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Having a good credit score will play an important role in your life. Unfortunately, many Americans don’t really know what it takes to improve their score and maintain it at an optimal level. While the average credit score in the country has been going up steadily, there are individuals who still struggle.
Are you one of these people? Do you experience debt repayment problems and difficulties in terms of maintaining financial discipline? If so, you may be looking for a tool that can help you rebuild your credit score.
Self Lender promises to be such a tool but does it really work? Our Self Lender review will explore the characteristics, pros, and cons of the platform. Based on this information we’ll reach a conclusion about the legitimacy of the opportunity.
Table of Contents
What Is Self Lender and How Does It Work?
Let’s kick off the Self Lender review with some of the basics. Self Lender is a program that allows potential members to apply for a credit builder account. In essence, this is a credit building loan.
Good to Know: A credit builder loan is a very specific product. The money you borrow isn’t instantly given to you but it is kept as collateral. You have to make all of your payments, after which the credit builder loan amount will be released to you.
Pro Tip: The good news is that you don’t need money upfront to join the program. An ability to deal with the monthly payments, however, will still be required.
Self Lender offers several kinds of credit builder loans.
- You can choose between 12 and 24 month plans. There are also four amounts – 525, 545, 1,000, and 1,700 dollars.
- The payments you make to Self Lender will be reported to credit bureaus.
As long as you’re making timely payments, the information will reach TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. This way, you will be rebuilding your credit score.
Start building credit while you save with Self Lender.
Who Can Apply for a Self-Lender Account?
As of 2018, Self Lender is available in all 50 states. Applying for a Self Lender account is a relatively simple process. You’ll need to go through a basic registration first. You will need to enter your email address, phone number, SSN, bank account, credit, or debit prepaid card.
Good to Know: In order to participate in the program, you have to be a US resident aged 18 or older.
No credit score is required to join the Self Lender program.
Is SelfLender Legit?
SelfLender is legit. If you do a little bit of Google digging, you’ll come across dozens of Self Lender reviews. There are accounts written by people who were facing credit score disaster. Some of them weren’t capable of qualifying for any other credit score building opportunity out there, which resulted in a vicious cycle.
Self Lender extended the line of credit to such individuals, giving them a chance to make timely payments, thus re-establishing their credit score. Self Lender is a software partner for registered US financial institutions. As such, the service provider is obliged to put emphasis on your privacy and on security.
Good to Know: Your personal data, as well as your financial details, are protected in the best possible way. The data is properly encrypted and the company regularly hires experts to carry out vulnerability scans. Thus, you have no reason to worry when creating a Self Lender account.
What Are the Self Lender Fees?
When you’re facing financial difficulties, you’ll have to carry out careful analysis to determine whether a service you’re about to use is financially-sustainable. Our Self Lender review will now take a look at fees, interest rates, and additional charges you may have to deal with.
Pro Tip: There is an administration fee in the rage from nine to 15 dollars, depending on the specifics of the loan.
Good to Know: The Self Lender APR ranges from 12.03 to 15.65 percent.
Self Lender has provided detailed financial information you can use to determine how much the service is going to cost you. If you, for example, opt for a monthly payment of 25 dollars per month over the course of 24 months, your total cost will be 609 dollars (including the administration fee and interest rate).
The Self Lender Late Fee
There is a late fee for payments you haven’t completed on time. If your payment is over 15 days late, you will incur an additional charge of 1.25 to 7.50 dollars. The late fee is calculated on the basis of the amount you borrowed.
Fees for Early Account Closing
Is it possible to close your Self Lender account early? The answer is yes, but you’ll have to deal with an early account closing fee. The cost of closing the credit builder account before the specified term will incur an early withdrawal fee of less than one dollar.
As per the Self Lender instructions, it’s best to reach out to the team if you’re dealing with financial issues and you need to close your account prematurely.
Monthly Payments
Your first payment has to be completed exactly one month after the opening of your account and the approval of the credit builder loan. Use your Self Lender dashboard to discover your personalized monthly payment schedule. There are two possibilities you can choose among – you can either complete the payments on your own when they’re due or you can activate the auto pay option.
Good to Know: In the case of auto pay, the respective amount will be withdrawn directly from your bank account. Alternatively, you can pay via a credit or a prepaid debit card. When using a debit card, you will incur a convenience fee of 0.30 dollars plus 2.99 percent.
Linking a bank account is the most financially sound way to do the Self Lender monthly payments.
Does Self-Lender Work Better Than a Secured Card?
There are multiple ways to get out of debt.
Unfortunately, some opportunities will be unavailable to individuals who have a poor credit score.
