Tag Archives: cost
Unsecured Personal Payday Loans Are Not a Long-Term Solution
Unsecured personal loans are sometimes called fast cash or payday loans. The good news is that anyone with a steady paycheck, even those earning minimum wage, can qualify for these types of cash advances. Pay day lending however, can be a very short and painful way out of a temporary situation.
The bad news with unsecured personal loans were payday loans is that you almost never can seem to catch up. A payday advance is extremely expensive! How expensive, you might ask? Some companies charge as much as 25% or more, every couple of weeks. This comes out to 650% for a year. But that’s not the worst of it…
Think about this:
A payday cash advance of $100 for two weeks, would cost $125. So if you pay the loan back in two weeks. You pay them the hundred dollars plus 25 dollars in interest.
So you would think that in four weeks, it would cost an it would cost you $150, right?
WRONG!
The way payday cash advance loans work is that they loan you $100, in two weeks it would cost you $125. But if you couldn’t pay the hundred and $25 in interest, they would simply give you a new loan to pay off the old one.
So for the next two weeks, you would have $125 loan and owe $31.25 in interest.
So a 100 loan, for one month would actually cost $156.25. Here’s a quick look at it just three months for a hundred all alone could cost.
Weeks w/Loan Amount Owed
$100.00
2 weeks $125.00
4 weeks $156.25
6 weeks $195.31
8 weeks $244.14
10 weeks $305.18
12 weeks $381.47
So after four weeks. The typical payday loan of 100 dollars would cost $156.25. After two months it would cost $244.14. And after just three short months. A cash advance of only $100, would cost you $381.47.
This figures out to 650% interest over one year! That’s not the annual percentage rate or APR, but just flat interest-rate.
The last problem with personal payday type loans is that most want access to your checking or savings account. They say this is to make it easier for you but it also allows them full access to your bank accounts. If there’s an error, you fight them about it all the while they take your money.
If however, you are in need of a fast cash loan and are able to pay it off on time, there are several programs that offer your first loan free of interest. I you need a one time short term unsecured personal loan, maybe one of these no interest one-use options are for you.
Remember though, the payday loan businesses will continue to contact you trying to get you to get back in debt. You must be able to ignore these types of marketing plans that would only end up hurting you long-term financial future. Just if you decide to use a payday loan, just make certain you have a plan to pay it back on time.
Working Out The Total Cost Of A Loan
When you are looking for a loan, you need to compare loans by working out the total cost of repaying the loan. Although many web sites allow you to compare the APR costs, working out the real total cost of a loan is a little more complicated. However, it is important that you do this so that you can budget accurately and also so that you can find the best deal for your needs.
Estimating the total cost
The quickest and easiest way to estimate the total cost is to multiply the total amount borrowed by the APR, and then multiply this by the number of years. For example, if you borrow £10,000 and the APR is 10% for 5 years, then 10000 times 0.10 times 5 equals £5000. This is the interest you will pay, so add this to the total amount borrowed and then you know to borrow £10,000 for 5 years at 10% costs you £15,000 in total. Of course, this is only an estimate and will be higher than the actual amount as interest payments are reduced as you pay off the amount.
Other costs
There are obviously other costs to add to this total amount, such as loan processing fees, payment protection insurance and any other fees you need to buy to set up the loan. Add these to the total cost mentioned before and you have the total that you need to pay back over the loan term.
TAR
If you are discussing the total cost of the loan with your lender, then ask them to give you the TAR. This stands for Total Amount Repayable, and will let you know the total you have to pay back during the loan term. The difference between the amount borrowed and the TAR will tell you how much the loan is costing. A smaller difference between these two numbers means a better deal for you.
APR
As well as knowing the TAR, you should work out how much you need to repay each month. To do this, divide the TAR by the total loan term in months. For example, if you were paying back £14,400 over 12 years, then you will pay back about £100 a month (14,400 divided by 144 months). Of course, this is also an estimate as the TAR amount you have calculated is an estimate. To get the exact amount, ask the lender.
Adding penalty costs
When working out the total cost of a loan, you should budget into the equation some penalty fees. Although you might never pay any of these fees, to allow for a few late payments will help you to be prepared in case. It may also help you to decide between two similar loans, depending on the amount they charge for penalties and late fees.
If you are unsure, seek advice
If you are looking for a loan and are still unsure how much you will need to pay back over the whole term, then consult an independent financial advisor, who can help you work out how much you are paying for each loan, and which is the best deal.