I’ve been receiving a different type of credit offer in the mail as of late. I’m used to the credit card offers at this point, ripping them in half and throwing them in the trash without thinking about it. Maybe I’ve been getting this type of offer all along, it seems lately I’ve been constantly getting offers for unsecured personal loans in my mailbox. The mailings offer large sums of cash to be used for debt consolidation, home improvement, or whatever I could use funds for. After being flooded with these offers for months, I decided to just a little investigating to find out what they were all about. What I found shocked me. These personal loan offers were even worse than those from credit cards.
The two most frequent sources of these offers have been Newegg and Barclay. The mailings boast the pre-approval of a personal loan ranging from $25,000 to $40,000 at a low interest rate as low as 3.9%! The offers come with an offer code and a URL to get more information without a credit inquiry. Here’s what happened when I followed the directions for the offers to gather some information.
Lesser Amount
After entering my personal information, I was informed that I qualified for an amount much less than the maximum shown on the mailing. It was about 60% of the maximum stated offer, but it was still a huge amount. For example, one offer told me I pre-approved for up to $40k, but qualified for $25k.
Insane Interest Rate
While the mailing stated that I could get an interest rate as low as 3.9%, the results showed I would qualify for an interest rate of 20.99%!! If I would accept the offer for a $25,000 loan at a 20.99% interest rate for 60 months, I would be agreeing to paying over $15,000 in interest over the life of the loan!
Analysis
Checking today’s rates from my bank, the interest rate for an unsecured personal loan ranges between 4.5% and 10% for people with a decent credit rating. Even if I were to be given a loan with a 10% interest rate, the same loan would cost me about $6900 in interest (less than half!).
Personal loan offers received in the mail make big promises that may entice people to use their product. Making it even more attractive is the ability to do it all online, from the comfort of their kitchen table. These loans are even more dangerous than credit cards because their interest rates may actually be higher than many credit cards. Plus, a credit card gives you the potential to rack up debt, while these personal loans guarantee debt as the loan is a cash payout. You’re better off visiting your local bank to discuss your financial needs.
How about you, EOD Nation, have you been getting these offers for personal loans in the mail?