Getting a secured credit card is often considered a viable option for credit score building.
It works in a manner similar to the Self Lender program but there are a few major differences.
- In the case of a secured card, you will have to enter funds into the account as a security.
- Those who currently lack the money will be incapable of utilizing the tool to build credit.
- When the card is used, some interest or processing fee will be charged.
Self Lender is available to those who don’t have an upfront sum to put towards improving their credit score. Self Lender is also more practical than getting a loan with a co-signer.
Good to Know: In order to qualify for such a loan, you will need a co-signer with good credit. In addition, late payments on your behalf will impact your co-signer. Their credit will suffer, just like yours. Thus, you could end up with friendship or family problems that you could have avoided altogether.
Click here to get your Self Lender credit builder loan.
What Happens Upon the Completion of the Repayment Plan?
This is another important issue we need to address in the Self Lender review to give you a better idea about how the program works. Self Lender’s program is different from a traditional loan because funds aren’t going to become available immediately after you’re approved for participation in the program. Rather, you will have to complete the 12 to 24-month repayment period. The loan is placed in an FDIC-insured certificate of deposit (CD) account. A CD account will be held in your name at a bank that Self Lender partners up with.
Good to Know: Once the loan is paid in full, the funds will become available for withdrawal (there will typically be a 10 to 14 days waiting period for processing purposes). The aim of the credit builder account is to help you improve your credit and save some money at the same time.
Pro Tip: Those who are capable of repaying the loan in full before the expiration of the specified period will be given immediate access to the funds. The sum received in such instances is the loan amount minus the sums due when the CD matures.
Self Lender Biggest Pros
The Self Lender program is smart, easy to access and very effective in terms of rebuilding your credit score. Here’s a brief summary of the biggest Self Lender advantages.
You Can Improve Your Credit Score
Self Lender’s primary purpose has been fulfilled. The program can indeed help you rebuild your credit score if you make monthly payments.
- Self Lender reports to all three credit bureaus over the course of the 12 or 24-month repayment period.
- The credit data is compiled at the end of each month and submitted to the credit bureaus at the beginning of the following month.
- Payments typically appear on your credit report 60 days from your first due date.
You Have a Savings Account
While you are working towards improving your credit score, you’re also saving money. Self Lender “forces” you to open up a saving account. Once your loan is paid in full, the money in the CD account becomes available.
You Don’t Need a Credit Check or an Upfront Amount to Get Approved
The qualification requirements for the Self Lender loan program are quite lenient.
There’s no credit check and you also don’t need upfront cash in order to qualify for the loan.
Thus, Self Lender is a great program for those who don’t qualify for any other type of credit score building tool.
Good Interest Rates
The Self Lender interest rate is often lower than the one that applies to a credit card. While you should definitely explore multiple possibilities before choosing the best financial tool, Self Lender is certainly a reasonable choice in terms of affordability.
Build your credit score and save money by creating a Self Lender account.
Self Lender Cons
We’ve reached the conclusion of our Self Lender review and before giving you a final verdict, we’d like to highlight a few of the program’s disadvantages.
Fees and Charges
Apart from the interest rate, there are several other applicable fees and charges you’ll need to take care of. There’s a late fee and an early account closing fee. Self Lender is thus a good choice for people who are going to stick to the program and to the payment schedule.
Late Payments Can Damage Your Credit Score
Payments you make on time are reported to credit bureaus. The same applies to late payments. If you’re habitually late with the monthly payments, your behavior will end up hurting your credit score even further.
Very Low CD Account Interest Rate
Those looking for the optimal saving account will not be impressed with the Self Lender opportunity.
Here are a few great opportunities that will help you grow your wealth.
Keep in Mind: Your CD account will accumulate next to nothing over the course of the 12 to 24 months. You will essentially get the loan amount without anything on top.
Those who want to save and grow their money should probably explore alternative options.
Final Verdict
Just like other financial tools, Self Lender isn’t an optimal choice for everyone out there. People who have a bad credit score and who don’t qualify for other debt management tools, however, will definitely benefit from Self Lender. Self Lender is legitimate and easy to use. It’s also very simple to calculate the overall cost of getting the Self Lender loan.
Please don’t hesitate to share your Self Lender experience with us.
Have you tried the Self Lender loan or do you rely on another credit score building option? Give us your opinion in the comments below.
Author:
Logan is a practicing CPA and founder of Choice Tax Relief and Money Done Right. After spending nearly a decade in the corporate world helping big businesses save money, he launched his blog with the goal of helping everyday Americans earn, save, and invest more money. Learn more about Logan.
