outstanding then the equity in your property is £50,000.

The interest rate you will pay on the loan will depend upon a number of factors. The main factors influencing your interest rate are:

• The amount you are looking to borrow
• The amount of equity in your home
• The loan to value ratio, that is the ratio of the borrowing secured against your home to its value
• The lender
• How long you are looking to borrow for
• Your credit history
• The current interest rate set by the Bank of England

Interest rates vary considerably between lenders, with typical interest rates on a secured loan varying from 3% to 20%. If you have a bad credit history, the interest rate you will pay will be higher than for someone with a good track record with credit.

The interest rates for secured loans are often lower than for unsecured loans. This is because when a lender gives you an unsecured loan, they are taking a bigger risk. With a secured loan, the lender has security for the loan if you do not meet the repayments.

Secured loans can be either fixed rate secured loans or variable rate secured loans. If the interest rate on a secured loan is fixed, it may be fixed just for a short period and then go back to the loan company's standard variable rate. Other fixed rate secured loans may offer a fixed rate for the whole term of the loan.

If you choose a fixed rate secured loan it can help you to budget because you know that your loan repayments will always remain the same.

The interest rate on a variable rate secured loan may change during the term of the loan. The interest rate will depend on external factors such as the Bank of England base rate. If your secured loan has a variable interest rate, your repayments could increase or decrease, and the total amount payable on the loan could also increase or decrease. If interest rates rise then you could find yourself paying a lot more in loan repayments than you had originally planned. In the worst case, you could find the repayments unaffordable.

If you do not make a repayment when it is due, your lender will usually charge you an extra fee for missing a monthly repayment. The lender may also charge you additional interest for the unpaid payment. If you do not make payments regularly, the lender may report you to a credit reference agency. This will adversely affect your credit profile and lower your credit score. It could make it more difficult and expensive for you to get credit in the future. The lender can ultimately get a County Court Judgement (CCJ) against you, and start the process of repossessing your property to recover the sums which are due. Repossession means that the lender can force a sale of the property against which the loan is secured.

Ultimately, if you do not make the repayments on a secured loan, the lender can sell your property and you would lose your home. Your home is always at risk, making it vital that you contact your lender to agree a plan if there are any difficulties in meeting repayments.

If the lender has to sell the property to cover the amounts due and there is more than one secured loan or mortgage in the property, the lenders are paid out in the order in which the loans are registered against the property.

The length of time that the process takes from your application to receiving the funds will depend on your circumstances and the lender you have chosen. It could vary from 2 to 20 days, or in some cases a few weeks.

Yes, it is possible to get a secured loan even if you have bad credit. If you have bad credit, you may be more likely to be approved for a secured loan than an unsecured loan because it reduces the risk to the lender. If you default on an unsecured loan the lender has no security so it is more difficult for them to recover the money they are owed. However, the interest rates you will be charged if you are approved for a secured loan may be higher than those charged to someone with a good credit rating. Not all lenders will consider you for a secured loan if you have a bad credit rating but we work with a very large panel and we will be able to match your need with a lender.

Yes, you can pay back your loan earlier than the scheduled repayment date. You may be charged an early repayment fee but this will be lower than the remaining interest on the loan, meaning that the total cost to you of the loan will be lower if you repay it early.

Applying for a secured loan is similar to applying for a mortgage. The lender will require your identity details, details of your employment history and current income as well as details of your outgoings and existing debts. You will also have to tell the lender what you intend to spend the money on. The lender will check that the loan repayments are affordable for you. It is vital to be accurate and honest in the application process.

You should always be aware that if you do not meet the repayments on a loan secured on your property, your home will be at risk because the loan company can sell it to recover the money due to them. It is essential to think very carefully about whether or not you can afford the repayments, and how you will cope if it is a variable rate loan and interest rates go up. You may wish to consider taking out an insurance policy to cover the loan repayments if you are unable to pay them due to illness or redundancy.