Updated on November 26, 2019
By Jen Williamson
Whether you're fixing up an old rowhouse in Fishtown or making plans for your dream kitchen renovation in Society Hill ... if you're looking for financing for a home improvement project, one of your best options is a home improvement loan.
The good news: There are some great deals to be had in the Philly area right now. The bad news: If you want to make sure you're getting the best loan for your project, you should probably do a little bit of homework first.
The even-better news (you thought we were done with the news, didn't you?): We did your homework for you. Here's what you need to know before you sign on the dotted line.
A home improvement loan is basically an unsecured personal loan—the kind where you don’t have to put up collateral, such as your house or car, to qualify.
Because so many people use personal loans for home improvement projects, “home improvement loan” is a common alternative name.
Whether you're looking to pay off existing debt or make that big purchase, a Citizens One Personal Loan can help you achieve your financial goals.
Citizens Bank Personal Loans: Low Rates and No Existing Account Required
We'd recommend a Citizens Bank personal loan as a good option if you have good to excellent credit, especially if you are an existing customer of the bank. However, you don't have to be a customer to apply.
Benefits of a Citizens Bank Personal Loan:
Low rates. No fees. Personal loans made easy.
Pay off credit cards or invest in home improvements.
Are you paying more than 17% interest on your credit cards? SoFi Personal Loans could help you save thousands. With low personal loan interest rates and a fixed monthly payment, you can get loans to pay off credit cards, pay off high interest debt, or make a major purchase. It only takes minutes to apply.
We're Offering Personal Loans With No Fees. Ever.
See if you're eligible for a personal loan from Marcus.
Get personal loan options in as few as 5 minutes. Here's how it works:
1) . Tell us about yourself. We’ll customize your personal loan options based on your input.
2). Choose your personal loan. Explore your loan options, and pick one that suits your budget and time frame.
3). Complete your application. Add a few details to verify your identity and finalize your personal loan application.
Pros
Cons
Apply in minutes. Have funds in your account as soon as today.
Finally, a loan that rewards your credit. Low rates, great service. Your best loan ever, guaranteed.
When you have a track record of financial responsibility, you deserve an exceptional rate and superior service.
Qualifications
Pros
Cons
Fund the Unexpected with Laurel Road. The simple solution for personal lending.
Life can be expensive.
Borrow up to $45,000 with flexible terms to fit your needs. Use a personal loan to pay off high rate credit cards and other high-interest debt, to make home improvements, and more.
With low rates and flexible terms, Laurel Road offers personal loans that fit your needs. Get rates in just two minutes and receive funds in as little as two business days.
Check Your Rate in Minutes!
Manage your debt by simplifying your bills.
Put your credit card debt behind you. A low-interest loan from Best Egg gives you the freedom to pay off or pay down your higher-rate balances on credit cards and loans.
Determine how much you need to get things done. Request a loan from $2,000 to $35,000* to handle household remodeling, car repairs, vacations, and even medical expenses.
Make one fixed, monthly payment. Enjoy fixed Annual Percentage Rates (APRs) that range from 5.99% to 29.99%
Qualifications
Pros
Cons
What criteria do we suggest using in narrowing your list—and how do you know which lenders you can trust?
We’ve developed an exhaustive screening process to help us identify not just the best loan terms, but the best lenders to work with when securing a home improvement loan.
Some of our criteria include:
So how do you recognize a great deal on a home improvement loan when you see one? Here are a few factors.
The lower your interest rate, the better. The amount you qualify for will vary widely depending on your credit score and financial situation, the amount of the loan, the length of time you take to pay it back, and other factors.
Most lenders offer a fixed interest rate, where the amount stays the same over the course of your loan.
However, some also offer the option of a variable rate that changes based on the market. Typically, the introductory rate on a variable loan is lower than that of a fixed loan—but it may go up or down over time.
The “term” usually refers to how long it takes to repay the loan. The shorter your term, the higher your interest on average—but the less time it takes to pay the loan back.
Most home improvement loans take about 3-5 years to repay. Some may have longer and shorter terms.
Some lenders charge various fees including:
These may be for amounts that seem small, but they can add up over time. Sometimes they can render a low-interest-rate loan a lot more expensive than it appears—so it pays to check the fine print.
On the other hand, some lenders offer discounts for things including:
Lenders will decide what interest rates you qualify for based on a variety of factors. These typically include your:
How much will your new loan cost, beyond the original amount of the loan? Here’s a closer look at some of those factors.
The better your credit score, the lower the interest rate you’ll qualify for.
Every lender’s criteria will be different. The best way to comparison shop is to fill out applications for multiple lenders. The lender will do a “soft pull” to check your credit and make an initial offer.
Unlike a “hard pull”—which is a more thorough look the lender does when finalizing the loan—the soft pull won’t ding your credit. You can get it done multiple times without it affecting your credit, making it possible to shop around.
Some lenders charge flat fees and penalties, either on a one-time basis or as a percentage of your loan. Some of the more common include:
Origination fees. These are usually a small percentage of your loan (although some may be as large as 8% — yikes!). They’re charged when you take out the loan.
Application fees. A few lenders charge fees to review your application. Be aware—sometimes the fee is nonrefundable even if you don’t take out a loan with that lender.
Check processing fees. Some lenders want to encourage you to set up automatic payments — to a point where they may charge you a flat amount to process a check.
Prepayment fees: If you pay your loan off before the deadline, some lenders may hit you with a fee.
Late fees: Most lenders charge a fee—either a flat amount or a percentage of your payment—for sending a payment in late.
