mo money, mo money, mo money

August 30, 2005 10:28 AM

What are my options for getting a personal loan of about $25,000 to consolidate some cc debt and maybe remodel our kitchen?

My wife and I live in an aparment on the same property as my parents. My credit is bad and my wife's is just OK. My parents just recently refinanced their home to lower their payments since they're both retired and have fixed incomes.

posted by stevyb to work & money (6 comments total)

You can agressively work on improving your credit score if that's the right thing for you. Be careful about getting new credit if you're not over-the-top dedicated to not accumulatng new debt. If you're still charging even $5 a month because you don't have the cash to pay for it outright you're not ready to open new lines.
posted by phearlez at 10:47 AM on August 30, 2005

I know it's not the answer you're looking for, but phearlez hit it right on the head. Creditors are getting more and more predatory in this country. The new bankruptcy reform passed by Congress should give you a clue about that. Notice how they made it harder to declare bankruptcy, but did nothing to stop credit card companies from offering high-rate credit cards to people who recently have emerged from bankruptcy protection. That's just a little bit of it.

I'm done preaching.

Do you own said apartment? Or more accurately, does the bank own it with you making mortgage payments on it? If you do, you might be able to swing a home equity loan. That's assuming you have $25k in equity. Given how bad your credit might be, though, you'll likely get the shaft on the equity loan. Try BankRate.com for plenty of articles on the loan process, as well rate comparisons for different products around the country.

The equity in your home is the collateral on the loan, so if you haven't grown up about using credit wisely, you'll end up in deeper water than you might already be in. Think foreclosure.

Oops, I snuck some more preaching in there.
posted by clearlynuts at 11:35 AM on August 30, 2005

If it makes you feel any better I lack your restraint re: preaching.
posted by phearlez at 12:03 PM on August 30, 2005

Not trying to threadjack, but I thought I'd sneak in a bit of preaching, too. When you buy a house/condo, you do, in fact, own it. The bank has the right to sue you to get it back from you if you don't pay.
posted by Merdryn at 12:52 PM on August 30, 2005

If you have a good credit rating and job, you could probably just walk into a bank and get a loan, but who knows.
posted by delmoi at 1:09 PM on August 30, 2005

What are my options for getting a personal loan of about $25,000 to consolidate some cc debt and maybe remodel our kitchen?

If you were asking only about debt consolidation, and were absolutely crystal clear (and convincing) as to your desire to not accumulate any more debt, and to pay off the debt consolidation loan as soon as possible, I'd suggest going to a credit union and getting a personal loan (this assumes you have essentially no assets, like equity in your apartment or car), and asking your parents to co-sign (without a cosigner, you might not get a loan).

But you have a bad credit history and your reference to "maybe remodel our kitchen" seems to imply that you're willing to go more in debt (as in, use $15,000 to reduce your credit card payments, and the other $10,000 for the kitchen). I'm very hesitant to suggest getting a co-signer because I'd worry that you're just going to drag them down with you (as in, ruin their credit ratings as well).
posted by WestCoaster at 4:41 PM on August 30, 2005