How do I apply for a Citizens Bank personal loan?

Major personal loan requirements include being at least 18 years old, having a bank account, having a good credit history, and having enough income or assets to afford monthly loan payments. Specific personal loan requirements vary by lender, however. Avant requires a credit score of 600 or higher, for example, while ... read full answerProsper sets the bar at 640 and SoFi asks for 680. Most lenders don’t disclose annual income requirements, but two exceptions are LendingPoint ($20,000+) and Citibank ($10,500+).

Some personal loans may have additional requirements, such as collateral to secure the loan. Lenders will also look at plenty of other factors when you apply, including your existing debt, employment status and housing payments.

Personal Loan Requirements

18+ Years Old

A loan is a binding contract, and most states won’t let you enter into a binding contract unless you are at least 18. Lenders generally do not offer loans to minors as a result.

SSN and U.S. Residency

Many (but not all) lenders will only make loans to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. You may be required to have a Social Security number. Some lenders allow applicants to use an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number or a Visa instead.

Bank Account

Lenders usually send the funds as a direct deposit to a bank account. Certain types of loans, such as ones where you provide collateral, may not require you to have a bank account. But most loans will.

Steady Income

Lenders need to be confident that you will repay the loan. So you will need to demonstrate that you have a source of income and/or significant assets. Lenders don’t generally disclose minimum income requirements, but you must be able to manage your monthly payments in addition to any other debts/expenses you have.

Credit Score of 585-700+

Lenders require applicants to meet a certain credit score threshold for approval. The most popular lenders usually require a credit score of at least 585 to 700. However, these requirements aren’t set in stone. Having a high income might help make up for a low credit score, and vice versa.

Reasonable Financial Obligations

If the lender determines that you already owe too much money relative to your income and assets (i.e. the amount you can afford to pay back), you probably won’t qualify. Lenders will also consider monthly expenses like housing payments that will decrease the amount of money you can put toward repaying a loan.

Stable Employment

It’s not impossible to get a loan if you don’t have a job. But if you’re unemployed you’ll need a strong alternative source of income, such as a pension, government benefits or investments.

Bottom Line

Overall, good credit and disposable income are the two most important personal loan requirements. You can check your latest credit score for free as well as compare personal loans based on their minimum credit score requirements on WalletHub. Lenders will be able to provide more detailed information about other requirements.

Although each lender is a bit different, the basics of the application and approval processes are pretty much the same. You can take the same general approach to maximize your odds of success, too.

Personal loan applications require several key pieces of personal information, including your name, SSN/ITIN, address and date of birth, along with financial information such as your yearly income and monthly mortgage/rent payments. It usually takes less than 7 business days to get a decision and to receive your money if you’re approved.

You can get a personal loan from a bank, a credit union or an online lender. The key to getting a personal loan is to do your research, both on the loan providers and the terms of their offers. WalletHub makes it easy to compare personal loans and has user reviews for lenders big and small. Once you’ve decided on the right loan for you, WalletHub can bring you directly to its secure online application.... read full answer

Below, you can get to know the major players and see where most other consumers have gotten their personal loans.

Popular Personal Loan Companies:

• American Express
• Avant
• Discover
• LendingClub
• Lightstream by SunTrust Bank
• Marcus by Goldman Sachs
• Prosper
• SoFi
• Wells Fargo

Before applying for a personal loan, you may also want to check for pre-qualification. If you are pre-qualified for a personal loan, your chances of actually being approved are very high but not guaranteed. Pre-qualification uses a harmless soft inquiry while actually applying for a loan triggers a hard inquiry that may temporarily lower your credit score. You can use WalletHub’s free tool to check your pre-qualification status with multiple lenders at once.

On that note, your credit score will affect where you can get a personal loan. Big banks tend to offer loans to people with good or excellent credit. Credit unions, which have a more personal connection with their clients, are more likely to offer personal loans to applicants with lower scores. Online lenders are the newest players, and some of them offer bad credit loans as well.

Now that you know where to get a personal loan, it’s also important to take note of where NOT to get a personal loan – a payday lender. Payday loans go by many names, including payday advances, payroll loans and cash advance loans. With this type of loan, the lender lets you borrow money against your next paycheck. Since payday loans are short-term, the finance charges are incredibly high to ensure the lender makes money. Lenders usually charge a fee on the borrowed amount that is equivalent to an APR of over 300%-600% in most cases. It’s best to avoid these types of loans altogether.

It takes 4 to 16 business days to get money from a Citizens Bank personal loan, in most cases. That includes both the time it takes to get approved and the time it takes for the funds to be delivered after approval. Keep in mind that this is a typical applicant's experience, and in some cases it could take longer.... read full answer

How to Get Money From Citizens Bank as Fast as Possible

• Fill out the application carefully. You should make sure that all information you enter on the application is correct and complete. That will eliminate any potential delays from Citizens Bank having to request additional information.
• Check your credit report for errors. Before you apply, you should verify that everything on your credit report is accurate, as any incorrect negatives on there could impact your chances of approval. If you find any errors, you should dispute them right away to get them removed.
• Get your credit score above the minimum. Ideally, you should only apply for a Citizens Bank personal loan once your credit score exceeds the minimum requirement of 680. That will make it easier for Citizens Bank to decide whether you qualify, which could lead to a quicker decision.
• Apply online. Online applications have the fastest processing times since they are automated and streamlined.

Once you get approved for a Citizens Bank personal loan, the money will be delivered through an electronic funds transfer to your bank account, which usually takes 1 to 2 business days.