Secured Loan Dilemma

Sarah100_3

Hi all, newbie here.

I have been racking my brains for months now to try and clear a £25,000 secured loan on a horrid rate of 10.9%. We have been paying about £300 off every month for over 4 years now and have not missed one payment.
I wondered if anybody had any advice. I would like to take out a cheaper loan but am worried that a refusal could damage my credit rating. I also have about £5000 cash to put towards the loan instead of being stuck in a low interest savings account. Here is some more background information:

Have well over 60% equity in our house.
Have joint mortgage with partner.
My credit rating comes out as Good
Partner's credit rating probably not so good
I am salary paid
Partner is self-employed
Have lived in house of 8 years

Please, does anyone have any advice. The loan means we will be paying a whopping total of £46000 if we let it run the whole term.

I look forward to any replies, kind regards, Sarah100

copier_guy

have you got a settlement figure from the loan company, did you take out PPI

Sarah100_3

Settlement figure is just over the original amount £25,800. It hasn't gone down in years, gone up in fact. No we don't have PPI (that's protection cover isn't it?)

milliemonster

I think unless you can remortgage with your current lender at the moment on a more favourable rate you are a bit stuck, I doubt the secured lender would accept £5k token payment off the balance that you owe and it is unlikely you would get an unsecured loan of that amount at the moment.

Perhaps if you can it would be better for you to put some money aside with your £5k already saved in an ISA for a couple of years and then look then to getting an unsecured loan and using what you have saved to clear the balance?

Sarah100_3

Hi Milliemonster, thank you for your response. It has confirmed the position I am in, really, but it was worth asking to see if anyone had any ideas to get us unstuck. Thanks for your advice, the 5k is in an ISA at the moment but the rate, unsurprisingly, has dropped in the last few months. Thanks again, I'll wait and see how things go.

milliemonster

First Direct I think are doing a cracking ISA at the moment, I think its 7% but you have to pay in each month to keep that rate, I was thinking about doing this one myself, I think on the savings and investments board there is a sticky with the best ISA's available at the moment, have a look on there

Sarah100_3

I will have a look, but the 5k I was referring to earlier was partly £3,600 already paid lump sum into my hsbc ISA which started off with a rate of about 6.25 and now dropped to about 3%. I am not sure I could transfer my ISA (of which I cannot add more to this year) to First Direct.