 TITLE: How to Get a Loan With Bad Credit CONTENT: How Does Bad Credit Affect Your Ability to Get a Loan?\n------------------------------------------------------\nFor credit scores that range from 300 to 850, a score lower than 670 could be considered a bad credit score by lenders. Having bad credit could limit your options and lead to more expensive loan offers.\nPeople with bad credit tend to have negative marks in their credit reports, such as late payments or accounts that are past due or in collections. The resulting low credit score tells a lender that the person is more likely to miss a loan payment in the future, which could cost the lender money.\nSome lenders decide to limit their risk by only working with prime (good credit) borrowers. Others see it as a business opportunity and focus on offering loans to subprime (bad credit) borrowers. There are also lenders that offer loans to borrowers across the credit spectrum.\nIn general, lenders that offer loans to borrowers with bad credit may offset their risk by charging a higher origination fee and interest rate, resulting in a higher annual percentage rate (APR).\nFor example, say you want to borrow $10,000 and repay the loan over three years.\n*   If you have bad credit, you might receive a loan offer with a 5% origination fee and 29% interest rate—adding up to a 32.8% APR. You'd wind up paying about $419 each month and $5,086 in interest by the time the loan is paid off.\n*   If you have good credit, you might get a loan offer with a 1% origination fee and 10% interest rate—a 10.69% APR. You'll pay about $323 each month and $1,616 in total interest.\nA loan's APR takes its interest rate, fees and repayment term into account, which is why comparing loan offers' APRs can help you determine which loan is cheapest overall. Lenders often advertise an APR range with their loans, and your offers' rates can depend on your creditworthiness, the loan amounts and the repayment terms. END