Mozo guides

Personal loan repayments

Having the approval of a personal loan up your sleeve can free up so much time and money to do and buy the things you really love, need and want. Think of it as a ‘live for the moment’ ticket to freedom. If you have a secure income with spare dosh to pay off a personal loan, then why not take advantage of a lotta cash at once?

Begin comparing loans are here. 

Dollars, figures and sums

The question at the forefront of your mind will most likely be: How much can I actually borrow? To work out how much you can borrow and what your repayments will be, use Mozo’s convenient and handy personal loans repayments calculator.

Personal Loan Comparison Table - last updated 19 March 2024

Search promoted personal loans below or do a full Mozo database search. Advertiser disclosure
  • Mozo Expert Choice Badge
    Unsecured Personal Loan

    Fixed

    interest rate
    comparison rate
    Monthly repayment
    6.75% p.a.to 26.95% p.a.
    6.75% p.a.to 26.95% p.a.based on $30,000
    over 5 years

    Borrow up to $50,000 unsecured. Perfect if you earn more than $22,100 p.a. and have good to excellent credit. Multi-year winner of Mozo’s Experts Choice Unsecured Personal Loan Award, 2021, 2022, 2023 & 2024^'

    Repayment terms from 2 years to 7 years. Representative example: a 5 year $30,000 loan at 6.75% would cost $35,430.23 including fees.

    Compare
    Details
  • Unsecured Personal Loan

    Fixed

    interest rate
    comparison rate
    Monthly repayment
    5.76% p.a.to 24.03% p.a.
    6.55% p.a.to 24.98% p.a.based on $30,000
    over 5 years

    Fast, easy and 100% online, this is a low cost loan with no ongoing fees or extra repayment penalties. It's perfect for savvy borrowers with great credit. If you’re over 18 and earn above $30,000, you could qualify (other eligibility criteria may apply).

    Repayment terms from 3 years to 7 years. Representative example: a 5 year $30,000 loan at 5.76% would cost $35,173.52 including fees.

    Compare
    Details
  • Express Personal Loan

    Secured

    interest rate
    comparison rate
    Monthly repayment
    14.95% p.a.to 27.95% p.a.
    29.30% p.a.to 42.8% p.a.based on $10,000
    over 3 years

    Access fast finance on loans from $5,000 to $25,000 with a Jacaranda Finance Personal Loan. Terms from 24-48 months. Check if you qualify with no impact on your credit score. Enjoy a speedy, online approval.

    Repayment terms from 2 years to 4 years. Representative example: a 3 year $10,000 loan at 14.95% would cost $14,324.71 including fees.

    Compare
    Details
  • Debt Consolidation Loan

    interest rate
    comparison rate
    Monthly repayment
    5.76% p.a.to 24.03% p.a.
    6.57% p.a.to 24.99% p.a.based on $30,000
    over 5 years

    Roll multiple debts into one loan to streamline your finances with one set of repayments and one interest rate. Competitive fixed interest rates with no monthly or early repayment fees and flexible repayment options. Easy online application and funding in as little as 24 hours (subject to approval).

    Repayment terms from 3 years to 7 years. Representative example: a 5 year $30,000 loan at 5.76% would cost $35,173.52 including fees.

    Compare
    Details

Which personal loan is best for me?

As they say, don’t judge a book by its cover, right? Same goes for loans - don’t judge a loan by its rate! Ok, corniness aside, you really need to weigh up the pros and cons when a super low personal loan interest rate is offered. Sure the repayments may be affordable, but will it give you the flexibility you need? Read on to see how you can make a more informed decision about personal loans and your repayments.

Repayments on a Fixed Rate

Like most, you’re probably wondering what to expect when it comes to repaying your personal loan on a fixed rate. We’ve weighed it up for you so you can get on with doing the good stuff. Here’s our summary:

Pros:

  • Knowing exactly what your monthly repayments are allows you to work out a short term budget, at least for the length of your loan.
  • Length of your personal loan will be anywhere between 1 - 7 years, enough time to repay your loan. If you’ve secured a flexible loan, with added repayments, you can repay your loan faster.
  • Safeguards you from rate increases, so your repayment is predictable for the life of your loan.

