Best Personal Loans For Good Credit (Credit Score 670-739)

Good credit is the credit level where good things start to happen. Not only are you very likely to be approved for any personal loan you apply for, but you’ll get a good rate as well!

Beyond credit, a good credit score is an advantage when applying for a job or for life insurance. Employees with good credit are considered to be more stable (and employable), while insurance companies see them as lower risk than those in the fair or poor credit risk categories.

We’re going to discuss some of the different personal loan opportunities available to you if you have good credit. And we’re even going spend a bit of time touching on moving your good credit to the excellent credit range.

The best avenues to get credit when you have good credit

When you have good credit, you have a lot of loan options. That’s particularly true if your credit score is over 700. Even though that may not be considered excellent credit, it’s good enough that the majority of lenders will want to do business with you. But some lenders will be more anxious than others, while others are best avoided.

Banks and credit unions

These will be your preferred loan sources, since you’re practically guaranteed a loan approval with a credit score of 670 or higher. But what will be affected by your credit score is the rate you will pay on the loan. For example, you likely get a lower interest rate with the 720 credit score than 680. But in either case, you’ll get a loan.

Between the two, credit unions are usually the better source. That’s because they’re non-profit, and owned by their members—which includes you. For that reason, it’s very likely you’ll get a lower interest rate than you will at a bank. Credit unions are particularly beneficial when it comes to auto loans.

app德扑圈官方网址home equity loans

With good credit, these can be excellent loan sources. They include both actual app德扑圈官方网址home equity loans, and app德扑圈官方网址home equity lines of credit (HELOCs). You’ll generally get better interest rates than other types of loans, since they’re secured by your app德扑圈官方网址home. They also provide larger loan amounts than other loan sources.

Just be aware that app德扑圈官方网址home equity loans and HELOCs do put your house at risk. In addition, they include some provisions you’ll need to be aware of. For example, app德扑圈官方网址home equity loans often include a balloon payment. You may get a fixed rate for the first five or 10 years, with the payment based on 15 or 20 years. But at the end of five or 10 years, the entire loan balance maybe due. HELOCs may also include a balloon provision. But they’re also traditionally variable-rate loans, and the interest rate can rise with the prime rate.

There are also interest-only HELOC’s. They require that you pay only the interest on the loan for the first say, five years. But after that, you may be required to pay both interest and principal for the next 10 years. That can make for a very steep loan payment.

Figure is a great option if you’re looking for a low-interest HELOC option. You’ll pay fixed monthly payments and they offer rates starting as low as 3.49% APR¹, which includes a .75% discount for opting into a Quorum membership (.50%) and enrolling in autopay (.25%). This rate also includes payment of an origination fee of 4.99%, for those who qualify.

What we love about Figure, though, is its fast turnaround. Funding can be initiated in as few as five business days*. The entire application process, start to finish, took place online and was fast and convenient.

*Terms and conditions apply. Visit Figure for details. Figure Lending LLC is an equal opportunity lender. NMLS #1717824

Other loan sources to consider

Peer-to-Peer (P2P) lenders

The loans you get from these sources will often have higher interest rates and fees than what you’ll pay at a bank or credit union. But they still have certain advantages. For example, you can get a personal loan of up to $40,000 for any purpose. In addition, the loans are completely unsecured.

They can be particularly beneficial with large medical debts. But one area of special consideration is business financing. It can be difficult to get a loan for a business of any type. But if you’re trying to launch a new business, it will be virtually impossible to get one from a bank or credit union. Since P2P personal loans are made for any and all purposes, they can be a perfect source for new business financing.

P2P lenders to investigate include LendingTree and Prosper.

Loan aggregators

These aren’t direct lenders, but web platforms giving you access to potentially hundreds of different lenders. The big advantage is that they save you from having to shop around with individual lenders. You complete a loan summary request, and lenders will come to you with offers. You can select the one that will work best for you.

I want to point out an excellent option here for getting personal loans – Fiona (formerly Even Financial). You may want to give them a try and see if you can get a better deal than what you can at your bank or credit union as you can get a loan for anywhere between 1K and 100K, for between 24 and 48 months. Fiona has many different lenders, and you can find the ones that work best for you by completing a single application. So Even cuts out a lot of the leg work for you and helps you figure out what is the single best option for you.

