As nice as it would be to have on hand, we wouldn’t blame you for not having an emergency fund ready and waiting to bail you out of financial hot water when an emergency expense rears its ugly head. It’s hard enough to make ends meet, let alone squirrel away enough extra cash regularly to have a fully stocked emergency fund.
Just remember that even when it feels like you’re out of options, there may be things you can do to help you out of a tight financial spot.
One of these potential options are online installment loans. We’re going to take a look at them in more detail and go over some of their potential benefits.
What is an Installment Loan?
If you’re approved for an installment loan, you’ll be given money that you’ll need to pay back over time in a pre-set number of payments. Loan terms (the amount of time you’ll have to repay the loan) can vary depending on a few different things, like:
- The type of installment loan
- Your income
- Your pay schedule
- The financial institution providing the loan
While some of the things we’ll be going over in this article will generally apply to all types of installment loans, we’re going to be focusing more specifically on online installment loans. These can help you deal with emergencies when you don’t have a financial safety net to fall back on.
Benefits of Installment Loans Online
How does the “online” component come into play? While installment loans are available through storefront lenders or other financial institutions, there are also some that are offered over the internet.
But why would you apply online? Let’s take a look at some of the potential benefits of a personal installment loan.
1. Simple and Fast Application Process
If you make the decision to apply for an installment loan from a storefront lender, the whole application process can sometimes take weeks from start to finish. The problem here is that when you need money to help you deal with an emergency, you may not have much time to spare.
Applying for installment loans online will usually give you the quick and straightforward application process that you’re looking for. A lot of financial institutions that offer or service online loans will have an application that generally takes minutes to fill out. This can apply to other online loans too, like online lines of credit, and more.
Want to learn more about how to go about applying for a personal loan online? Click here!
2. Apply Any Time of the Day
When it comes to applying for a loan at a storefront lender, you’ll often need to work around their specific business hours, find time in your schedule to travel to a physical location, and wait in line to speak to a clerk.
With online installment loans, this isn’t the case. On top of being fast, a lot of installment loan applications can be started 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There’ll be no travel time to worry about, no lines, and you can apply for them wherever you have internet access. This can be a huge benefit when you need money to help out in an emergency situation.
3. Options to Research for Different Kinds of Credit Ratings
For some people, having bad credit can be a big roadblock to getting approved for a loan of any kind. After all, your credit report is one of the main factors a financial institution is probably going to look at to assess your ability to repay what you’ve borrowed.
In the world of online loans, you can do your research for options available for people who may not have a good credit score. In some cases, while there still may be credit checks to potential customers, other things may also be assessed such as income, employment situation, and more.
4. They can Help with Emergency Expenses
No one wants to deal with an emergency expense, but they’re going to happen from time to time, and they don’t usually come cheap. When you don’t have the funds to manage them out of pocket, online installment loans could be a short-term solution.
For example, imagine you’re on your usual commute to work when suddenly you start to feel the telltale signs that a tire on your car is quickly losing air. You pull over and decide you’re going to need to get your car towed to your mechanic.
For some people, their car is too important to their life to go even a few days without one. Maybe it’s your only way of getting to work, and maybe missing shifts at work will mean having to deal with a lighter paycheck.
Whatever the case may be, installment loans online may get you the money you need to take care of this short-term emergency expense while you manage the payments down the road.
Review Your Potential Options
If you run into an emergency expense at any point, you’ll want to have a clear understanding of what your potential options are. Like we said, it’s important to have an emergency fund at the ready to help in these situations, but if you don’t, there may be ways for you to get the funds you need.
Installment loans online could be a potential option, but make sure you take the time to explore what else is out there. Financial products like lines of credit and other types of personal loans may also be suited to your situation, so do your research and look for something that works for you.
Disclaimer: The information contained within this article, including any references to companies or products, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not a substitute for individualized financial and/or legal advice. We are not a credit repair organization as defined under federal or state law and we do not provide "credit repair" services or advice or assistance regarding "rebuilding" or "improving" your credit. We make no representation that we will improve or attempt to improve your credit record, history, or rating through the use of the resources provided through the FreshStart Blog or CreditFresh website. The views and opinions expressed by any guest contributors, as applicable, are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views of CreditFresh.
