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Credit cards aren’t the only option when it comes to financing purchases or consolidating debt. Personal loans are a popular choice thanks to digital offerings that make it easy to apply and get approved.
But before you sign on the dotted line, you have to make sure a personal loan is right for you. To do that, you have to understand the inner workings of this borrowing tool. You don’t want to end up with an expensive loan you didn’t understand or one you’re ill-equipped to pay back.
Rewind ten years when consumers had fewer options when it came to borrowing money. They could use a credit card, which usually meant paying high interest rates, or apply for a bank loan, which was hard to get without top-notch credit. The 2008 recession changed that.