While payday and after-pay loans have been around for a long time in Australia, there’s been a huge influx of new lenders offering a variety of deals, especially in the online marketplace. Many retailers now offer some sort of credit scheme where you buy now and pay off the debt over 4-6 weeks.
Chopping your online shopping bills into small, easily-manageable portions may be very tempting, and seem like a sensible way to manage a budget. However, apart from the risk of incurring more debt than you can manage if unforeseen circumstances hit (large car repair bill, broken hot water system, illness requiring unpaid leave from work), there’s also a threat to your credit history – and your future capacity to take out loans.
Lenders: “Can’t budget? No thanks!”
Payday and after-pay loans are one of the things that traditional lenders like banks and credit unions look for when checking your credit history. For most of these lenders, more than three after-pay loans will raise a red flag on your application, because it suggests that you’re not able to manage your money well – potentially making you a bad risk. Some of them will reject the application on the spot if they see a pattern of payday or after-pay loans – others will look a lot more closely at your credit history to find any other problem behaviour.
Alternatives
There are alternatives to using short term loans. You could use a credit card instead, and keep it paid off every pay day so that the interest you pay is minimal. Where you need money for an essential purchase, sometimes a personal loan or credit card won’t be an option – but try to limit your use of payday and after-pay loans as much as possible, to optimise your chances of qualifying for a home or car loan at a good rate in the future.
It is super easy to apply for a personal loan via our online application. Click the button below to get started. If you need help with the application, feel free to contact our office phone: 1300 360 450. or send us a message via our contact page.