Loans

APR (annual percentage rate) represents the total cost of borrowing to the customer over a year. It’s shown as a percentage and includes all interest and charges, for ease of comparison.

APRC (annual percentage rate of charge) represents the total cost of a secured loan or mortgage to the customer, shown as an annual percentage of the total loan amount. It includes all interest rates and charges applied over the full loan term, making it useful for comparison.

What rate will I get?

The rate you’re offered will vary depending on a few factors, including:

• lender
• loan type, term and amount
• your individual circumstances
• your credit history

Typically, the better your credit history is, the more likely you’ll be offered a lower APR or APRC.

Here at Ocean, our representative APR is 79.5% for unsecured loans and 12.40% APRC for secured loans. This means 51% or more of customers receive this rate or better.

Yes, you may be able to get a loan with bad credit, as each lender uses their own criteria. Some lenders specialise in lending to those with a less-than-perfect credit history, but they may charge higher interest rates. Here at Ocean, we have access to a wide panel of trusted lenders, meaning we can help you find a loan whatever your credit score.

Loan to value (LTV) is the percentage of what you owe on your mortgage (and any secured loans) in relation to the current value of your property.

How it's calculated:

(Total Borrowing Against Property ÷ Current Property Value) x 100 = % LTV

Example:

Total Borrowing Against Property = £150,000

Current Property Value = £200,000

£150,000 ÷ £200,000 = 0.75

0.75 x 100 = 75% LTV

Lenders use LTV (among other things) to assess eligibility, rates and lending limits when reviewing mortgage and secured loan applications. Each lender sets their own limits — some of the lenders we work with offer products up to 100% LTV. Lower LTVs tend to attract the best lending options for borrowers.

Yes, loans are as safe as any other form of borrowing so long as you:

• Use a reputable lender
• Make your repayments on time and in full. Failure to do so could damage your credit score, and in the case of a secured loan, put your home at risk.

A loan could be the right way to borrow money if you:

• Want to consolidate multiple debts into one monthly repayment
• Want to borrow money against your property (with a secured loan)
• Need a lump sum for something of high value (i.e. a car, wedding, or extension)
• Like the stability of one fixed monthly sum.

But of course there are other ways to borrow, and they might be more suitable for your needs if you:

• Only need to borrow a small amount of money over a short period of time
• Want to vary your monthly repayments
• Aren’t sure if your circumstances might change in the near future.

If this sounds more like your current situation, a credit card might be a better fit for your borrowing needs.

If your financial situation changes for the better and you wish to pay more than your monthly repayment to pay off the loan early, you should be able to do so; but early repayment charges may apply in some cases.

To check your eligibility for a loan, click 'Get a quote' and then select the type of loan you're interested in at the top of the page. This will take you to our quick and easy form. Getting a quote won't affect your credit score.

A repayment holiday is a period agreed with your lender to put your loan payments on hold temporarily. This may help in the short term if you need to free up more income for other expenses.

If you are struggling to meet your loan repayments, you can ask your loan provider to freeze interest. This should make your loan more affordable and help you to get out of debt quicker. You may need to provide your incomings and outgoings to show you are in financial difficulty.

At Ocean, depending on the type of loan applied for, you may be able to take a loan out for up to 30 years.

A soft search is an enquiry on your credit report, typically carried out by a prospective lender or broker. It shows some of your basic information to help confirm your identity and give the lender an overview of your financial situation. Importantly, soft searches do not affect your credit score and are only visible to you.

Missing loan repayments can lead to defaults and CCJs being applied to your credit record for up to six years. This can make it harder to get credit in the future.

If your property is used as collateral for a secured loan and you miss repayments, this could result in you losing your home.
 
It’s important to only borrow what you can afford to repay, and if you do find yourself beginning to struggle, speak to your lender before the situation gets worse.

Debt consolidation involves moving some or all of your debt into one place to make it easier to manage, and possibly more cost-effective. This could result in one loan amount, with one monthly payment, one interest rate, and one lender; although it’s important to remember you may end up paying more interest overall.