A bit of advice needed. P L E A S E!!

[Trace]

Due to some unfortunate events in my life and being left with a debt, I am at the moment struggling to keep my head above water every month.

So I've decided to take out a loan for £3k.  I want to keep the payments at around £100 a month, so I'm looking at borrowing it over 3 years - without payment protection.

Does anyone know of any decent loans going at the moment?

I've looked at the Northern Rock one which seems to be ok and is a name I recognise and trust.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Trace

[stallyon]

i went through this recently - ex's can be very costly  ...looking around Northern Rock is by far the cheapest option = 5.7% at the moment.

[Tonji]

Not alot of advice I can offer, Trace, other than be careful (loans are a minefield), dont sign anything your not sure of, maybe seek financial advice at the Citizens Advice Bureau, they normally have an expert willing to give free Financial Advice. Hope thats a little help.

[Trace]

Not alot of advice I can offer, Trace, other than be careful (loans are a minefield), dont sign anything your not sure of, maybe seek financial advice at the Citizens Advice Bureau, they normally have an expert willing to give free Financial Advice. Hope thats a little help.

Thanks Tonji.

The loan will cost me less than the credit card bill and overdraft are costing me now, so I'm not worried about taking out a loan.  I was just hoping that someone may of seen a good deal somewhere that beat the Northern Rock one.

[thediceman]

Trace, have you tried the website MoneySavingExpert.com which I believe to be the best resource for researching all things financial. Not only will it list the best loans but it will give you alternatives, for example, as £3,000 is a relative small sum what about borrowing it against a 0% credit card for 9 months and transfer it periodically to new 0% cards. This is what I'm currently doing. It works out much cheaper.

There is also a huge forum with lot's of helpful advice.

[Trace]

Trace, have you tried the website MoneySavingExpert.com which I believe to be the best resource for researching all things financial. Not only will it list the best loans but it will give you alternatives, for example, as £3,000 is a relative small sum what about borrowing it against a 0% credit card for 9 months and transfer it periodically to new 0% cards. This is what I'm currently doing. It works out much cheaper.

There is also a huge forum with lot's of helpful advice.

The 0% credit card is the way I have been going up to now, but you can't balance transfer MBNA to MBNA and most of the cards I have looked at have been MBNA when you look at the small print.  Also, this doesn't sort out my scarey overdraft.  lol

I will check out that website though - thanks ever so much.

[Graham C]

Money Saving Expert is the place to check - look in the forums too, the people there tend to be quite helpful and you'll sort out something I'm sure. 

The 0% is the best, have you tried a Sainsburys Card?  They're not MBNA and offer 0% with zero costs too.  Then you can transfer back to MBNA after that period has worn off.

Also, some cards (Virgin did) give 'cheques' so you can pay off balances like overdrafts too.

[yt]

and whatever you do keep it UNsecured.

[TheJagster]

Another good source for financial things like loans is tthe Motley Fool website at fool.co.uk

Be wary of cheques attached to a credit card account. I keep getting these for my Capital One account. Yu can use them like normal cheques for purchases and balance transfers but they are treated like a cash withdrawal so they attract a higher rate of interest and an initial fee! They will work out very costly for 3K!

Good luck.

[Trace]

Another good source for financial things like loans is tthe Motley Fool website at fool.co.uk

Be wary of cheques attached to a credit card account. I keep getting these for my Capital One account. Yu can use them like normal cheques for purchases and balance transfers but they are treated like a cash withdrawal so they attract a higher rate of interest and an initial fee! They will work out very costly for 3K!

Good luck.

I have an MBNA card with 13,000  - yes thirteen thousand, credit limit (it's clear btw lol) on it and they keep sending me cheques for it - I love my shredder!  lol

Never in a million years would I use one of those cheques.

I've applied for the Northern Rock loan, so I now have to wait to hear, luckily I have an excellent credit score - something I have worked hard to get and keep, so hopefully it should be cut and dried.  Fingers crossed.

[stallyon]

I have an MBNA card with 13,000  - yes thirteen thousand, credit limit (it's clear btw lol) on it and they keep sending me cheques for it - I love my shredder!  lol

can I borrow the card please...i'll be good 

[Josh]

Give me 5 grand, and I will give you 3.

[Graham C]

Give me 5 grand, and I will give you 3.

Bargain, can I have two goes please