If you find that you are short on cash and need a small boost to make an important purchase you may have been considering a quick loan from a direct lender.
This is not something you should jump into without research, however, and this is where we can help. There are many factors to consider when taking a quick loan and one that is often overlooked is the repayment period.
The repayment period is a set timeframe that you have to pay your loan back. This is usually fixed and spread over several months and you simply have to make a payment each month.
It is vital that you understand the repayment period as this directly affects how much interest you pay, and your monthly repayments. Below, we look at what the repayment period is for a quick loan from a direct lender UK and other factors to consider.
Legally a direct lender cannot offer you a loan with a repayment period of more than 36 months (3 years). Typically the minimum repayment period is also set to 3 months too so you have a set repayment potential of 3-36 months. You can find out more legal info from Citizens Advice too on payday loans.
Most direct lenders allow you to choose the repayment period but some have fixed loan plans with set repayment periods.
A shorter repayment period generally means you pay less interest and thus the overall cost of the loan is cheaper.
However, the downside is that the monthly repayments will be much higher because you have to pay the full amount (plus interest) back in less time. If you can afford higher monthly repayments then always choose a shorter repayment period.
In contrast, a longer repayment period can result in higher interest costs and a more expensive loan. The benefit is that the monthly repayments are much smaller. For example, £1000 spread across 12 months is much cheaper monthly than £1000 spread across 3 months.
If you are only just floating above the bread line and don’t have much spare income to make repayments, a longer repayment period could be better. You just have to be prepared that you will pay more overall.
Aide from the repayment period, there are other important factors too that you must consider for the viability of a quick loan from a direct lender.
The monthly repayment amount is directly linked to the repayment period.
You need to assess your financial situation and look at realistically how much you can pay back per month. This should then allow you to choose a suitable direct lender loan. Perhaps you can only afford to pay back a small amount each month in which instance a longer repayment period would be better.
The APR is the interest rate that dictates how much you will pay back on top of the loan value.
Please note that quick loans from direct lenders typically have a much higher APR of between 43% – 1333%. In contrast to loans from a bank or things like mortgages, you will always pay back more.
The benefit of quick loans is the speed and the accessibility – the application and approval process is much quicker so you can get the money when you need it.
If you can’t reliably make repayments on a quick loan then we advise against taking one. Defaulting on loan repayments will hugely damage your credit rating and you could end up in a debt spiral which can be highly stressful and dangerous.
Make sure that you understand exactly how much you have to pay each month and that you always have money to cover the repayments.
Lastly, check on the application and approval process as this will determine how quickly you can get your loan payout.
Most quick loan providers have an incredibly fast application process and in most instances, you can get approved for a loan in minutes. It’s also advisable to check if a direct lender provides loans to people with a low credit score.
The most important factor to remember is that the maximum repayment period is 36 months. Direct lenders cannot legally offer loans with a longer repayment time than this. Make sure that you choose a repayment period that you can realistically manage while minimizing the amount of interest you have to pay.
Warning: Late repayment of payday loans can cause you serious money problems. For help, go to moneyhelper.org.uk.