Best Secured Loans in the UK – that will be the topic of today’s article.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Compared to a personal loan, secured loans are better in many possible ways.
When you apply for a secured loan, you will keep something valuable as collateral for the lender.
On par with personal loans, you can get secured loans at lower APRs and higher amounts.
These are among the most beneficial aspects of secured loans. Furthermore, repaying the loan perfectly will allow you to build your credit score.
In most cases, there is no strict requirement for a higher credit score to get approved.
Nonetheless, there is a major drawback with secured loans. When you fail to repay within the given time, you will risk losing the collateral backing your loan.
Nowadays, finding the appropriate lender for acquiring a secured loan has become a hassle.
Especially among the various lenders available these days, finding a suitable loan is complex.
That’s why we are going to discuss some of the best secured loan providers available in the UK.
Kindly note that I have included both brokers and lenders who offer secured loans in the UK.
Let us begin.
Proper Finance
With Proper Finance, secured loans are offered by keeping the property as collateral. The types of property accepted for a secured loan at Proper Finance are:
— Residential property (homes and flats)
— Commercial property (offices)
— Bungalows
— Care homes
— Chalets
— Converted barns
— Cottages
— Detached homes
— Farmhouses
— Guest houses
— Hotels
— Maisonettes
— Petrol garages
— Studio flats
— Terraces
— Townhouses
— Warehouses
There are different categories of secured loans offered at Proper Finance. They are:
— Homeowner loans
— Bridging loans
— Secured debt consolidation loans
— Equity release
The lender does not conduct a hard credit check when you get an online quote.
Loan Amount
At Proper Finance, one can get an amount of up to £500 to £2.5 million as a secured loan.
The actual loan amount may vary depending on various factors related to the property and the individual. Some of the common factors include the value of the property, equity available, income, credit score, etc.
APR
As per Proper Finance, the online APRs start from 3% for secured loans. However, the actual APR may vary based on the amount borrowed and the term period.
Fees
There is a broker fee and a lender fee applicable on secured loans.
Credit Score
The secured loans at Proper Finance are available for people with even a poor credit score. However, certain types of secured loans might require you to have a higher score.
Eligibility Criteria
The requirements for applying for a secured loan at proper finance are as follows.
— The estimated value of the collateral being provided for the secured loan.
— The estimated equity available in a property being kept as collateral.
— Income details.
— Contact details.
— Loan amount desired.
— Anticipated loan term.
— Already existing debt.
There will be additional criteria depending on the type of secured loan you choose at Proper Finance.
For instance, the applicant should be at least 24 years old for a homeowner loan. They should have a good credit history and meet the minimum income requirements.
For equity release, the individual should at least be 55 years old. There will be some requirements related to the equity (collateral) as well.
To access more details or apply for a secured loan at Proper Finance, click here.
Pepper Money
The secured loan offered at Pepper Money is known as a Homeowner Loan. With this loan, you can borrow up to 100% of your home equity (subject to conditions).
Loan Amount
Pepper Money allows individuals to borrow an amount ranging between £10,000 to £1 million. The actual loan amount for homeowner loans may vary depending on certain factors.
You can check for approval within five minutes, that too, without affecting your credit score.
APR
Pepper Money is known to offer competitive APRs starting from 4.74%. Yet, the actual APR may vary based on the term, loan amount, and other influential factors.
The term period for a loan can be chosen to start from three years up to a maximum of 30 years.
Fees
Pepper Money charges a lender fee, which is variable. There is also an exit fee of £95 applicable to the loan products.
Eligibility Criteria
The eligibility criteria for a secured loan has not been disclosed on the official website of Pepper Money.
To get more details or access a secured loan at Pepper Money, click here.
Shawbrook Bank
The secured loans offered by Shawbrook Bank are known as Second Charge Mortgages.
You can get the loan amount you want through a remortgage and use it for various purposes.
Loan Amount
At Shawbrook Bank, the maximum a borrower can get is up to £500,000.
However, the actual loan amount is decided based on the lending criteria.
The maximum LTV (Loan-to-Value) is 85%. The lender will consider the following aspects while issuing a loan.
— The value of the property
— The saleability of the property
— Applicant’s income
— Other credit and loan commitments of the applicant
— Credit history
— How long the applicant has lived in the property being kept as collateral
APR
The APRs start from 7.45% and depend on factors such as loan amount and term period.
Fees
Shawbrook bank charges different types of fees on the second charge mortgages. These include broker fees, lender fees, bank disbursement fees and discharge fees. There are no extra charges during overpayment or prepayment of the loan.