Another company to check out is Credible. Credible operates much like Even. You’ll fill out a single form and you’ll be led to all of your loan options in one place. The good thing about Credible is that requesting interest rates with them will not affect your credit score whatsoever. And Money Under 30 readers who refinance their student loans with Credible can get a $100 bonus.

Getting a personal auto loan with good credit

If you have good credit, getting a personal auto loan is almost certain. The only time you might have trouble is if your credit history shows specific problems with a current auto loan, or if your income is insufficient to qualify for the loan.

Apart from those two issues, not only are you likely to be approved, but you’ll probably have plenty of options. Or, you can check out Fiona, a loan matching service that will find you the best rates—so it’s really just more of a convenience for folks with good credit.

It’s important to remember that auto lending is not as uniform as other types of lending, particularly mortgages. This is because auto lending is a diverse industry. There are banks, credit unions, and subprime lenders, and each have their own criteria.

If you have good credit, you should be able to get an auto loan from your bank or credit union at a very reasonable rate. At a minimum, get a pre-approval, then make the car dealer beat it with a better offer.

Your credit score still matters with personal auto loans even if you have good credit

Even though you have good credit, your specific credit score will largely determine the interest rate you’ll pay on your auto loan.

Check out our auto loan calculator to get an idea of what kind of personal loan rate you’ll get.

Whatever your credit score is, be sure to DCU Credit Union—which lends nationally—is offering auto loans as low as 2.74 percent APR. The minimum credit score they’ll accept is 650, which is actually a little bit below the 670 to 739 range normally considered to be good credit.

Getting a mortgage with good credit

Most mortgage lenders will give you a loan if your credit score is at least 620, and there are a few that’ll go down to 600 or even 580. The catch is you’ll pay a higher interest rate with a credit score that low. And those are all considered to be fair credit, which is in the 580 to 669 credit score range.

If you’re in the good credit score range—670 or higher—your likelihood of approval is much greater. And while you may not get the lowest mortgage rates available, the one you will get will be a lot better than if you were in the fair credit score range.

What’s more, if you have good credit, you’re less likely to have to get a cosigner, or to make a large down payment. Your credit will be good enough that it won’t need to be offset by a major compensating factor.

As far as which mortgage lender to use, there are no particular recommendations here. Virtually all mortgage lenders originate loans through either the FHA, VA, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac. That means that while there’s some flexibility between lenders, they’re all following essentially the same guidelines.

Once again, you can use our mortgage calculator, you can determine the effect of credit score ranges on your interest rate and monthly payment for a mortgage.

Credit cards for people with good credit

While personal loans may work better for some, using a credit card to pay off your debt could be a better option.

Many balance transfer credit cards offer 0% interest for anywhere between 12-18 months. That gives you a year or more to pay off your debt with ZERO interest. So if you decide to make a big purchase – whatever it is – balance credit cards buy you time and therefore money. Also, if you have debt that you know you can pay off in that amount of time, going with a balance transfer card over a personal loan is usually a better choice.

Here are a few of my favorite balance transfer cards to check out:

The Discover it® Cash Back offers an introductory APR of See Terms on purchases and balance transfers for See Terms .

After the intro rate, the APR range is See Terms with no annual fee.

The matching feature provides one percent cash back on all purchases, and up to 5 percent in select categories each quarter when you activate, up to a $1,500 quarterly max.

Read our full review of the Discover it® Cash Back

The Chase Freedom® offers an introductory APR of 0% Intro APR on Purchases for 15 months and 0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers for 15 months.

After the intro rate, the APR range is 16.49% - 25.24% Variable with no annual fee.

It also provides 1 percent unlimited cash back on all purchases and 5 percent cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate.

Read our full review of the Chase Freedom®

The Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Credit Card offers an introductory APR of 0% on purchases (but not balance transfers) for 12 months.

After the intro rate, the APR will be 15.49% - 25.49% (Variable).

There’s no annual fee. Overall, this is a great travel card with generous bonus points for travel miles.

Read our full review of the Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Credit Card

What exactly is good credit?

Good credit is often in the eyes of the beholder—or in this case, the lender. There are different definitions of good credit based on various loan types. The credit score range may be different depending on whether you’re applying for a credit card, an auto loan, or a mortgage.

According to Experian—one of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax and TransUnion are the other two)—good credit is considered to be credit scores between 670 and 739. People in the good credit range are 21.5 percent of the population.

