An unsecured loan is a loan that is issued and supported only by the borrower’s creditworthiness, rather than by any type of collateral. Unsecured loans—sometimes referred to as signature loans or personal loans—are approved without the use of property or other assets as collateral. The terms of such loans, including approval and receipt, are therefore most often contingent on the borrower’s credit score. Typically, borrowers must have high credit scores to be approved for certain unsecured loans. A credit score is a numerical representation of a borrower’s ability to pay back debt and reflects a consumer’s creditworthiness based on their credit history.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- An unsecured loan is a loan that’s supported only by the borrower’s creditworthiness, rather than by any type of collateral.
- Unsecured loans are sometimes referred to as personal or signature loans since they don’t use property or other assets as collateral.
- Unsecured loans are riskier for lenders than secured loans resulting in higher interest rates and require higher credit scores.