Debt Consolidation

Debt Consolidation Loans Explained

A debt consolidation loan is when you borrow money from one lender to pay off multiple lenders.

As shown in the image below, the young woman borrows $50K from a bank (or credit union) to pay all of her debts.

A debt consolidation loan usually has a much lower interest rate than your existing debt.

There are multiple ways to borrow money to consolidate debt and below we explain further.

You can get a secured loan, unsecured loan, credit card balance transfer, HELOC loan, 401K loan, or debt settlement.

Our Consolidation Loan Providers

• Apply using Fast App or Standard App
• $5K - $150K loan range for consolidations
• APR starting at 7% up to your State usury
• Monthly or bi-weekly installment payments
• 350+ lenders in WFL lending pool for DCL
• Debt relief for those with rock bottom scores
• Clear off your credit cards and high rate debt
• Some approvals based on income only
• 48 hrs - 8 business days for funding
• Your privacy is safe and secure on our site
• No obligation quotes available any time
• No money up front / predator free zone

Debt Consolidation Loan Process

1. Submit your consolidation request
2. Consolidation lenders review your app
3. Lenders in your service area email you
4. You choose the best offer and rate
5. Finalize your agreement with your lender
6. Lender transfers the money into your acct.

Debt Consolidation Approval Requirements

1. Must be 18 years or older
2. Have an active checking or savings acct.
3. Produce two pieces of State/Federal ID
4. Must provide your social security number
5. Must be a United States citizen
6. Must have mo. net income $950+

Is Consolidation Right For You?

Like anything, there are different opinions. Some experts believe that debt consolidation is a bad idea because so many debtors end up clearing off their debt with a consolidation loan, then turn around and start spending recklessly again.

And they're right. A lot of people fall into that trap.

But if you are disciplined, and determined, you can get one loan at a much lower rate and save a lot of money over time. Below is our rough guideline that may help you decide.

Everyone's finances is unique so you have to take an honest assessment of your current financial situation, and make an educated decision. Consider getting professional debt counseling, talking to co-workers, relatives, loan officers, etc., so you can bounce some ideas around.

Take a look at consolidation if...

You have solid and realistic plan: this is critical - you must a have realistic plan for changing your lifestyle going forward so that you're never spending more each month than you earn each month
Your credit score is fair to good: you need to have a credit score that's fairly decent (above 650 as a ballpark) before getting a consolidation loan otherwise you won't get approved at a rate low enough to save you money
You can easily handle the monthly or biweekly payments: No sense in consolidating your debt if you can't easily afford the monthly or biweekly payments and you should have a nearly rock solid monthly income
Your debt is less than 40%-50% of your yearly income: If your debt to income ratio (DTI) is too high you won't be able to successfully pay down your debt in a timely manner

Take a look at different solutions if...

You have a low credit score: if you have a low credit score somewhere below 650 institutional lenders won't approve you for the loan you need
You've recently had a dramatic financial downturn: if you've had something dramatic happen in your life's that's affected your income and debt ratio in very bad way, a consolidation loan won't work. Examples would be getting laid off from a job, your small business collapsing, or you get injured and can't work for an extended period of time
Your total debt is higher than 40%-50% of your income: if your has ballooned that far out, then you are likely in too deep and a consolidation won't help you because you won't be able to service a new loan at the new rate
You haven't learned from your mistakes: Sometimes people end up in debt with no fault of their own, but in most cases the debtor made mistakes. It's a MUST that you don't consider a debt consolidation unless you have a strict budget, lifestyle plan, and future goals to adhere to.

Here is a video with another take whether or not you should consider a debt consolidation loan.

Different Ways to Consolidate Debt

A.) Personal Secured Loan

Used when: you have equity in the form of a vehicle, real estate, or tangible asset that a lender can use as security
How it's done: you borrow against your asset by signing a contract with a lender stating you agree to secure your loan with your asset(s)
Pros: Lower interest rate and sometimes faster approval
Cons: If you default on payments the lender will put a lien on your property or vehicle
Example 1: Andrew owns a car worth $30K and give the title of his vehicle to the lender for collateral
Example 2: Sheila owns a home worth $350K but still has a mortgage of $150K so she uses her existing equity of $200K to secure a loan with a lender for $50K

B.) Personal Unsecured Loan

Used when: you have good enough credit to borrow from a lender without a cosigner or an asset to secure the loan
How it's done: you borrow money from a lender to pay of multiple debts
Pros: Lower interest rate and one payment instead of several
Cons: Higher interest rate than if the loan is secured with and asset such as an asset (see A.)
Example 1: Betty has a credit score of 720 and borrows $30K to pay off her credit cards, car loan, and a medical bill
Example 2: Marvin has a credit score of 676 and borrowers $100K to pay of a his back taxes and child support arrears

