SeedFi no longer offers Borrow & Grow personal loans

SeedFi, an online lender that specializes helping consumers build credit and lends personal loans to Borrow & Grow customers, has stopped accepting new applications. Existing loans will be serviced by the lender.

SeedFi’s Borrow & Grow Plan was a combination personal loan and credit-builder loans. This plan allowed borrowers to access a portion of the loan proceeds immediately while the remainder remained in a savings account which borrowers could access after the loan was fully paid.

This was a great option for those with fair- or bad credit scores (with scores under 690) who had to pay an emergency expense and wanted to save money.

Intuit, a financial software company, announced that it would acquire SeedFi in December 2022. Jim McGinley, CEO of Intuit Financial Software, informed NerdWallet via email in January 2023 that SeedFi would not be providing personal loans.

Although the Borrow & Grow plan is a rare offering, you can still get a personal loan to cover both large and short-term expenses. A credit-builder loan is best if you are looking to improve your credit score.

Online lenders are open to borrowers with good credit and high incomes. Others offer personal loans to those with lower credit scores and/or incomes. A lender should report payments to all three credit bureaus. They should also limit annual percentage rates to or below 36%. This is the lowest APR that consumers can get for an affordable loan.

Personal loans are offered by these lenders to borrowers with poor or fair credit.

Upgrade is the online lender that operates Universal Credit. These lenders offer personal loans similar to Universal Credit for consumers with low credit scores. However, Universal Credit’s borrowing criteria may be more flexible and its rates may be higher. Universal Credit is an excellent choice for borrowing money or building credit. The lender offers credit-building tools such as credit monitoring and education materials.

OneMain doesn’t require a minimum credit score. The lender uses an algorithm to determine if a borrower is eligible. OneMain requires that borrowers have sufficient income to pay a monthly personal loan payment. Borrowers’ average credit scores should be in the low-to-mid 600s. Although OneMain rates are higher than those offered by other lenders, borrowers might be eligible for a joint or secured loan at a lower rate.

Upstart employs artificial intelligence and other non-traditional data to help borrowers qualify. Although there is no minimum credit score, the lender requires that borrowers have at least $12,000 annually in income. Personal loans from Upstart don’t offer any additional perks such as rate discounts or credit-building support. The loan amounts range from $1,000 to $50,000 and have three- or 5-year repayment terms.

Credit union personal loans may be an option for members with poor credit. Credit unions will consider your credit history and income when reviewing loan applications. Federal credit unions have a cap on APRs of 18% and some offer payday alternative loans. These are small-dollar loans with rates limited to 28%.

To be eligible for these credit unions, you don’t need to have good credit.

Alliant offers quick personal loans and has a wide membership requirement. However, you must have been a member for at minimum six months before you can apply. Alliant may offer same-day funding and offers 24/7 customer support.

Navy Federal offers flexible personal loans that can be funded quickly and with quick approvals. This credit union is open to military personnel and their families, as well as employees of the Department of Defense. Navy Federal does not disclose the minimum credit score requirements, but it says that it works with its members in order to find the best financing options.

Although credit-builder loans do not require good credit, borrowers cannot use the funds immediately. Once approved, the loan will remain in your bank account until you make payments. Your credit score will be built by timely payments. The lender reports your payments to the three major credit agencies. Once you have repaid your loan, you can access the funds.

Credit-builder loans can be obtained at community banks and credit unions, as well as online lenders.

These lenders offer credit-builder loans.

McGinley stated in an email that SeedFi will continue to offer its Credit Builder Prime product. This credit line is free and allows borrowers to make $10 per week. SeedFi transfers the $500 you have paid into a savings account that you can access. SeedFi allows you to continue paying towards the credit line, and you can access more savings each time you reach $500.

Self is an online lender that requires you to have a clean ChexSystems record. This can be due to bounced checks, unpaid fees or other issues in the past 180 days. Self credit-builder loans are held in a certificate deposit account while you make monthly payments of $25 to $150. Self charges an administrative fee of $9 and maximum APRs for credit-builder loans are approximately 16 %.

Compare personal loan lenders using these key features.

Borrowing requirements: Lenders may publish their borrowing requirements. These requirements can include minimum credit score, income, and debt-to-income ratio. You can often find this information on the FAQ section of a lender’s site. NerdWallet, a website that collects this information from lenders, also writes personal loan reviews.

APR: The APR of a loan represents the total cost of the loan, including interest and fees. APR allows you to compare lenders and financial products like credit cards. Consider all financing options and choose the one that has the lowest APR.

Monthly payment: Make sure that the monthly payments are within your budget before you apply for a personal loan. To see the effect of the loan amount, repayment term and rate on the monthly payment, use a personal loan calculator.

Pre-qualification: With a soft credit check, many lenders will allow you to pre-qualify with them for a personal loan. This allows you to see the potential loan amount, interest rate, repayment terms, and monthly payments. You can compare personal loan offers from different lenders to find the one that suits your needs.

Origination fee: A percentage of the loan amount, usually between 1% and 10%, that a lender takes before sending it to the borrower. This fee is most common for online lenders that work with bad-credit borrowers, but it can also be charged to good-credit borrowers. Review the impact of an origination charge on your loan amount.