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In the past, many people had damaged credit but were blissfully unaware because it didn't make that much difference to their lives. However, these days, lenders are far more strict and those that have damaged credit may struggle immensely when it comes to getting finance. With this in mind, it is important to try and maintain good credit otherwise you could find yourself in real difficulties when it comes to getting finance in the future.

Sadly, many of us already have damaged credit, which means we are already at a disadvantage when it comes to taking out any form of finance. However, this does not mean that finance is not available at all. You can actually get loans with bad credit from a range of lenders but you need to be aware of what the pitfalls and the benefits are before you take these out.

The upside of getting these loans

When you take out a loan designed for those with bad credit, this is often referred to as a sub-prime loan. If your credit is very bad, you will find that getting traditional finance like other people is very difficult and maybe impossible based on how bad your credit is. However, with these specialist loans it means that you still have a financial lifeline and can get the finance you need even if your credit is damaged. This is one of the upsides of this type of loan.

The other benefit of taking out this type of loan is that it can help you to get your credit back on track, which means that you can access better finance deals in the future. If you take out a loan for those with bad credit and you make timely repayments for a period of time, it will help to build your credit back up and improve your score. Once your score is high enough, you will be able to start looking at finance that offers lower rates of interest.

The downside of the loans

Of course, you also have to consider the downside of this type of finance, and the one many downside is the interest charges. With sub-prime loans, you will find that the rates of interest charged are far higher than on standard loans offered to those with good credit. This is because you pose more of a risk to the lender because of your damaged credit, which is then reflected in the rate of interest and the repayments that you have to make. You may even have to opt for secured finance such as a car title loan or loan secured against your home if your credit is very bad, as this means that the lender has some form of collateral to offset the risk of lending to someone with damaged credit.

As long as you make repayments for the right amount and on time each month, taking out a loan when you have damaged credit could actually help to improve your situation in the long term.