Back in the good old days banks would make lending decisions based on relationships and trust. If you wanted a loan your local bank would often simply ask for someone who trusted you to cosign it.
Then things changed. Today we talk about "credit history" which essentially means that lending decisions are made, based on how you've previously handled your money. If something went wrong in your past and you haven't got a good credit history, then the banks will almost always turn you away. You're denied a loan, because something about your past and circumstances doesn't fit into their system.
The idea of trusting a cosigner isn't a new one. Using friends and family to help buying cars or renting flats has been done for years.
And if you step back a little further, you'll quickly see that we use the opinions of the people we're close to, in other situations too. References for a job, recommendations for dating, and if you even need it (which we hope you don't) posting bail from court.
The idea that our friends and family know us best, and have that trusted insight into what we are like and what will work for us is as old as the idea of family itself. That's why we believe that loans based on trust are just better.
So, we built the loan company that we would want to borrow from.
We don't let computers decide if you can borrow. For us, it doesn't matter if you have had trouble in the past or are self-employed - the most important thing for us is that you have a cosigner. This is typically a friend or family member who trusts you to make the repayments, but is able to make those payments if you do not. Before we pay out your cosigned loan, we'll make sure the repayments are affordable. We base our decisions on simple common sense.
A cheaper way to borrow
Our flexible cosigned loans are much cheaper than short-term payday loans. They are also designed to be a longer term solution to your finances. You can use Transform Credit for a few months, if you just need something short term (the fast you pay us back the cheaper it is) but you can also borrow over periods up to 5 years. That means you can have a manageable and affordable monthly repayment and plan for the long term.
Interest done right
Everyone wants to be in control of their loan, always. And they absolutely should be. We give you real-time statements and 24/7 access to your account online. Interest is calculated daily so you only pay for the time you have the loan. If you pay even a couple of dollars off early, you stop paying interest on that money immediately.
No fees ever
When times get tough the last thing you need is someone making money from your problems. We NEVER charge for late payments, letters, early settlement or anything else.
What about when things go wrong?
We collect late payments in the same way as any high street bank would. If a loan falls into arrears we'll text you a reminder. If we're not able to collect a payment we will get in touch with you, to find out what's gone wrong. Our priority is to stop a late payment snowballing into a bigger problem.
Obviously, because your loan is supported by a cosigner, they will have to pay if you don't. In a few very rare cases, where we can't come to an arrangement for repayment with either borrower or their cosigner, we may either pass the case onto a professional debt collector or ask a court to decide the best way to deal with it. This is an absolute last resort, and we will always do everything possible to resolve it together before it comes to that. Whatever happens we will NEVER put your home or other property at risk, as all our loans are unsecured loans with a cosigner.
We've made 10 promises on how we'll handle this, at all times.
So there you have it, why and how we created the Transform Credit cosigned loan.