Personal Loan
Can a Personal Loan Be Transferred to Another Person?
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Say you’ve taken out a personal loan for a bathroom remodel. The bathroom looks great, but now that debt is holding you back from other projects you need to tackle.
Or maybe you’re a concerned parent whose young adult has borrowed too much and is falling behind on payments.
If you’re in a similar scenario, you might be wondering can a personal loan be transferred to another person? Unfortunately, most loans cannot be transferred between people, but there are other options that can make repaying loans easier.
What We’ll Cover
Can I Transfer My Personal Loan to Another Person?
A personal loan cannot be transferred to another person. Lenders approve loans based on the borrower’s credit score and transferring a loan to someone else whose credit score differs could be risky for lenders.
Although personal loans cannot be moved from one person to another, some other loan types can be transferred to someone else under certain conditions and with the lender’s consent.
Transferring Auto Loans
Like personal loans, auto loans have terms that are unique to you and your financial situation. However, if you want to transfer an auto loan, the person taking over the loan can apply to your lender and, if approved, start paying on it.
Not all lenders allow an auto loan to be transferred from one person to another. Even if your lender allows transfers, they may charge fees for this service. The person taking over your loan will need to have a similar (or better) income and credit score to be approved.
Transferring Mortgages
An assumable mortgage loan is the only type of mortgage that can be transferred from one person to another at the time of a home purchase (as an alternative to taking out a new mortgage). USDA, FHA, and VA loans are assumable when they meet certain criteria.
Like with transferring an auto loan, the buyer must apply to the lender and qualify for the existing terms of the mortgage. Then the title of the home can be transferred and the buyer can take over the monthly mortgage payments.
3 Alternatives to Transferring a Personal Loan
Personal loans cannot be transferred from one person to another, but there are other steps you can take to make it easier to pay off your personal loan.
1. Add a Cosigner When You Borrow
A cosigner is a person who agrees to take responsibility for a loan if you become unable to pay it. If you have little credit history or bad credit, having a cosigner can help you get approved — or approved with better terms — because the cosigner reduces the lender’s risk of not being repaid.
Keep in mind, a loan is not automatically transferred to your cosigner if you stop paying on it. You are still responsible for a personal loan with a cosigner, and lenders must try to collect from you multiple times before they can demand payment from your cosigner. Even if your cosigner pays off your loan, your nonpayment could affect your credit score.
And, even if they aren’t your cosigner, someone else can make payments on your loan using their account (or you can use their account to set up auto-draft, as long as they consent to it). The debt would still be in your name, but at least you would see the balance diminish over time.
2. Refinance Your Loan
Another alternative to transferring a personal loan is to refinance it. Refinancing is a process of taking out a new loan with better terms and using it to pay off your existing loan. Borrowers might refinance a loan to get better terms like a lower interest rate or smaller monthly payments.
You’ll need to apply to refinance just like you did when you took out your original loan. You may also be charged a prepayment penalty or be required to pay fees to initiate your new loan. Depending on the terms of your new loan, you could still come out better off by refinancing.
3. Use a Home Equity Loan
A home equity loan uses your house as collateral for the money you borrow. Because they’re secured loans, home equity loans usually have lower interest rates than other ways of borrowing. That makes them a popular debt consolidation tool for people paying off credit cards, student loans, or more expensive personal loans.
The Takeaway
You probably don’t have a rich, long-lost uncle who will leave you just enough in his will to pay off your debts. You also can’t transfer your personal loan to someone else who can pay it off.
But there are realistic options for taking control of your personal loan debt and paying it off — and today’s a great day to start.
Learn More About Personal Loan Options at PenFed
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