 TITLE: How to Take Out a Personal Loan CONTENT: Shop Around and Compare Rates\n-----------------------------\nOnce you've gathered your documents, reviewed your credit and determined how much you want to borrow, it's time to shop around and get loan offers from several lenders.\nThere are banks, credit unions and online lenders that offer personal loans, and each lender may have its own loan terms and requirements. Many also let you check your loan offers and rates online without impacting your credit score. Lenders may call this either getting prequalified or preapproved for a personal loan.\nTo check your offers, you may be asked to share your name, address, Social Security number, contact information, income and desired loan amount. Lenders can then give you estimated loan offers based on a review of your creditworthiness.\nGetting prequalified isn't a guarantee you'll be approved for a loan, though. For example, the lender might not approve you if your credit score drops after you're prequalified but before you submit your loan application. Or, you may get rejected if your income is impacted due to job loss after getting prequalified. Still, prequalification is a good first step—and it won't impact your credit.\nGetting prequalified for multiple loans can also help you determine which lenders are likely to want to work with you and give you the best loan offers. You can also cross off lenders that don't prequalify or preapprove you for a loan, which can save you time and limit the impact on your credit scores later. END