3 Factors That Determine Your Personal Loan Interest Rate

Published on: 09 July 2019 Last Updated on: 10 December 2021

Personal loans are collateral-free loans, making them most people’s first choice when seeking finance from an external source. Apart from the ease, you can access a hefty amount to fund a range of personal loan for your personal need.

However, being an unsecured loan, personal loan interest rates are relatively higher than those of secured loans. The interest rate on a personal loan depends on various factors. Firstly, it depends on the type of loan you choose, fixed or floating interest personal loan. Further, it alters based on how well you qualify for the loan as per the lender’s personal loan eligibility criteria. Typically, these criteria are based on your age, income, profession and credit score.

But first, take a look at the ongoing personal loan interest rates in the country so that you can make a wise borrowing decision.

Present Personal Loan Interest Rates in India

Interest rates on loans are linked to the repo rate. An increase in the repo rate increases loan interest rates and vice versa. Recently, the RBI cut the repo rate by 25 bps for the third time this year, and currently, it stands at 5.75%. Further, the weighted average interest rate on loans rose from 10.38% in January to 10.42% in April, indicating negligible movement. However, experts opine that you can expect more rate cuts in the coming months as the RBI has moved from a neutral to accommodative monetary policy stance.

Now that you know of the broader factors that affect your personal loan interest rate, take a look at 3 important factors that are specific to your financial profile.

Your Credit Score

Your credit score is a reflection of your creditworthiness and past repayment behavior. A good score of 750 and above implies that you have repaid all your past debts on time. Thus, lenders categorize you as a low-risk applicant and offer competitive interest rates on a personal loan. Conversely, a score lower than 750 shows that you carry some amount of risk. He

ce, you may have to pay a higher interest rate or settle for a low loan amount.

Your Income

A high income means that you are capable of repaying the personal loan on time, and this reduces the lender’s risk. As a result, they are likely to charge you a lower personal loan interest rate. In contrast, if your income seems insufficient, you are more likely to default and may not have the resources to repay the loan in full. As this poses a high risk to the lender and it has no collateral to fall back on, you have to pay a greater amount as interest.

Your Relationship With The Lender

If you have an existing business relationship with your lender and have displayed responsible credit behavior, in the interest of retaining you as a customer, the lender may offer you a competitive interest rate.

Now that you know the factors that determine your personal loan interest rate, work towards securing the loan on competitive terms. To ensure this, compare lenders and their offerings before applying for a personal loan in order to bag the best deal. For instance, genuine lenders like Bajaj Finance have simple personal loan eligibility criteria and minimum documentation so you can qualify for a loan easily. Once approved, you can access up to Rs.25 lakh personal loan at a nominal interest rate and repay it over a flexible tenor spanning 12 to 60 months.

Further, you can avail this loan on a Flexi facility that lets you withdraw on the go and pay interest only on the amount utilized. Additionally, you can pay interest-only EMIs throughout the tenor and repay the principal only when the tenor is up. This way, you can manage your finances and save up to 45% on EMIs. To view tailor-made deals and avail an online personal loan in a single step, check your pre-approved personal loan offer from Bajaj Finserv right away.

Read Also:

Content Rally

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

View all posts

Major financial problems that can affect a new business

For a new business just fresh out of the concept stage, there’s a lot of excitement ahead. However, there are often troubles on the horizon, and these tend to revolve around money issues. Finance streams may be in place when the business is first created, for example, but they can quickly dry up as time goes on. It’s expensive to hire staff, and this can often push a firm well into the problem zone. Here are some ways that new businesses can get around these problems. No finance streams : When a new business first launches, it’s usually the case that there’s some form of finance behind it – at least for a short time. The entrepreneur themselves might be financing it from savings, for example, while there may also be an investor. The long-term plan is usually to have incoming cash replace this stream once it dries out – but revenues and profits don’t come overnight, and in fact, they often don’t materialize for a long time. Instead of relying on external finance providers, it often makes sense for a new business to be “bootstrapped”. Bootstrapping essentially means cutting down costs until you reach a stage where you have the funds to raise them back up. Instead of hiring an office space, for example, why not knuckle down and work hard in your spare room until you have enough – or almost enough – sustainable income to pay for a desk somewhere? It may be tough doing this sort of thing at first, but it could be the difference between business survival and failure. Staffing costs : In a bygone age of manufacturing and industry, the main cost that businesses faced was equipment. This also tended to be where companies made cutbacks when times were hard, either by downsizing their factories, leasing out their equipment or something similar. However, for many modern American businesses, the main cost is staff. Staff members are, in general, expensive. Some, such as coders and executives, command high salaries that can quickly drain a firm’s budget. Even when a person is hired on a lower salary, there are plenty of extra considerations to take into account, which can make the hire expensive: from the additional insurance premium that a firm might need to pay on their office space to the additional computer and desk space that the staff member might need, the costs can mount up. It makes sense for many firms to hire contractors instead of as they come with far fewer financial responsibilities for the firm – and the arrangement gives both parties the flexibility to move on if needed. With umbrella companies available to manage the tax side of contractor pay, there’s no need to worry about the effect that it might have on your HR or accounting departments either. Running a new business is exhilarating in some ways, but it also comes with its problems. Finance is almost always the big one – and from large staffing costs to dried-up finance streams, there’s a lot that can go wrong. However, by focusing on finance methods such as bootstrapping and choosing contractors instead of employed workers, there are ways that you can get that profit and loss sheet under control and move towards a more sustainable financial future for your business. Read Also : Invest In A New Car, Without A Financial Liability Debunking 7 Notorious Bankruptcy Myths

Bankruptcy Means Test: Why It Matters?

Bankruptcy means a test is done to determine who can file for chapter 7 bankruptcy. The means test considers everything while determining your current position to pay your debt to the creditors. It goes through your income, expenditure, assets, and family members. The means test was designed to reduce the number of debtors willing to get their debts erased. It has been seen that most of the debtors who have applied for the means test have passed. Those people who cannot qualify for chapter 7 or want to keep their assets to themselves can apply for chapter 13 bankruptcy. How Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Works? Applying for chapter 7 can be an expensive and lengthy process. The means test helps the government clarify who is eligible for chapter 7. The Means Test has two parts. Both parts are designed to see through your income and assets and determine the current financial standing. You have to apply for the Means Test only for the primary consumer debts like medical debt or credit card debts. You do not have to apply for this test if your debt is related to business loans. First Part The part of the Means Test determines whether your house income is below the state's median income. The means test starts gathering information about your income, expenses, and assets. These data are mostly collected from the past six months. However, there have been cases where this six months time duration can be changed. After all the reports, if it is being found out that your income is below the median income, you will qualify the Means Test. In a report made by the US government in 2013, more than 12% of the debtors were able to qualify the Means test in the first stage. Second Part The second part consists of going through all your expenses. These expenses consist of everything you pay for, starting from paying your utility bills, grocery bills to the travel expenses and education expenses. Out of all the expenses, only the allowable expenses are considered to be used by you. Other expenses that are not necessary are used to pay off your debts. While you document the list of expenses, be thorough about the things you add to the list. Remember, those expenses will decide whether your petition will be accepted or not. Allowable expenses are based on the local and national standards used by the IRS. The national list covers items like food and clothing, and local items cover housing expenses and car payments. You need to work carefully to ensure that all your expenses are thoroughly documented. What's Next After You Qualify for the Means Test? Passing the means test means you have the green light to apply a petition for chapter 7 bankruptcy. Once your petition is accepted, most of the unsecured debts will be forgiven. That does not mean that this will be the best route for you. There are also chapter 13 bankruptcy that might give more advantage over chapter 7 in many cases. Chapter 13 will help you put a hold on all your debts, mortgages, overdue loans, and bank taxes. What Will Happen After You Fail The Test? Once you fail the Means Test, there are no more appeals for a certain period. You can apply for the chapter, or you can wait for the cooldown time to apply again for the means test. We have already mentioned that the Means Test goes through all your financial income and expenditure in the last six months. That means, after a failed attempt at the Means Test, you can apply again after six months. However, if you do not intend to apply for the Means Test again in the future, you will be restricted to chapter 13 and will have to pay off your debt based on the chapter 13 provision. The Bottom Line Is it really hard to apply for a loan after bankruptcy? Well, you can say more than hard; it is more complex. You first need to qualify the Means Test, and then only you can apply for chapter 7. It is better to have an attorney while you are managing legal documentation. Read Also: 8 Simple Tips To Pay Off Your Loans Faster 5 Must-Have Long-Term Goals for A Secure Future What are the types of debt that can be discharged in bankruptcy? Using Short-Term Loans to Help Rebuild Your Credit Score

