[Rhapsody]

My husband and I are looking to take out a personal loan so we can consolidate our bills before we buy a house and I was wondering if any one wouldn't mind naming a few good companies that I could look into for the loan?

Thank you,

[Perna]

I wouldn't go to a loan company, they don't call them loan "sharks" for nothing. If you want to go the loan route, I would go through a credit card company/bank that you might be able to trust; get another credit card and pay off with checks from that credit card?

http://financial.wellsfargo.com/cons...date_debt.html

http://www.citifinancial.com/USCFA/C...nsolidate_debt

But I'd just put my bills in "order" and pay them off one-by-one that way; the one with the highest interest first, then the next, etc.

[RRU96]

Me and my wife personally used a debt consolidation company that was recomended to us by a credit card. Novadebt was their name, based out of New Jersey. But this may not be the best bet for you if you are going to try and make a major purchase because it will show that you are in credit counseling. But for someone else reading this, struggling....not knowing how to get ahead on your credit. They were a great company. Direct withdrawal each month, they paid all our credit card bills. They do ask for a $15 a month donation, though if you cant pay it, they understand and dont gripe.

[Rhapsody]

Really just looking for a good Loan Company so we do not have to put up collateral for getting the loan - some thing that is based on credit rating only... we have used American General and Capital One before, but we were wondering if there might be another company that some one would recommend... we will check them out and go with the one that offers us the best interest rate.

Loan Companies will give you a set loan amount with set monthly payments until the loan is paid off - usually with in five years, therefore, I dont see it being any different than buying a car.

[Yoda]

I understand that you do not want to use the house as collateral but if you take money out with the home loan you can pay the bills off with that money and you will repay with less interest on a home loan. Plus you may or may not be able to deduct mortgage interest with IRS; I used to but not sure if it is still same.

[Rhapsody]

Originally Posted by Yoda

I understand that you do not want to use the house as collateral but if you take money out with the home loan you can pay the bills off with that money

The FHA Loan we were approved for, and at a very good rate, does not allow for extra money to be added to the asking price of the house unless it is done under a 203 Rehab Loan and if approval the extra money is paid directly to the contractors doing the repairs... the extra amount doe not go directly to the buyer.

[shezbut]

Rhapsody,

My personal recommendation would be to wait until most of your debts are paid off, then get a loan for a house.

There are always extra bills that come with homebuying. Property taxes can vary significantly, depending upon the county and state you move into. Older homes also have a tendency to need a little TLC to make them more energy-efficient, which results in investments of new heating or air conditioning units, water softeners, humidifiers or de-humidifiers. You can get tax breaks for purchasing these things for your house, as well as interest paid on the loan.

Quite an investment. If you can comfortably make house payments, with a fixed annual percentage rate (not variable!), go for it now ~ as it is a great buyers market now! The trick is not cutting your income too much. No more than 1/3 of monthly income should ever go towards the mortgage. Cutting it closer just leads to financial woes.

I wish you and your hub the very best!!

[Rhapsody]

Thanks for the reply... my husband and I have already started the process for buying a house (been looking for a few months) and we got a great fixed rate that will keep our mortgage payments low "very affordable" - we are just looking to consolidate a few minor bills so it will make fixing up the house a lot easier as we go about our life while living in the house.

My husband and I have already thought all this through - now we are just looking for the names of a few good companies that might be worth looking into..... we will deal with any fixing up of the house that may be needed on a week to week bases as my husband gets paid.