Eligibility Criteria
There are age requirements for acquiring a Second Charge Mortgage. The maximum age of the applicant should not exceed 85 years by the end of the term chosen.
The individual should have lived at the property for a period of at least three months. The minimum property value should be at least £70,000 to get considered for this loan.
Furthermore, there are credit score requirements, income requirements, etc. To get more details or access the secured loan offered by Shawbrook Bank, click here.
West One
West One offer Second Charge Mortgages by requiring home equity as collateral. There are two types of Second Charge Mortgages, which are:
— Residential Second Charge Mortgages
— Buy-to-Let (BTL) Second Charge Mortgages
Depending on the option chosen, the actual APRs, loan amounts, and aspects might vary.
Residential Second Charge Mortgages can be utilized for different purposes.
However, Buy-to-Let Second Charge Mortgages can only be used for the following purposes.
— Buy-to-Let Property renovations
— Property renovations
— Property purchases
— Other personal purposes
There is no credit score requirement to get a second charge mortgage at West One.
Let us have a brief look at the second charge mortgages offered by West One.
Loan Amount
With Residential Second Charge Mortgages, you can get a loan amount of up to £500,000.
With BTL Second Charge Mortgages, the maximum loan amount you can get is £350,000. However, you can get up to £500,000 if you were referred (subject to conditions).
The loan periods start from 3 years and can be set for as long as 25 years (BTL) or 30 years (Residential).
The LTV for Residential is 80%, whereas it is 75% for BTL second charge mortgages.
APR
For Residential Second Charge Mortgages:
— Variable rate: starts from 6.25%
— 5-year fixed rate: starts from 7.54%
— 2-year fixed rate: starts from 7.89%
For Buy-to-Let Second Charge Mortgages:
— Variable rate: starts from 6.5%
— 5-year fixed rate: starts from 8.29%
— 2-year fixed rate: starts from 8.64%
You should note that the actual APR will vary based on factors such as loan amount, term period, etc.
Fees
West One does not disclose any of the fee-related details regarding the second charge mortgages.
Eligibility Criteria
• For Residential Second Charge Mortgages:
Self-employed applicants need a trading history of two years to apply for this.
Employed people with a minimum of three months of employment are eligible. They must not be in a probationary period to become eligible.
Retired individuals can apply if they meet the minimum income requirements. State pension accepted.
The maximum loan offered would be six times the gross annual income of an applicant.
The automated expenditure of the applicant will be assessed while approval.
• For BTL Second Charge Mortgages:
The property should have Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating between A to C.
The minimum age is 21 years and the loan term should end by the 85th birthday of the applicant. No minimum income requirements apply.
Only individual landlords can apply for the second charge mortgage. The landlords can either be professional or part-time.
To access more details or apply for a second charge mortgage at West One, click here.
Step One Finance
The secured loan offered by Step One Finance is known as a Mortgage Loan. This can be used for:
— Home Improvement
— Buying a property
— Wedding
— Debt consolidation
— Vacation
— Children-related expenses
— Educational expenses
— Training expenses
— Maintenance costs
— Unanticipated costs
— Property damage repair (or the dame repair for any other asset)
— Medical expenses
— Moving costs
— Lifestyle changes
— Relocation
— Large purchases
— Equity release
— Unexpected tax bill
— Business expansion
The LTV for this mortgage loan is 95%, which would also include the existing first mortgage.
On the other hand, the LTV for Buy-to-Let properties is 90%.
Loan Amount
The loan amounts at Step One Finance for mortgage loans range between £10,000 to £200,000. The maximum loan amount for buy-to-let properties is £150,000.
The actual loan amount may vary based on the lending criteria set by Step One Finance.
You select a term period between 6 years and 30 years for these mortgage loans.
APR
Competitive rates
Fees
There are no hidden fees at Step One Finance. They charge a lender fee and a property evaluation fee.
Eligibility Criteria
The minimum age limit to apply for a mortgage loan at Step One Finance is 21 years. No maximum age limit.
If an individual applies for this loan, the minimum income should be at least £16,000. If there is a joint application for this loan, the minimum income requirement is set at £20,000.
The applicant(s) should have lived for at least six months at the property.
The mortgage loans offered by Step One Finance are only available in England, Wales, and Scotland.
To access more details or apply for a mortgage loan at Step One Finance, click here.
Oplo
The secured loan offered by Oplo is known by the name of a secured home loan. The loan purposes approved by Oplo include:
— Debt consolidation
— House expansion
— Damage repair for properties
Loan Amount
Oplo offers a secured loan amount ranging from £5,000 to £250,000 for various purposes.
