£20,000 Loans

Am I eligible for a £20,000 loan?

My Community Finance works with credit unions that provide affordable loans to their customers. If you’re looking to borrow £20,000 from one of our credit unions, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:

• Be aged between 21 and 65
• Live in the UK (excluding Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man)
• Be employed and earn at least £18,000 a year

To borrow from a credit union, you’ll need to become a member. This is straightforward with our partner credit unions, as they offer membership to people from almost all fields of employment, plus members of a number of organisations, like the National Trust. 

Credit unions are not-for-profit organisations, and all profits are returned to the members as a form of dividends on savings or re-invested back into the credit union. 

When you apply for a £20,000 loan with us, we’ll match you with the credit union that’s right for you. 

What is the monthly payment on a £20,000 loan?

The monthly cost of your £20,000 loan will depend on the length of your loan term and your interest rate. You can use our loan calculator to get an idea of how much your monthly repayments will be and the overall cost of your loan. 

The loan calculator uses a representative APR, which is a guide to how much interest a typical borrower may be charged. 

The APR you’re offered may differ, depending on your circumstances, so the actual monthly cost of your loan may be higher or lower than the example given. 

How much interest will I pay on a £20,000 loan?

The amount of interest you’ll pay on a £20,000 loan will depend on your APR and loan term. When you apply for a £20,000 loan, you’ll decide how long you want to borrow for. You’ll then receive your personalised loan quote, which will have an APR tailored to you. 

It’s important to remember that the longer your loan term, the more interest you will pay. 

APR (Annual Percentage Rate) is the cost of borrowing over an entire year, so the more years you borrow, the more interest you’ll pay. 

For example, you’ll pay more interest on a £20,000 loan over five years than if you were to repay the money you borrowed over three years. 

How long will it take to pay back a £20,000 loan?

The credit unions we work with offer loans between 12 and 60 months, and when you apply for a £20,000 loan, you’ll decide how long you want your repayment period to be. 

When choosing a loan term, remember that whilst longer terms will mean the monthly repayments are lower, the overall cost of the loan will be more, so it’s important to weigh up how much you can afford to repay each month and compare it to how much you’ll end up paying in interest over the full loan term. 

How quickly can I get a £20,000 loan?

The amount of time it takes for you to receive a loan from one of our partner credit unions can vary, but they will aim to get the money transferred to you within approximately four business days. 

The credit union will aim to make a decision on your £20,000 loan application within approximately two working days and provide your money within another two working days. In some cases, this process may take longer. 

How can I get a £20,000 loan?

Using the online form on this website, you can apply for a £20,000 loan with one of our credit unions. Here’s a step-by-step guide to the application process:

• First, you need to decide over what time period you want to pay your £20,000 loan back. The credit unions we work with offer loan terms from 12-60 months.
• You’ll then request a personalised quote. To provide you with this, we’ll perform a soft credit check which won’t affect your credit score, and only you’ll be able to see a record of it on your credit report.
• If you pass the eligibility criteria set by our partner credit unions, we will let you know the APR you will be offered on your £20,000 loan - your personalised quote is valid for 30 days. 
• We will then send you a loan agreement for you to review and ensure this is the right product for you. Once you have read and are happy with the terms of the loan you’ll sign your loan agreement.
• To complete our final checks, we will then conduct a hard credit search on your credit report, which other lenders or any organisation with access to your report will be able to see.     
• The credit union will aim to make a final decision about your personal loan within two working days. If successful, you should receive your £20,000 within approximately four working days of your application.

What can I use a £20k loan for?

£20,000 loans can be used to help fund major home improvements, spread the cost of a large purchase, such as a new car or financing a small business venture. You could also borrow £20,000 to finance significant events like a wedding or funeral. 

You can also use a loan from our partner credit unions to consolidate high interest debts, such as credit cards, store cards or an overdraft. 

Consolidating several expensive debts helps you by having just one monthly repayment to have to think about and it will also save you money by paying lower interest rates.

What credit score is needed for a £20,000 loan?

There are three main credit reference agencies in the UK: Equifax, Experian, and Transunion. Each has its own methods of scoring, but regardless of this, you’ll fall into one of four categories: Bad, Fair, Good, and Excellent.

Credit union loans are designed for people with ‘fair’ credit scores or better. Below is what each of the three major credit reference agencies considers to be a ‘fair’ credit score:

• Equifax - Between 439-530 (out of 1000)
• TransUnion - 566-603 (out of 710)
• Experian - 721-880 (out of 999)

Can I get a £20,000 loan with bad credit?

The credit unions we work with offer loans to those with “fair” or better than fair credit scores. 

If you have a bad credit score and you suspect you won’t be accepted for a loan, there are things you can do to try to improve your credit score. 

• Pay your bills and credit repayments on time and in full. 
• Try not to make numerous credit applications in a short period of time, ideally no more than two within six months. Lenders may assume multiple credit applications mean that you’re in financial difficulties. 
• Make sure all the information on your credit report is accurate. If you do spot a mistake, contact the credit reference agency to get it corrected. 
• Ensure you’re on the electoral roll; you can do this by registering to vote. Doing this helps to prove where you live. 
• Try to keep your credit card utilisation low, ideally within 25% of your credit limit. 
• Avoid withdrawing cash with a credit card - lenders will assume you’re in financial trouble if you do this. 

Can I pay back my £20k loan early?

If you borrow £20,000 from one of the credit unions we work with, you can pay back your loan in full before the end of your loan term, however, there may be an additional charge for this. However, you can repay your loan fully without incurring any fees if you do this within 14 days of the day you received the loan agreement.

Can I get a personal loan for £20,000?

It’s certainly possible, as long as you meet the eligibility criteria, you could get a £20,000 personal loan from one of our partner credit unions. 

The credit unions we work with offer unsecured personal loans between £1,500 and £25,000. Unsecured loans don’t need to be secured by an asset, such as a property you own. 
Whether or not you can borrow £20,000 will depend on several factors such as your credit history, affordability and whether or not you meet all of the eligibility criteria.