Bad Credit Loans in Medicine Hat – What to Do When You Need Money

	People with bad credit in Medicine Hat can actually get help to avoid the fees, high interest, and payments of expensive personal loans.
		The Most Important Question Why do you need a bad credit personal loan? Depending on your answer, you may actually have other options that can resolve your debt problems, re-establish your credit, and get your finances back on track. However, it’s really important that you first ask yourself a question. Why do I need this loan? Click on your answer below to take a look and see if there may be better options for you: This is an emergency. You have a big dentist bill, your pet is sick, your vehicle needs to be fixed, you have to travel to see a sick relative, or something else that’s similar to this. You would like to improve your credit score or rebuild your credit You’d like to have just one loan with one payment each month. Your current interest rates are too high, and/or you’d like to work out a more affordable payment by stretching out your debt payments over a longer time period.

When you have bad credit, loans are hard to get whether you live in Medicine Hat or anywhere else in Canada. So what can you do if you need money? Maybe your rent or mortgage payment is way overdue, your credit cards are maxed and you owe money on all of your household bills. Maybe you are considering or have tried payday loans or online loans, but you’re honestly wondering if that’s really going to help you.

The truth probably is that you’ve gone through a rough patch recently, you feel like you’re out of options, and you really don’t know of a better way to handle things right now other than to try and get a loan for bad credit. So below we explain some steps you can take to try and get a loan in Medicine Hat, Alberta when you’re saddled with a bad credit rating. However, if you would much rather find another way of dealing with your debts (one that’s very often far more effective), jump down to the last section in this article.

Personal Bad Credit Loans Have High Fees & Interest Rates

The first thing you need to recognize with a bad credit personal loan is that it will be really expensive. This is due to the simple reality that many times people with bad credit do not fully pay their debts. Because of this, lenders see anyone with poor credit as a significant risk. So they charge high interest rates and often fees upfront so that if someone defaults on their payments, the lender has already gotten a lot out of them. Unfortunately, whether you like it or not, this is the way the way things are.

Will a Personal Loan Fix My Poor Credit Rating?

You also need to be aware that obtaining a bad credit personal loan – be it secured or unsecured – won’t repair your payment history. Your credit rating didn’t fall overnight. It took time, and it will take even more time for it to go back up again. A new loan won’t magically fix the problem; however, managing your money better – over time – will improve your poor credit rating. That’s one of the good things about Canada’s credit rating system – it recognizes that bad things happen to good people. So it’s possible to repair your credit without using personal loans with high bad credit interest rates and fees.

Related: How to Repair Your Credit Score and Improve Bad Credit.

Things You’ll Need to Get a Loan with Bad Credit – Proof of Income, List of Assets, Monthly Expenses, Debts & Credit Report Questions

When you approach lenders for a bad credit loan, come prepared with your financial information. They will want to know how much you earn each month from all sources, if you have any assets that you could give (pledge) as security (collateral), and what your monthly expenses are. You should also be able to answer any questions they might have about your poor credit and debts.

To show your income: gather together things like pay stubs, child support or alimony records, government assistance or child benefit payment details, bank statements and/or tax returns with assessment notices.

If you own assets: jot down a list or make a mental note of what you own and the value of each item. It’s the valuable things that can be easily appraised and sold that matter – things like cars, trucks, trailers, boats, ATVs, motorcycles, or other vehicles. Antiques, heirlooms, jewellery, and coin or stamp collections can only be used to secure a loan if they are accompanied by an authentic, verifiable appraisal certificate. Electronics, tools, musical instruments, and valuable household goods can be sold or consigned at pawn shops, but they usually cannot be used to obtain a loan. However, at times some high interest lenders will ask people to pledge household goods or appliance as token security for a loan.

Outlining your monthly expenses and debts: this is the hardest part for most people. When you start listing them all out, you see how much you spend and how much you owe. Start by jotting down your housing costs and related utility bills. Then groceries, food, medication and other essentials. Include transportation and work-related costs as well. If you have a lot of different expenses and debts and don’t quite know how to organize them, this Excel budget calculator might help. You can also learn much more about how to create a budget or spending plan on our budgeting page.

To find answers to questions about your credit report: take a look at your own. You can get a free copy from both TransUnion and Equifax if you request it over the phone. Here are instructions on how to get your credit report for free, and here you can learn how your report is created and the difference between your credit report and your credit score.

Better Ways to Resolve Debt and Money Problems Instead of Getting Bad Credit Loans

Looking around for bad credit loans in Medicine Hat to find the money you need can take a lot of time and patience. In the end, there’s no guarantee that when you find a lender they’ll lend you money on terms you can afford. You may already kind of suspect this. If you want better options to your debt and money problems that you can afford, here’s the best thing to do: contact a local not-for-profit credit counselling organization and make an appointment to talk with a Credit Counsellor. Appointments are typically free, completely confidential, and can usually be done either in person or over the phone. These people are most often experts in everything relating to bad credit loans and creative and unusual ways of consolidating and getting rid of debt. They can help you look into all your options – including debt relief and consolidation options that most people don’t know anything about. Having this conversation will most likely be one of the best things you’ve done in years and can make a huge difference in getting your finances back on track as quickly as possible.