William Lipovsky
If your credit is less than perfect and you’re a federal employee, there are many different loan options available to you.
As we’ve reported in previous research, installment loans are an option for federal employees with bad credit.
Both allotment and installment loans take money for repayment directly from your paycheck, guaranteeing that the lender gets repaid for the loan.
However, if these types of loans aren’t exactly what you’re looking for, you can also consider a personal loan, home equity line of credit, and/or last-ditch lending with a payday loan.
For more information on what financing option is best for you, as well as the list of companies that specialize in each type of loan, see below.
Loan Types
Personal Loans
There are many different types of personal loans, but they fall into two main categories: unsecured and secured. A secured personal loan requires some type of collateral like an auto title, while an unsecured loan doesn’t require any collateral.
However, unsecured loans do require a credit check, and some lenders require employment verification.
Keep in mind that your credit history and credit score will directly impact your annual percentage rate (APR) — if your credit is poor, you’ll likely end up with a high interest rate.
Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs)
If you own a home with a fair amount of equity, and you have a credit score of at least 620 (which falls within the range of fair), another option for borrowing money is to take out a home equity line of credit (HELOC).
These loans are secured against your home, which often means lower rates, but higher risk — if you can’t pay your loan, you could lose your house.
However, with a HELOC, you can withdraw money as you need it, and you only pay interest on the amount you’ve used — not the total amount you have available for use.
Similar to a credit card, when you’re approved for a HELOC, you’ll have a maximum amount of money you can use. However, unlike a credit card, a HELOC has a specified time frame for when you can use this money; this is called the draw period, and it can range from around five to 20 years.
After the draw period ends, you can’t withdraw more funds from your HELOC, and you enter the repayment period.
Keep in mind that you can repay your HELOC balance at any time, and as with a credit card, that amount of credit will then be available for reuse as long as you’re still within the draw period. If you want to extend your draw period, you’ll have to refinance your HELOC.
Last-Ditch Options
If neither a personal loan nor a HELOC works for you, or if you’re specifically looking for options that don’t require a credit check (or places that will lend to borrowers with very poor credit), there are some last-ditch options available, specifically payday loans.
You should only consider these types of loans as a last resort — they carry significant risk and much higher fees than what you’d find with a typical loan.
Note: Many types of consumer loans — including payday loans — offered to active duty military, their spouses, and dependents must comply with the Military Lending Act (MLA), which caps interest at 36%. For this reason, certain payday lenders may not be willing to lend to those in active service.
The List
Personal Loans
OneMain Financial
- Secured or unsecured? Both
- Loan amount: $1,500 to $30,000
- Terms: 24 months to 60 months
- APR: Starting around 16% and up
- Credit check required? Yes, but no minimum score requirement
- Requirements: Must provide a valid Social Security number, valid government ID, proof of residency, and proof of income.
- Find out more or apply
First Tech Federal Credit Union
- Secured or unsecured? Both available
- Loan amount: $500 to $1,000,000
- Terms: Depends on the loan; some loans have no set terms
- APR: Starting around 3% and up, depending on the type of personal loan, amount borrowed, and your credit history
- Credit check required? Yes
- Requirements: Must provide a valid Social Security number, valid email, home address, employer info, driver’s license, and banking information. Must also work for the state of Oregon, or be employed at one of First Tech’s Sponsor Companies.
- Find out more apply
FedChoice Federal Credit Union
- Secured or unsecured? Both available
- Loan amount: $300 to $50,000
- Terms: Up to 84 months
- APR: Starting around 3% and up, depending on the type of personal loan, amount borrowed, and your credit history
- Credit check required? Yes
- Requirements: Must be a FedChoice member. In order to be eligible for a FedChoice membership, you have to live in Baltimore, Philadelphia, or Washington, D.C. and be a federal civilian employee, an immediate family member (spouse, child, etc.), or living with a federal civilian employee.
- Find out more or apply
Home Equity Lines of Credit
Navy Federal Credit Union
- Loan amount: Up to $500,000
- Terms: Up to 20 year draw period; variable repayment periods
- APR: Starting around 5% and up
- Credit check required? Yes
- Requirements: Must be a military member or Department of Defense employee, or a family member of a military member or DoD employee. Must also provide a valid Social Security number, government ID, home address, and banking information.
- Find out more or apply
PenFed Credit Union
Note: PenFed also offers HELOCs on owner-occupied homes and non-owner occupied homes.
- Loan amount: Up to $400,000
- Terms: Draw period up to 180 months (15 years)
- APR: Around 3% to 18%; with PenFed’s adjustable 5/5 HELOCs, your APR will change once every five years
- Credit check required? Yes
- Requirements: Must be a military member, federal employee, a family member of a military member or federal employee, or affiliated with one of PenFed’s Affinity Partners. Must also provide SSN, government ID, home address, and banking information.
- Find out more or apply
Security Service Federal Credit Union
- Loan amount: Depends on the amount of equity in your home.
- Terms: Up to 15 year draw period; variable repayment period
- APR: Starting around 3% and up
- Credit check required? Yes
- Requirements: Must be a military member or Department of Defense employee stationed at a military installation within Security Service’s service area, or you must live, work, attend school, worship, or volunteer in Colorado, Texas, or Utah.
- Find out more or apply
Last-Ditch Options
ACE Cash Express
- Loan amount: Varies by state; up to $1,500
- Terms: Usually 14 days
- Fees: Vary by state; as low as $10 per $100 borrowed in Florida, while California residents will pay around $17 per $100 borrowed
- Requirements: Must have a steady source of income, an open and active checking account, and a valid Social Security number.
- Where online loans are available: California, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Texas
- Find out more or apply
Check Into Cash
- Loan amount: Up to $1,000 (New customers: up to $750 or the state maximum)
- Terms: Varies
- Fees: Vary by state
- Requirements: Must be at least 21 years of age (19 in Alabama), have a steady source of income, have an active checking account, and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- Where online loans are available: Alabama, Alaska, California, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
- Find out more or apply
CashNetUSA
- Loan amount: Up to $500
- Terms: Varies by state; can range from eight to 35 days
- Fees: Vary by state; often between around $17 to $20 per $100 borrowed
- Requirements: Must be 18 or older, have a steady source of income, have a checking account, and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- Where online loans are available: Alabama, Alaska, California, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
- Find out more or apply
Mypaydayloan.com
- Loan amount: $200 to $1,500
- Terms: Usually no more than 14 days
- Fees: Around $30 for every $100 borrowed
- Requirements: Must be employed and not have declared bankruptcy within the last year
- Where online loans are available: Alabama, Alaska, California, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
- Find out more or apply
Amscot
- Loan amount: Up to $500
- Terms: 14 days
- Fees: Around $12 per $100 borrowed
- Requirements: Must have a steady source of income, have an open and active checking account, and have a valid government-issued photo ID.
- Where online loans are available: Florida
- Find out more or apply
Easy Knock
Easy Knock is not a payday lender, but it offers a unique Sell and Stay program. Through this program, you’ll sell your house to Easy Knock, and then you’ll rent it back. You have the option of repurchasing it at any point during the lease, or you can move and receive the rest of your equity. There are no W-2 or credit score requirements.
- Loan amount: Varies based on the home’s value
- Terms: Varies
- Fees: Not listed
- Requirements: Must have enough equity in your home and low enough mortgage balance
- Where Easy Knock is available: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
- Find out more or apply
See our related research for additional loan resources if you’re a veteran with poor credit.
