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Personal loans are tricky - you never can quite make out whether it is absolutely necessary or if it is just a luxury you will be paying back for the next few years. That new computer, or that credit card outstanding, or the house refurnishing…the need for personal loans is never ending. We give you the best tips and knowledge on personal loans here; we also believe that you are better off knowing that there are other options out there - loan against property or car refinance spring to mind.

That done, you will find all you need to avail a personal loan in this section. How to apply for one, repayment options, charges applicable, documentation required, all these aspects are covered in this section. A personal loan can make a real positive difference in your life. It can also make a real difference in your finances.

A loan is a type of debt. This article focuses exclusively on monetary loans, although, in practice, any material object might be lent. Like all debt instruments, a loan entails the redistribution of financial assets over time, between the lender and the borrower.

The borrower initially does receive an amount of money from the lender, which they pay back, usually but not always in regular installments, to the lender. This service is generally provided at a cost, referred to as interest on the debt. A loan is of the annuity type if the amount paid periodically (for paying off and interest together) is fixed.

A borrower may be subject to certain restrictions known as loan covenants under the terms of the loan.Acting as a provider of loans is one of the principal tasks for financial institutions. For other institutions, issuing of debt contracts such as bonds is a typical source of funding.Legally, a loan is a contractual promise between two parties where one party, the creditor, agrees to provide a sum of money to a debtor, who promises to return the money to the creditor either in one lump sum or in parts over a fixed period in time. This agreement may include providing additional payments of rental charges on the funds advanced to the debtor for the time the funds are in the hands of the debtor (interest).

Types of loans

Secured

A secured loan is a loan in which the borrower pledges some asset (e.g. a car or property) as collateral for the loan.

A mortgage loan is a very common type of debt instrument, used by many individuals to purchase housing. In this arrangement, the money is used to purchase the property. The financial institution, however, is given security — a lien on the title to the house — until the mortgage is paid off in full. If the borrower defaults on the loan, the bank would have the legal right to repossess the house and sell it, to recover sums owing to it.

In some instances, a loan taken out to purchase a new or used car may be secured by the car, in much the same way as a mortgage is secured by housing. The duration of the loan period is considerably shorter — often corresponding to the useful life of the car. There are two types of auto loans, direct and indirect. A direct auto loan is where a bank gives the loan directly to a consumer. An indirect auto loan is where a car dealership acts as an intermediary between the bank or financial institution and the consumer.

A type of loan especially used in limited partnership agreements is the recourse note.

A stock hedge loan is a special type of securities lending whereby the stock of a borrower is hedged by the lender against loss, using options or other hedging strategies to reduce lender risk.[citation needed]

Unsecured Loan / Pinjaman Tanpa Penjamin



Unsecured loans are monetary loans that are not secured against the borrowers assets. These may be available from financial institutions under many different guises or marketing packages:

•    credit card debt

•    personal loans

•    bank overdrafts

•    credit facilities or lines of credit

•    corporate bonds

The interest rates applicable to these different forms may vary depending on the lender and the borrower. These may or may not be regulated by law. In the United Kingdom, when applied to individuals, these may come under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

Abuses in lending

Predatory lending is one form of abuse in the granting of loans. It usually involves granting a loan in order to put the borrower in a position that one can gain advantage over him or her. Where the moneylender is not authorised, it could be considered a loan shark.

Usury is a different form of abuse, where the lender charges excessive interest. In different time periods and cultures the acceptable interest rate has varied, from no interest at all to unlimited interest rates. Credit card companies in some countries have been accused by consumer organisations of lending at usurious interest rates and making money out of frivolous “extra charges”.

Abuses can also take place in the form of the customer abusing the lender by not repaying the loan or with an intent to defraud the lender.

EON Bank expects to disburse RM100 million from its newly launched EON Bank Personal Loan scheme over the next 12 months, despite troubled economic conditions.

“This personal loan promises a 48 hour turn around time,” group chief executive officer, Albert Lau Yiong told a media conference after the personal loan product launch in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Applicants must be above 21 years with a minimum income of RM24,000 per annum to be eligible to apply for the personal loan which ranges from RM5,000 to RM250,000.

The loan comes with a flexible repayment period of between two to six years, with an interest rate as low as 0.75 per cent per month and a free personal loan protection.

EON Bank account holders will enjoy additional savings of 0.5 per cent a year on the interest.

Touching on loan growth this year, the head of group consumer banking, Micheal Lor Chee Leng said that the bank was on track to achieve a growth of between 6-8 per cent.

“To grow our business, we are adopting a customer-centric approach, as we increase cross-selling activities to the existing 1.4 million customers and utilise a strong distribution network of 137 branches,” added Lau.

EON Bank plans to open six new branches next year with an investment of RM1.5 million each.“We also plan to refurbish the 50 existing branches. This year we have refurbished 30 branches with the investment of RM1 million each,” he said.

Meanwhile, EON Bank also announced a reduction of its base lending rate by 25 basis point to 6.5 per cent from 6.75 per cent effective December 1, following the downward revision of the overnight policy rate by Bank Negara Malaysia.

However, the bank’s net interest margin will not be much affected by the cutback, Lor said. — www.smartpinjaman.com.my



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