Reading an offer
Ten parts of a personal loan offer, from the price you pay to the clauses that apply after you sign. Start with the total cost, then check each fee and term against it.
The price
What the rate, the term and the discounts do to the total you repay.
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Total cost of a loan
Finance charge, APR and total of payments, with three worked offers for the same $10,000 loan.
The price, checked Oct 26, 2026
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Loan term length
How 24 to 84 months change the payment and total interest on a $10,000 loan, and how to pick a term.
The price, checked Oct 27, 2026
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Fixed and variable rates
How an index-based rate can move after you sign, what the disclosure must say, and a $10,000 reset example.
The price, checked Oct 27, 2026
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Autopay and rate discounts
What an autopay discount saves on $10,000, why autopay cannot be required, and what can end the discount.
The price, checked Oct 27, 2026
Fees and add-ons
Charges taken out of the loan, added to it or billed when something goes wrong.
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Net loan proceeds
What reaches your account when a fee is deducted, and how to gross up a loan to net the sum you need.
Fees and add-ons, checked Oct 27, 2026
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Late fees and returned payments
Where the late charge appears, why the APR leaves it out, state limits in Ohio and Florida, and federal rules.
Fees and add-ons, checked Oct 27, 2026
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Credit insurance and add-ons
Credit life, disability and job-loss coverage: when it is optional, what it adds, how to cancel it.
Fees and add-ons, checked Oct 27, 2026
Contract terms
The clauses and disclosures that decide what happens after you sign.
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Prepayment penalties
Simple-interest vs. precomputed loans, the Rule of 78s, and the line that says if early payoff costs extra.
Contract terms, checked Oct 27, 2026
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Arbitration clauses
What an arbitration clause and class-action waiver take away, how to opt out, and who is protected.
Contract terms, checked Oct 27, 2026
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Truth in Lending disclosures
The federal box line by line: APR, finance charge, amount financed, total of payments and what sits below.
Contract terms, checked Oct 27, 2026