Once again, not all lenders use that standard. With some lenders, a credit score below 700 is viewed as more in the fair range. Still others may consider 700 or 720 as the beginning of excellent credit. At those score ranges, you’ll begin to experience preferential interest rates and pricing on most loan types you apply for.

If you don’t know your credit score, check out our credit score estimator tool.

Let’s look at what kinds of loans are available for you if you have good credit.

Common document requirements for a loan application when you have good credit

Below is a list of documentation commonly required for loans of all types. Exactly which items you’ll be required to furnish will depend on the lender and the kind of loan you’re applying for.

• Your most recent pay stub and W-2(s) to document your income.
• Evidence of Social Security or pension income (award letter or 1099).
• Contact information for your employer (the lender will verify your employment directly).
• Copies of completed income tax returns for the past two years, if you’re self-employed or work on commission.
• Make, model and value of your car; VIN number if you’re applying for an auto loan.
• If you’re paying or receiving child support or alimony, list the amount you’re paying or receiving.
• Bank or brokerage statements, or even retirement account statements.
• Written explanations for late payments or other credit problems that may show up on your credit report.

How to move from good credit to excellent credit

Excellent credit is considered a credit score of 740 or better. Now you don’t need a credit score this high to get through in life. But it’s still a goal worth pursuing, and here’s why:

An excellent credit score can get you the very best financing deals available. Small differences in interest rates can add up to thousands of dollars over the life of the loan.

A single 30-day late payment can drop your credit score by 50 points. It happens in the real world, sometimes by mistake. If your credit score as well north of 740, a 50-point drop will bring it down to the good credit level. If you’re at 700, a similar drop will bring you down to 650, which is fair credit.

Strategies to improve your credit

It can be difficult to improve on an already good credit score. It’s likely you’ve been making your payments on time, and for a very long time. There’s no way to improve on that, but here are a few strategies to enable you to go from good to excellent credit:

Monitor your credit on a regular basis, and be on alert for errors

You can monitor your credit through multiple different services like TransUnion, for example. If you find any errors on your credit report, correct them with the creditors immediately. Hint: if you have a credit monitoring service, they’ll alert you when they find any errors and will start the correction process for you.

Open a variety of accounts

One of the factors that determine your credit score is the type of debts and accounts you have. It looks better to have multiple accounts that you make timely payments for each month. So if you pay a credit card bill, a mortgage, and your student loan each month, your credit score will definitely thank you.

Pay down debt

Your credit utilization affects your credit score as well. So if your credit card constantly has a high balance, you’ll never get to an excellent credit score. So I suggest that you work on paying down your debt with two proven methods: the snowball payoff method or the avalanche payoff method.

With the snowball method, you’ll pay off your debts from smallest balance to largest balance. But with the avalanche method, you’ll pay off your balances from their highest interest rate to lowest interest rate.

Summary

To move your credit from good to excellent, slow and steady wins the race. You’ll want to avoid doing anything dramatic, while at the same time gradually paying down your debts.

And if you can move from good to excellent credit, you’ll find yourself sitting atop the credit food chain. It’s a nice place to be.

Read more

• Getting A Loan With Excellent Credit (Credit Score Above 740)
• Getting A Loan With Fair Credit (Credit Score 580-669)
• Getting A Loan With Poor Credit (Credit Score Under 580)

1 Figure’s APRs start at 3.49% for the most qualified applicants and are higher for other applicants. For example, for a borrower with a CLTV of 45% and a credit score of 800, a five-year Figure app德扑圈官方网址home Equity Line with an initial draw amount of $50,000 would have a fixed annual percentage rate (APR) of 3.49% and a 4.99% origination fee. Your total loan amount would be $52,495. You will be responsible for an origination fee of up to 4.99% of your initial draw, depending on the state in which your property is located and your credit profile. Your actual rate will depend on many factors such as your credit, combined loan to value ratio, loan term and occupancy status. The advertised rate of 3.49% includes a combined discount of 0.75% for opting into a Quorum Membership (0.50%) and enrolling in autopay (0.25%). APRs start at 4.24% for customers that do not opt in to autopay or apply to become a Quorum member. APRs for app德扑圈官方网址home equity lines of credit do not include costs other than interest Property insurance is required as a condition of the loan and flood insurance may be required if your property is located in a flood zone.