Are you considering taking out a loan? The Money Under 30 loan repayment calculator can tell you two things:
- How long it will take to repay a given amount with a given monthly payment.
- How much you will need to pay per month to pay off a certain amount in a fixed period of time.
This tool can help you make a financing decision when you are in the buying phase, or when you just want to figure out how well a loan will fit into your budget. It’s usually better to do these calculations yourself than when you’re sitting in a bank or a car dealership and getting the numbers from a financial manager.
This calculator will help you figure out what the numbers might look like before you reach that stage. You can experiment with different loan terms – in the end, while a low payment can be attractive, paying off the loan a year or two early may even be the best option.
Loan repayment calculator
How does the loan repayment calculator work?
To use the loan calculator, you will start by entering two important pieces of information: lcredit amount and per annum (interest rate) you will pay.
From there you will have the option of “Ccalculate by loan term or “Sacalculate monthly payment“. Click the circle next to the one you want to calculate first.
Let’s look at each of them, starting with the assumption of a loan amount of $10,000 and 7% interest on the loan.
Calculate by loan term
This option will help you determine how long it will take to repay the loan, based on the loan amount, interest rate, and proposed loan term. If you are just playing with different numbers, you can adjust the length of the loan term to determine the level of payment that is acceptable to you.
But this option will also give you another important piece of information: the amount of interest you will pay over the life of the loan.
The longer the term, the higher the total interest. In this way, you will be able to make an intelligent decision about both the monthly payment and the total interest cost of the loan.
When you select this option, you will be asked two additional questions:
- Credit term. This can vary from 12 to 84 months.
- Monthly supplement (optional). Here you can enter any additional principal you plan to add to your monthly payment, but you can also leave this field blank if you only intend to make additional payments from time to time.
For demonstration purposes, enter 60 months as the loan term. Then press “Ccalculate” button.
The loan repayment calculator will show two results:
- Your estimated monthly payment will be __. In this case, $198.01
- Interest paid. In this case, $1,880.60 is the total interest you will pay for the 60-month loan term.
Calculate by monthly payment
For many consumers, the monthly payment on a new loan is the most important factor. You can use the “Calculate by monthly payment” option to find what you think would be the right payment for you.
As with Calculate by Loan Term, I’ll start by entering a loan amount of $10,000 and an APR of 7%.
Then click “Calculate by monthly payment”. Then click the “Calculate” button.
You will be prompted to enter your expected monthly payment. For example, let’s enter $155 and then click the “Calculate” button.
The loan repayment calculator will show three results:
- Months before payment. 81 months, in this case.
- Payback years. 6.75 years old.
- Interest paid. 2555 dollars.
Now, most lenders will not issue a loan for 81 months, as it does not represent a certain number of years. Most likely, you will be asked to choose either 72 months, which will slightly increase the payment, or 84 months, which will slightly reduce the payment.
But note that the lower monthly payment of $155 versus the $198.01 I used in Calculate by Loan Term also results in a much higher amount of interest paid over the life of the loan.
With a term of 60 months, you will pay $1,880.60 over the life of the loan. But after 81 months – and at a lower monthly payment – you will pay $2,555, which will increase the cost of the loan by $675.
Where to get a loan
Personal loans have become increasingly popular in recent years and it’s easy to see why. You can borrow large amounts of credit – sometimes up to $100,000 – on a fully unsecured loan for up to 84 months.
The top three sources of personal loans are Fiona, Monevo and Credible.
fiona
fiona is an aggregator that will help you get quotes for both personal loans and student loan refinancing.
But they’ve also expanded recently, helping you find the best credit cards or even the best savings accounts. You can search for the most attractive offers on the platform and then Fiona will guide you through the application process with a direct lender.
Fiona can help you get the best rate by providing you with parallel loan quotes where you can directly compare interest rates, fees and terms offered by different lenders. This saves you the hassle of having to shop around looking for the best deal.
Fiona is also completely free to use, and the annual loan interest rate and fees will be paid directly to the lender you choose to work with.
Try Fiona or read our full Fiona review.
Monevo
Monevo optimizes your chances of getting a good rate by getting quotes from over 30 different lenders. Best of all, the search is fast, with quotes provided in about a minute. Even before you enter your information, you can view typical rates offered with a list of participating lenders, rate ranges and loan amount ranges offered directly on the Monevo homepage.
If you see a rate you like, just click “Continue” to proceed to the loan application. You can apply for loans up to $100,000 and for a variety of purposes, including debt consolidation and student loan refinancing.
Monevo does not charge any fees, so any fees you end up paying will be charged by the lender you choose.
Try Monevo or read our full Monevo review.
Credible
Credible best known for refinancing student loans, but they also offer consumer loans. Like Fiona, Credible is an online lending marketplace that allows you to get quotes from multiple lenders. And these lenders include some of the biggest names in personal and student loan refinancing.
The service is also completely free to use and you can get side-by-side comparative quotes from multiple participating lenders by completing a simple online application. Once again, this method of getting multiple credit quotes is the single best strategy to help you get the best credit rate. You can view lender offers and then choose the one you want to work with.
Credible is so confident that it will offer you the lowest interest rate that it will pay you $200 if you find a better rate elsewhere. Accept the terms.
Try Credible or read our full Credible review.
Don’t Forget the Creation Fees
There is another factor that you should be aware of, especially when it comes to personal loans. Some personal loan lenders charge a loan origination fee ranging from 1% to 6% of the amount you borrow. This means you can pay between $100 and $600 on a $10,000 loan.
But the issuance fee should not discourage you from considering a personal loan. For example, let’s say you have $10,000 worth of credit cards with an average interest rate of 23%. This means you pay $2,300 per year in interest.
If you have the ability to get a personal loan at, say, 12% for 60 months with a 6% issuance fee, then even if you pay $600 for the issuance fee, you will still save hundreds of dollars over your current debt. by credit card.
A personal loan at 12% will cost you less than $1,200 in interest in the first year (less because it’s an installment loan with a progressively smaller balance). Even if you add the $600 loan origination fee to the $1,200 personal loan interest, the total cost in the first year is $1,800. That means you’ll still save $500 compared to $2,300 in interest you’ll pay on credit cards.
And since the loan disbursement fee is only charged when you take out a loan, the savings will be even higher each year thereafter. And just as importantly, the debt will be fully repaid in five years. This is unlikely to happen with credit card debt.
Translation: Don’t let loan origination fees deter you from getting a personal loan. Cut the numbers down, compare them to what you’re paying on your current debt, and go ahead if it saves you money.
Summary
Using a loan repayment calculator can help you figure out the numbers that matter before you even apply for a loan. This in turn will allow you to choose the best repayment term for your desired purpose.