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Ways To Survive A Financial Crisis

Financial Crisis

Maintaining good credit is very important. It can help you to achieve your goals of purchasing a home, buying a car and acquiring a few credit cards at the best interest rate possible. Unfortunately, everyone will have a time in their lives where unexpected expenses come along and keeping good credit during this period seems nearly impossible. The good news is that when it happens if you don’t have secured funds in a savings account there are still other ways to gain access to money to cover the unexpected expense and maintain a good credit score.

Ways To Survive A Financial Crisis
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Personal loans:

Applying for a personal loan through your bank is a great way to cover any unexpected expenses. If you own a home and have good credit banks will use your status in your favor. However, since they are an unsecured loan, they are a bit harder to get an approval for if you have credit cards that are maxed, your debt-to-income ratio is high or you’ve made a few late payments. The advantage to this type of loan is that you can borrow a generous amount of money and have years to repay the debt with fixed monthly payments.

Online installment loans:

If you don’t own a home or your debt-to-income ratio is high and you don’t need to borrow a large sum of money, available installment loans online can get you the temporary relief you need to maintain your good credit and cover the immediate expense. The terms of the agreement are basic, wherein you can spread the fixed payments out for 6 months or a period of up to a few years. While they will pull your credit score, even if you’ve had a few minor infractions, getting an approval is more likely than a personal loan through a traditional lender. The only drawback is that if you need more than a few thousand dollars chances you good you will not be able to borrow that amount.

401k:

A great way to cover an unexpected bill of substance is to borrow the money from you. If you have a 401k and you have equity you can borrow a good portion of the funds. Your employer should be able to steer you in the right direction and provide you with a number to call to see how much you have vested and the up to amount you can borrow. These loans generally receive funding pretty quickly once you get the approval. Another benefit to this type loan is that you are paying you back with interest. It’s never a good idea to borrow against your retirement; however, if you are younger and have many working years in front of you, you will be able to pay back the funds to your retirement account long before you retire.

Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC):

If your unexpected expense is broken pipes or a new roof, a Home Equity Line of Credit purchased through your mortgage company can give you the money you need to make the necessary repairs and repay the loan off in low monthly installments. The benefits of this type loan are that you are able to use the money per your discretion. It’s an open-ended loan similar to that of a credit card where you apply for a certain amount and once you receive the approval you can borrow and then pay and repeat the process as needed. You may also be able to deduct the interest paid on your taxes.

Whether your unexpected expense is minor requiring a few hundred dollars or major where you need to acquire five thousand or more, there are places that you can go in your community or online to borrow the money and keep your credit score intact. Just make sure that you only borrow the amount you need to keep the payments as small as possible. This way you’ll have no trouble repaying the loan and you’ll maintain a healthy credit score.

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