Fees for bounced payments: If you don’t have enough in your bank account to cover your payment, you may be hit with a fee.
Need more information to make your decision? Smart move.
We’ve assembled a detailed comparison of our favorite Philadelphia home improvement lenders.
Ever heard of a little place called Citizens Bank Park? Go Phils! Citizens Bank is ingrained in the Philadelphia area. On top of that, it was named one of the “best banks in America” by Money magazine, making Citizens a consistently solid choice for a home improvement loan.
Even though it’s one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, Citizens has shown a commitment to being at the cutting edge of technology, offering both convenience and stability to their customers. Plus, Citizens has an excellent record of civic responsibility and engagement. Their staff provides more than 85,000 hours of volunteer time each year to various causes, including teaching financial literacy in the communities they serve. So it’s a bank you can feel good about doing business with.
Key features of a Citizens Bank home improvement loan:
The folks behind SoFi, which stands for “social finance,” feel your pain when it comes to debt. The company was created by a group of Stanford business students who found themselves with a mountain of debt after graduation. Today, they offer a variety of lending products through their online platform.
Key benefits of a SoFi home improvement loan include:
Marcus is the retail banking arm of finance giant Goldman Sachs. Founded in 2016, Marcus currently focuses on two things: high-interest savings accounts and home improvement loans. By tightly focusing on these two areas, the company is able to offer highly customized financial products.
Key benefits of a Marcus home improvement loan include:
Lighstream is the digital banking arm of SunTrust Bank. It was founded with the vision to simplify the lending process for borrowers with good to excellent credit. If you have a high credit score and a solid income history, Lightstream is definitely worth taking a look at.
Key benefits of a Lightstream home improvement loan:
Laurel Road has small-town roots, but it has grown into a national online lending powerhouse. In fact, it was one of the first lenders to completely digitize the loan process using proprietary technology. Expect a seamless online experience if you decide to take a out a loan from Laurel Road.
Key benefits of a Laurel Road home improvement loan:
Best Egg is an online-only lending platform that was conceptualized by veterans from the banking industry who wanted to bring a tech-startup vibe to online lending. The goal: make banking easy for the way that people live today.
Key benefits of a Best Egg home improvement loan:
Most lenders make this easy, with a seamless online application process on their website. Some documentation you may be asked for includes:
Some lenders may be able to give you an initial offer in minutes once you fill out their online application.
However, the entire process of securing the loan may take about a week—or longer, depending on whether you have all your documentation ready.
It depends on what you need and how long you expect to take to pay off the loan.
Fixed rates stay the same over the life of your loan. That’s good news if you want to keep your monthly payment the same and predictable. This is often better for long-term loans.
Variable rates fluctuate based on the market, but your introductory rate starts off lower, typically, than it does with a fixed rate loan. However, payments may increase at any time. Often variable rates work better for shorter-term loans.
Again, it depends: this time on the lender as well as your own finances.
Most lenders have minimum and maximum limits, and they’re all different. A typical range may be from approximately $5,000 to $50,000, but you may be eligible to borrow more if you have a strong credit score and income.
This also depends on the lender. Some (like Citizens Bank) will pay quickly; as soon as two business days after you’re approved. Other lenders may take as few as 24 hours or as long as a month.
Whether you're looking to pay off existing debt or make that big purchase, a Citizens One Personal Loan can help you achieve your financial goals.
Citizens Bank Personal Loans: Low Rates and No Existing Account Required
We'd recommend a Citizens Bank personal loan as a good option if you have good to excellent credit, especially if you are an existing customer of the bank. However, you don't have to be a customer to apply.
Benefits of a Citizens Bank Personal Loan:
Low rates. No fees. Personal loans made easy.
Pay off credit cards or invest in home improvements.
Are you paying more than 17% interest on your credit cards? SoFi Personal Loans could help you save thousands. With low personal loan interest rates and a fixed monthly payment, you can get loans to pay off credit cards, pay off high interest debt, or make a major purchase. It only takes minutes to apply.
We're Offering Personal Loans With No Fees. Ever.
See if you're eligible for a personal loan from Marcus.
Get personal loan options in as few as 5 minutes. Here's how it works:
1) . Tell us about yourself. We’ll customize your personal loan options based on your input.
2). Choose your personal loan. Explore your loan options, and pick one that suits your budget and time frame.
3). Complete your application. Add a few details to verify your identity and finalize your personal loan application.
Pros
Cons
Apply in minutes. Have funds in your account as soon as today.
Finally, a loan that rewards your credit. Low rates, great service. Your best loan ever, guaranteed.
When you have a track record of financial responsibility, you deserve an exceptional rate and superior service.
Qualifications
Pros
Cons
Fund the Unexpected with Laurel Road. The simple solution for personal lending.
Life can be expensive.
Borrow up to $45,000 with flexible terms to fit your needs. Use a personal loan to pay off high rate credit cards and other high-interest debt, to make home improvements, and more.
With low rates and flexible terms, Laurel Road offers personal loans that fit your needs. Get rates in just two minutes and receive funds in as little as two business days.
Check Your Rate in Minutes!
Manage your debt by simplifying your bills.
Put your credit card debt behind you. A low-interest loan from Best Egg gives you the freedom to pay off or pay down your higher-rate balances on credit cards and loans.
Determine how much you need to get things done. Request a loan from $2,000 to $35,000* to handle household remodeling, car repairs, vacations, and even medical expenses.
Make one fixed, monthly payment. Enjoy fixed Annual Percentage Rates (APRs) that range from 5.99% to 29.99%
Qualifications
Pros
Cons
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