Payoff Personal Loans Review

If you find yourself in debt or relying on credit cards to make ends meet, know that you’re not alone. Nearly half of all Americans rely on credit cards to cover essential living expenses and around 14 million Americans have over $10,000 in credit card debt.

Payoff is a service that aims to eliminate this problem by offering an efficient and cost-effective way to consolidate credit card debt and deal with one monthly payment instead of multiple. It’s customer service and transparent process has earned it a great reputation and a lot of satisfied customers.

What is Payoff?

True to its name, Payoff is a company that is designed to enable you to pay off your loans and be on your way to excellent financial health. It is an online lender that offers loan options to help borrowers consolidate debt.

Payoff Loan Rates & Terms

How Does Payoff Work?

Payoff is an online lender run by Happy Money that offers borrowers the The Payoff Loan™ which aims to help you achieve financial wellness and consolidate multiple credit card payments into one single loan payment that you can easily manage. Paying off your credit cards will boost your credit score, usually a significant amount, and Payoff wants to help you get out of debt and stay above water going forward. Their trademarked loan is designed specifically to eliminate credit card debt and is an excellent option for anyone who is overwhelmed with credit card debt and is looking to fix the problem for good.

Who Should Use Payoff?

Payoff is a suitable lending option for anyone who wants to consolidate debt and needs help building their credit score. It’s also only really an option for anyone who has a fair credit score to begin with as applications must have above a 600 credit score and three years of credit history to qualify for a loan through Payoff.

Is Payoff a Reputable Lender?

Payoff is extremely reputable. In fact, it’s one of the most popular online lenders in the United States and has been trusted by many ever since they first opened. You can be sure that your information is safe as they encrypt data and keep it safe.

Do I Need a Credit Check to Take Out a Loan With Payoff?

Payoff will need to run a credit check on you before finalizing the loan. When you first visit their website and want to apply, your first step should be to prequalify so that you can check potential rates and terms before committing to a loan. This step only requires a soft credit check and will not affect your credit score. This can be hugely beneficial as you can see all your options without negatively impacting your credit status. Once you choose a loan option with Payoff they will run a hard credit pull which does cost a temporary dip in your credit score. If you’re not familiar with credit scores, it’s important to know that this will not hurt you in the long run. Credit scores will move up and down monthly and as long as you do everything right you will quickly recover from the hard credit check.

It’s also important to know that all three major credit bureaus will receive reports of your payment history with Payoff. This can actually help improve your credit but if you miss a payment it can severely affect it. Although that may seem intimidating, this is unavoidable with any reputable lender and it is simply something that is important to be aware of and plan to avoid.

Does Payoff Cost Any Money?

While it’s completely free to apply for a loan through Payoff, you will find many of the standard loan fees and costs may apply. For example, Payoff typically charges an origination fee although the amount may vary depending on the amount of your loan and other circumstances of your loan agreement.

You will not have to pay late fees with Payoff and you won’t be charged for paying off your loan early. Some lenders will actually charge a fee for that but Payoff will not punish you for being proactive and paying them back sooner!

Payoff Personal Loan Pros

One of the main perks of working with Payoff is that you will be working with a company that prioritizes eliminating debt and financial wellness. They offer services such as direct payment to creditors and they will report your payments to all three major credit bureaus. Although that may backfire if you do not pay your bills, if you do pay on time you will find that this can boost your credit score as well.

If you have a loan with Payoff and find yourself in a position to pay it off early then you can do so without facing any fees. You also will not have to deal with any late fees with your Payoff loan.

If you have an active loan through Payoff you will have the option to change your payment date on occasion. This can help you avoid late payments even when you need a few extra days to have the money you need to pay your monthly minimum.

Payoff Personal Loan Cons

Once you've accepted a loan with Payoff, you'll almost certainly have to pay an origination fee. The lender charges this fee, which is usually around 1% or more of the total loan amount, to cover the costs of processing the loan and any administrative work that may be necessary. Although you may pay the fee up front, most lenders, including Payoff, will add it to your total. So, if your loan is for $5000 and your origination fee is around $100, you'll have paid Upgrade $5100 plus any interest by the end of your payment plan.

Payoff does not incentivize borrowers to set up autopayments by providing a small discount like many of their competitors. Although the discount offered in these situations is quite small, a dollar is still a dollar and you might prefer to find a lender where you can save wherever you can.

Payoff does not offer co-signed, joint or secured loans. Although this type of loan is not always desirable and you may be happy to avoid those options, it does also mean that there are less ways to help you get a loan if you’re not quite able to qualify on the merit of your own credit health.

While you can change your payment due date with Payoff, you can only do so once every 12 months. If you don’t anticipate needing to change your payment date or find that important, this factor may not change your opinion on Payoffs services but it is important to know.

How to Apply for a Personal Loan with Payoff

Once you have weighed the pros and cons and have decided that Payoff will be a great option for you, you can head to their website to start the quick application process. Payoff prides itself on a transparent process so they share the main factors that are considered when evaluating an application.

Firstly, they check your FICO credit score. This is common and something that will happen with any type of loan. Payoff requires a fair credit score of about 600 to qualify and you must have at least three years of credit history.

Qualified borrowers will not have any delinquencies on their credit. If you are currently late on a loan or credit card payment, you will need to pay those off prior to applying. Previous delinquencies may be considered but any that exist currently will disqualify you.

There is no specific debt-to-income ratio that potential borrowers must have but the average that Payoff likes to see is about 40%.

In addition to these factors, Payoff will see if you have any stocks and investments, and they will see what your credit utilization is. As a rule, you should aim to utilize 30% of your credit at any given time but if you are higher than that you do not need to worry.

Once you finish your application you will receive your answer within minutes. If they reject your application, they will clearly indicate why and invite you to apply again in 30 days. This can be very helpful, especially if your reason for seeking a loan is to consolidate debt and improve your financial health.

If Payoff can offer you a loan, they will show you any options that you are eligible for. Loan amounts will be between $5,000-$40,000. From that point, you can weigh your options before accepting. Once you accept, the funds will be in your account in as soon as 24 hours.

Summary

Payoff is one of the best online lenders and if you have an option between using their services and another lender, your loan options with Payoff are far more likely to be beneficial to you. They proudly offer excellent customer service and communication, and they are focused on helping you rebuild your credit and get out of debt.