Personal loans are usually unsecured loans that are made to consumers that consumers use to make home improvements, consolidate debt, pay off student loans, have extra cash on hand, or just to take care of any other pressing needs they may not currently have the money to do. Personal loans can have prepayment penalties (meaning if you pay it off early you could be charged for doing so), but many do not.

Good credit, meaning having a good credit score (usually a FICO over 700 or so), usually guarantees a relatively low interest rate on the loan.

Some of the financial services companies listed here that make personal loans (and which you can apply for directly with) are:

• Citi financial
• Secure Money Store
• Team Quick Cash
• Magic Payday
• Paychecktoday
• PayDay One