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Category: Loans

Borrowing & Debt Q&A Can Student Loans Be Discharged in Bankruptcy? Yes, they can. Verdict: student loans bankruptcy is no longer the dead end it was, because the government now tells its own lawyers… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A How Much Can You Borrow With a Personal Loan? US lenders advertise $1,000 to $100,000. Almost nobody gets the top of that range. Three separate ceilings apply (the lender's produ… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Chapter 7 vs Chapter 13: Which Bankruptcy Fits? Chapter 7 vs Chapter 13 usually comes down to two questions: does your income pass the means test, and do you have something a trust… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Personal Line of Credit vs Personal Loan A personal line of credit is a reusable pool of money: you draw what you need and pay interest only on the balance, usually at a var… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Bankruptcy Alternatives: 5 Options to Try First There are five real bankruptcy alternatives: a creditor hardship plan, a nonprofit debt management plan, refinancing, settling for l… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Credit Union Loans: Rates vs Banks Compared Credit union loans priced below bank loans on every loan product federal regulators tracked in December 2025: 5.44% vs 7.41% on a 60… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A What Debt Collectors Can and Can’t Do (FDCPA) Here is what debt collectors can do: call you between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m., write to you, sue you, and report the debt to the credit bu… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Can You Get a Loan Without a Job? Real Options Yes, you can get a loan without a job: if you can show income from another source. Unemployment benefits, Social Security, a pension… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A How to Negotiate With Debt Collectors You can negotiate with debt collectors, and most collection agencies will take a discount. The agency likely bought your account for… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A No Credit Check Loans: What’s Legit, What’s a Trap Some no credit check loans are legitimate and cheap: payday alternative loans capped at 28%, savings-secured loans, credit-builder l… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Statute of Limitations on Debt: The State Rules The statute of limitations on debt is the deadline for suing you, and it runs from three years in New York and North Carolina to ten… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Family Loan Agreements: Rules, Rates and Taxes A family loan agreement is a written promissory note between relatives. Above $10,000 the IRS expects at least the Applicable Federa… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Zombie Debt: When Old Collections Come Back Zombie debt is an old account a buyer picked up for pennies and is working again, often years after you last heard about it. It may… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Title Loans: Why They’re Risky (and 5 Alternatives) Title loans charge a monthly fee of up to 25%, which is about 300% a year, and they are secured by your car. The federal government'… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A What Is a Judgment for Debt? What Happens Next A debt judgment is a court ruling that you owe a specific amount. It converts a bill your creditor had to ask you to pay into one a… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A What Is an Origination Fee on a Loan? An origination fee is an upfront charge for setting up your loan. Most lenders take it out of the money they send you, so you receiv… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Debt Snowball vs Avalanche: Which Pays Off Faster? In the debt snowball vs avalanche matchup, the avalanche pays off debt faster on paper. On a modeled $18,500 stack at a $600 monthly… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A How to Pay Off $10K in Debt: A 12-Month Plan To pay off $10K in debt in 12 months you need about $937 a month, not the $833 nearly every guide quotes. At the Federal Reserve's 2… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A What Is a Debt Management Plan and Does It Work? A debt management plan is a 3-to-5-year repayment schedule run by a nonprofit credit counseling agency. Your creditors cut the inter… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Debt Settlement: How It Works and What It Costs Debt settlement means paying a lump sum to close a debt for less than the balance. A company can charge you nothing until it settles… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Debt Consolidation vs Settlement: Key Differences Debt consolidation vs debt settlement comes down to one question: can you afford the new payment? Consolidating $30,000 of card debt… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A Balance Transfer vs Personal Loan for Debt Payoff On $8,000 of card debt, the balance transfer vs personal loan matchup goes to the transfer on price almost every time. A 3% fee cost… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A HELOC for Debt Consolidation: Smart or Risky? On $30,000 of card debt, a HELOC for debt consolidation saves about $20,300 in interest against paying the cards down. That is the r… Read the guide → Borrowing & Debt Q&A What Is Debt-to-Income Ratio? How to Lower It Your debt to income ratio is your monthly debt payments divided by your gross monthly income. Lenders read it as a payment test, not… Read the guide →