Secured Loans

Compare Secured Loans from UK lenders

There are likely to be hundreds of different lenders in the UK that might be willing to offer you a loan secured by property - sometimes known as collateral loans or collateral finance because they use your property as collateral.

Since there are so many lenders it doesn’t make sense to automatically go with the first loan company or secured loan broker you come across - it’s unlikely you’ll get the best secured loan rates if you do that.

If you’re looking for a secured loan against property it makes much more sense to shop around by checking rates offered by a range of different secured loan providers before you sign on the dotted line.

How much can I borrow when I’m applying for secured loans online?

That will depend on a number of different factors, including:

• The value of the asset you’re offering as security against your secured loan
• Your gross income
• Your typical expenses and outgoings
• Your credit history
• Whether or not you have other outstanding home loans, unsecured loans or credit card balances, and the total size of those other debts.

The range of variables your secured loan provider will take into consideration makes it impossible to be sure how much you’ll be able to borrow when you’re taking out a secured loan, but it is fair to say that this type of loan will usually provide you with a larger loan amount than an unsecured personal loan might offer.

Can I take out secured homeowner loans if I have an existing mortgage?

Yes, it is often possible to take out a secured homeowner loan against your home, sometimes referred to as a ‘second charge’ or ‘second mortgage’.

However, it’s important to bear in mind that most lenders will only offer you a secured loan against the equity you have in your home, which is the proportion of the property you already own outright - that’s why these loans are sometimes called home equity loans.

Secured loan providers will also analyse your income and expenditure in order to confirm that you’re likely to be able to afford the cost of repaying two secured loans on your home simultaneously. It’s vital that you analyse your finances to confirm that you really will be able to afford both repayments (as as well as any other outgoings you might have), and it’s advisable to add enough buffer to your affordability calculations to allow for the fact that interest rates might rise eventually if you aren’t on a fixed rate mortgage.

How can I find the best secured loans?

Each secured finance company has its own lending criteria, so in order to find the best secured loan interest rates it’s vital that you shop around to compare secured loans from a range of different loan companies. Going with your existing bank or mortgage provider might seem like the best option because those companies already know you, but taking this approach does run the risk of overlooking a direct loan provider that might be in a position to offer you a cheaper interest rate on your secured loan.

Can I take out a secured personal loan if I have a bad credit history?

Yes, there are secured loan companies that specifically specialise in offering loans for bad credit, and the fact that your loan will be secured against your home (or some other equally valuable asset that your lender is willing to accept as collateral, like a car) sometimes does increase the likelihood that you’ll be offered a loan.

Of course, it’s important to bear in mind that secured loans for poor credit often impose much higher interest rates than those for borrowers with better credit histories, so it’s even more important to shop around by comparing secured loan providers if you do have a history of missed payments, defaults or CCJs.