Cons:

  • Expect to pay a monthly administration fee. Some finance institutions may charge up to $10 per month or more.
  • Expect to pay an approval fee up to $200 or more, what ever the loan amount.
  • If you haven’t secured a flexible loan, then you may not be able to make extra repayments.

Repayments on a Variable Rate

Not the easiest decision to make, but you’re going to have to decide between Fixed and Variable pretty soon if you want to get on with buying that fishing boat. Just saying. To help you out, we’ve looked at the good bits and the well, not so bad bits so that you can get on with making your purchases asap. Here’s our summary:

Pros:

  • Most Variable Rate loan features will allow you to to contribute more money where you can to help pay off your loan faster, at no extra charge.
  • Pick the right variable rate loan, and your financier will give you access to a redraw facility. This means that any extra amounts you have put toward your loan is now accessible. Or you can leave it to continue paying off your loan. Up to you.
  • Most personal loans secured at a variable rate will often allow a higher borrowing amount. So you can borrow in most cases anywhere from $5000 to $75000. But you’ll have to check with your bank.

Cons:

  • Expect to pay a monthly administration fee. Some finance institutions may charge up to $10 per month or more.
  • Expect to pay an approval fee up to $200 or more, what ever the loan amount.
  • If you haven’t secured a flexible loan, then you may not be able to make extra repayments.

Will your loan be secured or unsecured?

So you’ve had a good, long hard think about your variable and fixed interests...but have you thought about secured or unsecured? Some of you may be saying, secured of course! But you just may not have the luxury to choose. Here’s why:

Secured personal loan: This is when you have available collateral to put up as security toward your loan. It could be one large item like a residence, or it could be a mixture of things like a car and a boat. It’s a discussion you need to have with your finance provider with what kind of collateral they're willing to accept as security on your loan. The amount you wish to borrow may also influence what collateral may be needed.

In the end, a loan with collateral for security will bring down the price of your interest rate, which means less monthly repayments giving you more money to play with in the long run. Compare secured loans on Mozo by clicking the link.

If I don’t have enough collateral, can I get a guarantor?

In most cases, yes. This could be a parent, friend or other relative who can put up one of their property as security for you loan. However, borrowing money is risky businesses and a lot of responsibility. What you need to consider is do you really want to bring a third party into the equation? What if you lose your job and can’t meet the repayments? Borrowing money can give you so much freedom to do the things you want, however, you need to also think of the worst case scenario. Missing repayments could in fact jeopardise your friend or relative’s collateral.

Unsecured personal loan: This type of loan is risky business for any financier, so don’t be surprised if they get nervous when this is the only loan you qualify for. Sometimes referred to as a signature loan, if you don’t have enough collateral or none at all, then an unsecured loan is the one you would go for.

An unsecured loan may have stricter conditions and take longer for approval. You may also find that the rate you’re able to secure is a lot higher compared to a secured personal loan. You’re going to have to expect that overall, it’s easier taking out a loan with security, but we gotta start somewhere!

How are my loan repayments calculated?

At Mozo, we believe it’s never too late to turn your dreams into a reality. A personal loan whether small or large can make a world of difference to the decisions we make today, and tomorrow.

The repayments on a personal loan will depend on the following:

  • loan amount
  • period of loan
  • type of interest rate (fixed or variable)
  • repayment frequency
  • fees

You can use our Mozo personal loan repayment calculator to work out how much you will have to repay each month.

Scenario

We’ve compiled a scenario for you to glance over and possibly compare with so you can see what kind of repayments you would expect to be coming out of your pocket:

Kate and Brian’s wedding anniversary

For Kate and Brian’s 10 year wedding anniversary, rather than buying separate gifts for each other, they’ve decided to get a joint personal loan to go on the honeymoon they missed out on when they first got married.

Both have secure and regular incomes with no dependants. They are currently paying of a mortgage, the house they're residing in which they will use as collateral for their loan.

