Top perks
There’s no such thing as a perfect lender, but if you’re in the market for a personal loan, there are some features of Universal Credit’s personal loans that you may find appealing:
Loans for subprime borrowers: Universal Credit specializes in loans for borrowers with below-average FICO® Scores. It can be difficult for borrowers in the lower credit tiers to find loans, and Universal Credit aims to help this underserved demographic.
36-60 month loan repayment terms: Universal Credit makes fixed-rate personal loans with terms ranging from three to five years, although not every borrower will be offered loans with all possible term lengths. Longer repayment terms have lower monthly payments, while shorter repayment terms typically result in less interest paid over the life of the loan.
Loans of up to $50,000: Universal Credit offers a wide range of loan amounts, with borrowers able to access loans from $1,000 up to $50,000. On the lower end especially, Universal Credit stands out, as many competitors have much higher minimum loan amounts.
Direct payments to creditors: If you’re borrowing money to consolidate debts, Universal Credit can send loan proceeds directly to your creditors within one business day of your loan clearing verifications. This can save significant time in the debt consolidation process, compared with having the money sent to you and then manually paying off your debts with it.
No prepayment penalties: If you want to pay your loan off faster than you’re required to, it won’t cost you anything. Universal Credit doesn’t charge any prepayment penalties, even if you pay off your loan in just a few months.
Next day funding: Once you accept a loan offer from Universal Credit, the money will be sent to your bank account within one business day of clearing verifications. It’s worth mentioning that it can take longer than a day for your bank to process the funds and make them available (especially if you have proceeds sent directly to creditors), but the transfer happens quickly on Universal Credit’s end.
Easy to check your loan offers: Like most personal lenders, Universal Credit allows prospective borrowers to check their rate offers quickly and easily online and to get pre-approval for a loan, and with no impact to their credit score. Universal Credit only does a soft credit check when determining loan eligibility, so simply checking your rate doesn’t show up as a credit inquiry on your credit report.
Mobile app: It’s worth pointing out that Universal Credit is a part of personal financial services platform Upgrade, which also offers its own branded Upgrade personal loansstyle=”text-decoration: underline”>. Both platforms’ loans are managed through Upgrade’s mobile app (or through Universal Credit’s website). Upgrade has a highly rated mobile app, with ratings of 4.6 and 4.8 out of five stars on Google Play and the Apple App Store, respectively. In addition to personal loans, Upgrade offers cash-back credit cards, a rewards checking account, and more.