C.) Credit Card Balance Transfer

Used when: you can get approved for a 0% credit card or at least an extremely low rate such as 1-3%
How it's done: you get a new credit card at a much lower rate than your debts with a balance limit high enough to pay for all your existing debts - usually done when you have several smaller debt balances you want to consolidate
Pros: Lower rate and one payment instead of several
Cons: Requires self control, discipline, and money management skills so you don't just continue acclimating even more debt - most consumers will need good credit to acquire the new card
Example 1: Bonnie gets approved for a 0% one year introductory rate credit card with Citibank that has a balance limit of $10000 to pay off several debts that add up to $8200 - she pays off all her other debts and pays off this new card before a year has passed
Example 2: Joe gets approved for a credit card with a balance limit of $20K at 1 year introductory rate of 3% while his current credit cards total $17K at an average rate of 18% - he pays off all the existing credit card balances, cancels the cards, keeping his new card and pays it off before the one year lapses

D.) HELOC

Used when: you own a home and you have a HELOC (Home Equity Line Of Credit)
How it's done: you pay off all your debts from your line of credit and a much lower rate than your existing debts
Pros: Lower interest rate and you pay back the lender who holds your home equity line of credit whenever you want depending in your cash flow and how much interest you're paying on the HELOC
Cons: Very dangerous if you don't have enough income to pay all your creditors each month, and you don't have the will power to stop spending more money than your earning
Example 1: Carl owes a home worth $250K and only has a mortgage of $50K left on it - he has a HELOC of $100K on his home at a rate of 2.5% and uses $30K of his HELOC to pay off 5 different credit balances that had 18-21% APR - he pays off his HELOC over the next few years increasing the equity in his home again
Example 2: Jody inherits a house from her parents worth $650K and gets a HELOC on her property for $300K at 4%. She uses $100K from her HELOC to pay off student loans and her new SUV at a rate of 12%

E.) 401K Loan

Used when: you have saved a considerable amount of money in your retirement 401K fund
How it's done: you borrow money from your own 401K
Pros: Lower interest rate
Cons: must be paid back within 5 years and you may get saddled with a lump sum payment if you happen to change jobs - check with your employer and your 401K managers for details
Example 1: Steve has $70K in his 401K and borrows $30K to buy a new car for cash and pays it pack in 5 years
Example 2: Louise has $120K in her 401K and borrows $15K for and emergency surgery after a car accident

F.) Debt Relief or Debt Settlement

Used when: your credit is bad, your income is low, and you have no way of securing a loan to pay down all your debt
How it's done: negotiate with all your creditors to pay back only a portion of your debt, or pay a company to negotiate for you
Pros: Relieves stress, slows down collection calls, avoids personal bankruptcy, gives you a second chance, and lower rates may be negotiated
Cons: Will damage your credit score
Example 1: Chris has so much high interest debt he can't keep up with his monthly payments and has no way of borrowing money to pay his creditors off - he personally negotiates with all of his creditors and pays back an average of only 35% of what he owes
Example 2: Brent has a lot of high interest credit cards totaling $50K in debt and he recently got divorced and he has to pay $1500 a month in child support and alimony - he pays a debt settlement attorney to negotiate with all of his credit card companies to pay back only 65% of what he currently owes

Consolidation Loan Testimonials

"I had really bad credit and got turned down every online company I tried. My credit score was in the low 400 range and it wasn't looking good for me. I found WFL and they managed to find me a lender. Well actually THEY FOUND ME. WFL has lenders that approve loans if you have a monthly income and not so much based on credit score. A LIVE SAVER for us!" - Morgan Diaz in Morgantown, WV

My name is Jody Marcoux and I needed a loan for $20,000 to consolidate some really high interest debt I have. About $3000 is debt I owed for payday loans, and the rest is for medical bills I had from a foot disease I was struggling with. I was recently divorced at the time so I had no help at all. The only thing I had was as full time job. My credit rating was 520 at the time of my pre-app was submitted to We Find Lenders. I was approved by a lender based in Texas and I live in PA. I was approved for $20000 over a 5 year term which made my monthly payments totally manageable. God bless you all for your help. I highly recommend WFL for others who have bad credit scores. - Jody Marcoux in Philadelphia, PA

"I was trying to get approved for a loan so I could pay off all the stupid payday cash loan rip offs I was in I know it was my fault for getting the loans but I was desperate to get some bills pad, My phone was going to shut off and my utilities were going to dark soon. I used the service with WFL got approved fast and finally something went right. I was very happy and would use this site again. I recommend." - Leo Hernandez in Corpus Christi TX