Is Fixed Deposit the Right Place to Invest Post-Demonetization?

Fixed deposit is an investment option which is balanced with both: Returns and Risks. Although the investment is the most preferred option; these day’s people are seen to be disappointed with its returns. Perhaps the reason behind this disappointment can be the drop down of interest rates post-demonetization. Fixed deposit (FD) is always considered as a much favourable choice than savings since the returns earned are comparatively high. But as the rates have dropped down, the investors might have to think about parking their funds in savings rather than investing it. Before you change your mind, it is important to consider other financial institutions too, who offer fixed deposit investments. Banks are not the only ones providing the fixed deposit service; there are highly reputed NBFCs which are providing it too. The FD offered by the NBFCs are called as company fixed deposit. Despite the repo rate cut down, NBFCs still manage to offer best-fixed deposit rates which are higher than banks. Yes! You read it right, you can earn higher returns by investing in company’s fixed deposit, plus there are many schemes and facilities you can gain from. Owing to the favourable fixed deposit conditions, you no longer need to resort to less interest offering saving options. Here are some things that you should know about fixed deposit investments: 1. Secured Investment: As fixed deposit does not depend upon the market conditions, the interest offered on it is fixed throughout the loan tenure. This makes the investment a safe option to allocate your funds in. Whereas, the returns offered on the high-risk investments depends upon the market conditions which makes them risky. There is no such guarantee that you might always earn higher returns as there can be times when you might face a loss. This is not the case with fixed deposit. Besides, there are some NBFCs who are awarded ICRA’s MAAA rating and CRISIL’s FAAA rating which means, they are reliable as well as safe to invest in. 2. Flexibility: With a safe investment option, fixed deposit also provides flexibility with its tenure. You are free to choose any tenure period ranging from one year to five years. Also, you can reinvest in FD if your account matures. 3. Interest rates: The interest rate is a very important factor to consider when it comes to investments, as it decides the returns you will be earning over the fixed deposit. Fixed deposit interest rate offered by every financial institution differ, which is why it is important to compare FD rates and then apply for it. Also, as mentioned above, investing in NBFC’s fixed deposit can benefit you with higher FD returns in comparison to banks. 4. Tax deduction: In case, if you are investing a lump sum amount and the interest offered on your investment is above INR 10,000, then you might have to pay taxes. To escape from this tax deduction, you can split the money and invest it in different FD accounts. Also, you can apply for Section 80C to benefit from the tax deduction. 5. Senior citizen fixed deposit: If you are a senior citizen, you can benefit here, as you can invest your pension funds and earn higher FD returns compared to normal FD accounts by parking your funds in senior citizen fixed deposit. Although post-demonetization has brought down interest rates on normal FD account, the rates offered on senior citizen fixed deposits have increased. Though rates offered on a fixed deposit have dropped down, investing in a company fixed deposit can earn you higher returns. If you are planning for an investment, then NBFCs such as Bajaj Finserv offers highest Interest on FD Rate as well as provide different schemes and facilities that can benefit you. Read More : How To Get Low Cost Life Insurance For Seniors 10 Tips To Design The Perfect Business Card

3 Factors That Determine Your Personal Loan Interest Rate