They want to travel to Europe for 3 weeks so think $20,000 will be a good amount for return flights, food, travel insurance, accommodation and spending money.

By using Mozo’s secured personal loan table, you can discover various loan products available. In this sample we discovered: IMB Bank, Secured Personal Loan Fixed. In summary:

Loan amount: $20,000

Term of loan: 5 years

Monthly repayments: $401

Total interest over 5 years: $4,040

Loan repayment protection - should you get insurance?

Having protected repayments is a sense of security so if something goes wrong and you miss a payment or you or your spouse is sick or injured causing you to fail on repayments for the short or long term, you’ve ‘protected’ your repayments, which is the same as saying you’ve purchased insurance on your repayments.

But read the fine print! You want to make sure you are actually covered for the scenarios you expect, especially necessary when you require payment relief in the event of involuntary unemployment, illness, disability or death.

The cost of insurance is usually added to your monthly loan repayments.

Tips for managing repayments

Let’s face it - it can be lotsa fun having the freedom to use a personal loan to chase your short term goals. But you’ve got to stay on top of your loan repayments or your fun can quickly turn.

Throughout the term of your loan, you need to be honest with yourself. The more money you owe the banks, the more interest you pay and the more interest you pay means the longer it will take to pay it all off. Here are some tips on managing your loan repayments to help your loan out, even when you’re sleeping:

  • Extra cash: Did you score that work bonus you were hoping for? Hold a garage sale over the weekend? Get a decent tax return? However the extra dosh comes your way, be sure to whack some of it onto your loan. The less you owe, the quicker it will be to repay it.
  • Extra purchases: Thinking about that amazing jumper that’s just come on sale? If you’ve got another six similar options to choose from in your drawer, chances are you don’t really need to spend $149. But if there’s a spare $149 in your bank account at the end of the week, consider using it to help repay your loan faster. The more often you do this the quicker your loan will be repaid.

What happens if I miss a loan repayment?

This is a scenario you absolutely want to avoid. Some finance providers will charge you fee for making a late payment or for missing it altogether. In the end, the amount you don’t pay on time will accumulate to the bulk of the balance you owe, with a possible penalty on top. Remember - the more money you owe, the more interest you pay.

Missing your repayment altogether will indicate that your money management is skewing for the worst unless you make changes to how you’re spending and managing your funds. If you are experiencing short term financial difficulty talk to an advisor from the financial provider you’ve borrowed the money form to help you work out a solution.

Ending your loan

Most providers will (thankfully) not charge you for ending your loan. In fact we think a bottle of champagne is in order! (don’t quote Mozo on that one!) If you’re wondering what all the fuss is about, ending your loan is all about not having another dollar to pay. You can end your loan repaying it at the agreed monthly repayments for the term of the loan, or if you had the luxury of paying more than the minimum requirement, you can end your loan by repaying it faster.

Always check with your financial provider what they require for you to have satisfied the term of your loan, after all, everyone has different rules and conditions.

Mozo
Mozo

* WARNING: The Comparison Rate combines the lender's interest rate, fees and charges into a single rate to show the true cost of a personal loan. The comparison rates displayed are calculated based on a loan of $30,000 for a term of 5 years or a loan of $10,000 for a term of 3 years as indicated, based on monthly principal and interest repayments, on a secured basis for secured loans and an unsecured basis for unsecured loans. This comparison rate applies only to the example or examples given. Different amounts and terms will result in different comparison rates. Costs such as redraw fees or early repayment fees, and cost savings such as fee waivers, are not included in the comparison rate but may influence the cost of the loan.

^See information about the Mozo Experts Choice Personal Loan Awards

Mozo provides general product information. We don't consider your personal objectives, financial situation or needs and we aren't recommending any specific product to you. You should make your own decision after reading the PDS or offer documentation, or seeking independent advice.

While we pride ourselves on covering a wide range of products, we don't cover every product in the market. If you decide to apply for a product through our website, you will be dealing directly with the provider of that product and not with Mozo.