The term periods start from 24 months and can be chosen for up to 300 months.
APR
The details regarding Oplo’s APRs haven’t been disclosed on their official website.
From other reliable sources on the internet, I’ve found that the initial rates start from 7%.
Fees
There is an acceptance fee, which may differ based on the amount being borrowed.
Other types of charges haven’t been disclosed by Oplo.
Eligibility Criteria
There is no particular criteria for eligibility listed by Oplo.
To get more details or access the secured home loan offered by Oplo, click here.
Spring Finance
The secured loans offered by Spring Finance are known by the name of second charge mortgages. This is offered by requiring a residential property or an investment property as collateral.
With the second charge mortgages, the already existing mortgage doesn’t get interrupted. There isn’t much information regarding these secured loans on their official website.
Loan Amount
The tenure can be selected between three years and five years. The LTV is up to 80%. Based on the value of the property and the applicant’s eligibility, a loan amount of up to £200,000 can be obtained.
APR
The initial rates start from 9.40% and differ based on factors such as loan amount, tenure, etc.
Fees
Not disclosed.
Eligibility Criteria
Not disclosed.
Spring Finance’s second charge mortgage is obtained through a mortgage broker or a financial intermediary.
To get access to their official website for additional help, click here.
Evolution Money
Evolution Money offers secured loans that are backed by home equity as collateral.
They also consider credit scores while offering a secured loan. Therefore, if you are seeking a secured loan with a poor credit score, it may not be ideal.
Loan Amount
You can get a loan amount ranging from £5,000 to £100,000 depending on certain factors.
The tenure can be set starting from one year up to a maximum of 20 years.
APR
At Evolution Money, the APRs start from an initial rate of 14.52%. Nonetheless, the actual APR will differ based on factors like loan amount, term period, and other criteria.
Fees
Evolution Money charges a product fee, which is 10% of the total loan amount. There is also a lending fee of £699.
Other fee-related details haven’t been disclosed by the lender, so you might have to contact them for that.
Eligibility Criteria
Not disclosed
To get more details or access the secured loan offered by Evolution Money, click here.
Willows Finance
Willows Finance offers a secured loan, i.e., a secured homeowner loan.
Loan Amount
At Willows Finance, you can get a loan amount ranging from £5,000 to £2.5 million.
APR
The APRs aren’t disclosed by Willows Finance, and yet, the APR is based on the loan amount and other factors.
To get more details or access the secured loan offered by Willows Finance, click here.
Some other alternatives include:
Bottom Line
Almost all the secured loan providers in this article are lenders. They have been in the industry for quite a while and have been serving various people.
By the time of writing this article, the information provided in the article is accurate and up to date. Anyhow, there is a good chance for the information to change or get outdated when you read this.
That’s why I strongly suggest you get in touch with the respective lender regarding the details.
I have provided relevant links to the lenders, which would lead you to their homepage or secured loan page. You should take into consideration that I do not endorse any of these lenders. Neither am I affiliated.
I just wanted to provide this information as a resource guide for those finding it hard to get this data.
This is a genuine review provided just for informational purposes, especially to my readers. Getting a loan may sometimes become an emergency, especially during a major one. At such times, some people may find it hard to find the required loan amount. Even when most individuals are eligible for getting a personal loan, it comes with higher rates.
Additionally, the required loan amount may or may not be offered by the lender. A secured loan will be beneficial in such cases and we’ve already discussed that in the beginning.
Yes, advantageous. But to what extent? A loan, regardless of being personal or secured, comes with an interest. Additionally, there will be some more charges while acquiring, making payments and closing.
With secured loans, you will also risk losing the collateral when you fail to repay the loan. Imagine borrowing something around £20,000 and having to repay more than two times the amount. The is just being provided as a representative, and you don’t need to be surprised if it is more than three times.
I strongly recommend that any individual should avoid getting a loan unless deemed necessary. Having said that, if you have a healthy cash reserve or substantial savings, you won’t need a loan.
Furthermore, if you had a nice investment portfolio, the returns alone would come in handy.
Are you in the need of someone who can efficiently handle your investment needs?
Otherwise, do you seek a financial expert for financial planning or wealth management needs?
Don’t worry. I’m here to help. You can get access to the best-in-class financial services offered by me, which can help you achieve financial freedom.
If you do need the help of a logical, trustworthy and result-driven professional, then don’t hesitate to contact me.
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