"I had some student loan debt a used car loan maxed out credit cards and a personal loan I was behind on in other words, I was screwed and it looked like I was going to sink because my credit rating was so bad nobody could help me get a new start. I recommend their service (WeFindLenders.com) to anyone listening today who was struggling with their debt like I was." - Marsha Centrone in Huntsville AL

"Our family had to pay out of pocket for all my moms medical expenses when she fought so hard against cancer and the insurance company didn't pay all of the money we needed to not use our own money. She passed away and family was so hurt at same time we were being harassed to pay medical treatment bills. My brother found this website and did his pre-application on a Friday and by the next Wed he had borrowed over $80,000 and got the vultures at the hospital off of our backs. We love WFL and thanks because we were offered a lower rate than anyone else in our city." -Alicia Lochuck in Richmond VA

"I'm a veteran who fell on hard times suffering with bad PTSD and my finances were destroyed because I couldn't hold down a job. I'm now on permanent disability and yet I was still able to get a small loan to clear off my credit balances thanks to WFL. Please keep up the good work. It went very smoothly and I got $5000 in my account in 7 business days. - Thomas K in Fort Lauderdale FL

"I developed a gambling addiction a few years back after I had lost my 24 year old son in a car accident. I just didn't care anymore about myself or my own future so I just blew money off like it was nothing of importance to me and I paid for the mistake already in so many ways. I was approved for a $40,000 loan over a period of 7 years with a rate of 11% I know that's not a super low rate but MUCH lower than what I was paying in interest and penalty fee before. Thank Lance and your family and team and staff for such a neat setup for getting approved when you have bad credit rating." - Brian Engdahl in Pittsburgh PA

Just like our other testimonials you can really feel how these people struggled to find a willing lend who would take the time to grant them a debt consolidation loan. We pride ourselves on getting as many offers as possible for every applicant who uses our pre-app to find a good and honest lender near them.

We will be adding many more testimonials to this page into the future.

What To Do After You're Approved

Once you've been approved for your consolidation loan, pay off your first creditors immediately. Don't give yourself time to stray off and start spending that money on stuff.

After you've paid off all your first creditors, and have one payment per month, you need to change your spending habits.

This will mean changing your lifestyle, and exercising discipline. Here are some ideas to get your started on the right track.

• calculate your monthly expenses
• compare expenses to monthly income
• make sure your making more than your spending
• try only spending money absolute needs
• try entertainment that's 100% free

Here is a video made by a smart young lady named LaTisha Styles who made hard lifestyle choices to pay down debt quickly.

Should You Be Consolidating Your Debt?

Like anything, there are different opinions. Some experts believe that debt consolidation is a bad idea because so many debtors end up clearing off their debt with a consolidation loan, then turn around and start spending recklessly again.

And they're right. A lot of people fall into that trap.

But if you are disciplined, and determined, you can get one loan at a much lower rate and save a lot of money over time. Below is our rough guideline that may help you decide.

Everyone's finances is unique so you have to take an honest assessment of your current financial situation, and make an educated decision. Consider getting professional debt counseling, talking to co-workers, relatives, loan officers, etc., so you can bounce some ideas around.

Take a look at consolidation if...

You have solid and realistic plan: this is critical - you must a have realistic plan for changing your lifestyle going forward so that you're never spending more each month than you earn each month
Your credit score is fair to good: you need to have a credit score that's fairly decent (above 650 as a ballpark) before getting a consolidation loan otherwise you won't get approved at a rate low enough to save you money
You can easily handle the monthly or biweekly payments: No sense in consolidating your debt if you can't easily afford the monthly or biweekly payments and you should have a nearly rock solid monthly income
Your debt is less than 40%-50% of your yearly income: If your debt to income ratio (DTI) is too high you won't be able to successfully pay down your debt in a timely manner

Take a look at different solutions if...

You have a low credit score: if you have a low credit score somewhere below 650 institutional lenders won't approve you for the loan you need
You've recently had a dramatic financial downturn: if you've had something dramatic happen in your life's that's affected your income and debt ratio in very bad way, a consolidation loan won't work. Examples would be getting laid off from a job, your small business collapsing, or you get injured and can't work for an extended period of time
Your total debt is higher than 40%-50% of your income: if your has ballooned that far out, then you are likely in too deep and a consolidation won't help you because you won't be able to service a new loan at the new rate
You haven't learned from your mistakes: Sometimes people end up in debt with no fault of their own, but in most cases the debtor made mistakes. It's a MUST that you don't consider a debt consolidation unless you have a strict budget, lifestyle plan, and future goals to adhere to.

Here is a video with another take whether or not you should consider a debt consolidation loan.