Avoid shady lenders and loan scams – How to remain aware

There is no doubt about the fact that the internet makes everything easier and you should deem yourself to be tech-savvy if you want to accomplish tasks online. With the advancements in the fields of technology and the development of apps, everything from paying off your bills to ordering your pizza can be done online. However, did you stop to think that ordering a loan online will have higher stakes as because you need to provide private financial information to people whom you don’t know.

The safest way in which you can borrow money online is by ensuring that you’re dealing with a reputable and trustworthy lender. You also need to watch out for the red flags so that you don’t run the two major risks which are:

• Ending up paying a hefty amount: Even though you may grab a loan, you may end up paying a huge amount if you take the loan from a shady lender. On the contrary, if you could take the loan from a reputable lender, you will get the same loan amount for less money.

• Losing money: This is a real risk which has to be avoided by any means. The fake lenders can easily claim the world and charge fees for approving the loan. At the end, you never get what you paid for.

Choosing the right lender

Dealing with a reputable and legitimate lender will safeguard you from several issues. Do your homework by researching on the lenders, reading their positive and negative reviews so that you can get a clear idea on how they help you. You need to keep in mind that everything that you find on the internet is not true. Hence, it is best if you could lend from a lender who is trustworthy and reputable.

Before you hurry up for submitting an application, make sure you check for complaints with the CFPB or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau which maintains a database of complaints regarding financial products. All these complaints are posted online within a fortnight. As long as reputable referrals are concerned, you have to ask your family and friends who have borrowed. Ask them how things went with regards to the loan program. The closer is your source, the more confident you will be about the reference that he gives you.

You should avoid sources which are less reliable like the following:

• An email out of nothing: If you receive an email where a shady company asks you to take loans from them, don’t fall for them. Spammers usually send such mails to millions and the same is true for someone who comes down at your doorstep for loans.

• Phone calls which are unsolicited: Do you suddenly get calls from a blocked or unsolicited number? Even though it seems that you get the call from a local number, you should avoid such calls as they’re mostly scam.

So, if you’re someone who is eager to know about the different ways in which you can choose a trustworthy lender for your loans, keep in mind the above listed points.