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A personal loan is a credit with the purpose of using money for personal purposes that are not related to entrepreneurial activity. For example, it can be a loan to purchase cell phones, furniture, household appliances, cars. It is also possible to take out a personal loan in order to pay for various services (medical, educational, tourist). A cash loan can be provided for the borrower to use at his or her own discretion. The lender can be either a trade organization or a credit organization. The borrower is an individual (person).

A loan margin is defined as the difference between the appraised value of a product or service and the amount of the loan issued by the bank for the purchase of that product or service. These two figures are fixed in the loan agreement at the time a borrower applies for a loan.

A subprime loan is a loan that is accompanied by a high level of risk for the lender. Most often the cause of high risk is the status of the borrower (poor credit history, low income, etc.) or the terms of the loan (no collateral for a high loan amount, poor quality of collateral).

A jumbo loan is a mortgage that exceeds a certain limit set by the U.S. government. It should be noted that the specific value for a loan to be called jumbo varies for each state, mortgage type, and year. For example, in 2021, the limit on an FHA loan for a single-family property in many states is $548,250.

Predatory lending is the practice of issuing loans with extremely high interest rates. Predatory lending methods include direct deception of borrowers, aggressive sales techniques, taking advantage of borrowers' financial unawareness, confusing contractual terms, and so on. In some countries, predatory lending is illegal.

Each banking institution has its own procedures, rules and methodologies for examining and analyzing the creditworthiness of a potential borrower applying for a loan. The underwriting procedure results in a positive decision on the loan application or refusal to grant a loan, or a compromise decision: granting a loan, but in the amount and/or under the conditions that are favorable to the bank, even if they differ from the client's expectations. That is, a credit underwriter is a specialist who makes such decisions.

To understand the big picture when choosing a loan offer, it is very useful to calculate the actual annual percentage rate (APR) on the loan. It includes not only the interest rate, but also all the additional fees and costs explicitly or implicitly included in the loan agreement. In principle, APR can be calculated manually using the formula, but there have long been special and very handy calculators for this purpose on the Internet.

A finance charge on a loan is the sum of all interest and other charges and costs, including one-time charges, that the borrower will pay over the life of the loan agreement, that is, from the time the loan is signed until the last payment is made and the loan is closed. Thus, a finance charge on a loan includes not only the interest rate, but also origination fees and insurance.

A jumbo loan is a mortgage for the ammount that exceeds the Federal Housing Finance Agency's approved loan limits for a particular state. Real estate prices vary greatly in different regions of the United States, so the limit above which a loan acquires jumbo status ranges from about $400,000 to $800,000.

Before taking out a consumer loan, it is worth calculating all the interest and overpayments in advance, so that you understand the acceptability of the loan offer before applying. This way you will know in advance how much you will need to pay each month to repay the loan. Loan payments are most often calculated using two payment schemes: annuity and differential. Which of them is applied in a particular proposal is specified in the loan agreement. Knowing the formula of a particular scheme, you can calculate the amount of the monthly payment and know in advance its full amount with all the overpayments. In rare cases, a bank offers to choose the scheme.

Contrary to popular belief, getting a loan to a person with a bad credit history is quite possible. There is even such a term as a 'bad credit loan'. Not a single financial institution directly advertises such a service, but in fact many of them work with problem borrowers. The only significant nuance: because of a bad credit history, creditors have to hedge themselves by increasing the interest rate and tightening the conditions.

The minimum amount of down payment for a conventional loan is 3% of the loan amount. However, as a rule, this figure is higher, because credit history and other factors are taken into account, which increase the risks for the lender and require appropriate compensation.

A secured loan is a loan that is secured by some assets. The asset is actually the security for the loan. Security is necessary because the amount in the case of a secured loan is usually high. The security helps the creditor to remain secured in the process of repaying the money owed. And that is why it is called a secured loan. Because of the fact that the creditor is secured, he or she may rest assured about the funds, even if the amount is huge. As a result, an interest rate for secured loans is much lower than for unsecured ones.