American Express is a loan provider, unlike the others. It was founded in 1850 with its headquarters in New York City.
The company offers payment services such as credit cards and financial products, personal loans up to $40,000 are available to eligible American Express cardholders. Let’s delve into the versatilities of the American Express.
About The American Express Personal Loans
American Express offers personal loans to eligible cardholders. These loans can merge over a lot of expenses such as debt consolidation, medical expenses, vehicle down payment while prohibited uses are to pay for college, real estate, business, securities, vehicle purchases, to pay off American Express Card balance, and post-secondary education expenses.
American Express is an established global credit card issuer whose maximum loan amount is $40,000 and APR of 7.98% to 19.98% is unchangeable.
The American Express personal loan is an excellent option if you want to consolidate up to four non-American Express credit cards into a single fixed loan rate.
But repayment terms are fairly short. You’ll have to repay the loan within 12 to 36 months. If you can’t do this, then checking out other loan providers might be a better option.
Read more: 15 Ways To Get A Loan With A Bad Credit
How To Apply For The American Express Personal Loans
Download And Login – Login to your account online to see if you are pre-approved. American Express only gives loans to eligible cardholders. If you are pre-approved, you’ll be able to see how much you can potentially borrow and an estimate of the interest rate you’ll pay
Apply Online – Apply online by providing basic personal information such as loan purpose and your total income. You select how much you want to borrow but it mustn’t be above the pre-approved amount which is $40,000 or $50,000 for special cases.
Remember that the monthly payment can only be prepared from 12 to 36 months and where you want the money sent to. It usually takes seconds after applying to see if you are approved.
Review The Loan Term – Once you have been approved, the next step is to check if the loan term works for you
Accept The Offer – If the term works for you, then you need to accept the offer and sign a loan document online.
The process is given an ultimatum of three days or else it is withdrawn. You’ll need to wait at least 60 days to apply for another American Express personal loan if withdrawn.
Receive Funds – The loan fund will be sent to the bank account or credit card account filled into your application within three to five business days.
Be sure to input the right information, as the loan will be withheld if your account can’t be verified.
PROS
American Express loan features are affordability, loan flexibility, transparency, and customer service for a reason.
No Origination Fee – Unlike other competitions, American Express doesn’t require an origination fee
Debt Consolidation – You can use the loan funds to merge debt for four non-American Express credit cards. Once you are approved for the loan, proceeds can be sent straight to your credit card issuers in increments of at least $1000.
Free credit monitoring – All AmEx cardholders get access to the company’s credit Guide, which shows your TransUnion credit report, alerts you to potential identity theft, and provides recommendations about how to improve your credit. You can also use the tool to see how paying down debt will affect your score.
Excellent Customer Satisfaction – In 2021, American Express bagged the top customer satisfaction rating in a recent survey by JD Power and being ranked as the top credit card issuer for two years in a row. It recently ranked as one of the best personal lenders of 2021.
CONS
Offered to Cardholders – The American Express personal loans are only offered to eligible cardholders who have been pre-approved. Non-cardholders cannot receive loans and offers.
Qualification is undisclosed the American Express chips criteria for qualification is secret. If you apply for a loan the company will do a background check on your financial condition to confirm if you qualify for the loan all the qualifications such as minimum credit score and income thresholds are undisclosed
Repayment terms are short American Express the term for loan repayment ranges from 12 to 36 months. The longer-term would have been better for customers.
No rates discounts for auto-pay American Express does not offer an annual percentage rate discount for setting up auto-pay. The distance is between 0.25 to 0.5 percentage points and it motivates borrowers into making payments on time.
No cosigner co-borrower or secured loans options – American Express doesn’t let you add a co-signer, or add with someone or secure the loan to potentially qualify for a rate lower or higher loan amount.
There is no option to choose or change the payment date – The payment date is the one you are given at the moment you are granted the loan. American Express does not allow borrowers to change payment dates which implies that if your payday changes or you lose your job, you still cannot adjust the date of payment.
Customer Service
American Express offers customer service that works all day. You can call if you have questions and get your questions answered.
You can also chat with a customer service agent by logging into your account or speaking with a customer service agent by calling 1-800-528-4800 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Customer Reviews
In 2020, American Express ranked 6th on the j.d. power consumer lending satisfaction study, and American Express was ranked the highest among the personal loan lender in the JD power 2021 us consumer lending satisfaction study with a score point 874 out of 1000 possible points compared to a segment average of 858.
The survey comprised of reviews from 2500 personal loan borrowers and focus on three primary factors which are loan terms and offering the application and approval process as well as loan management process.
Furthermore, American Express was also ranked the highest in consumer satisfaction in the JD power US credit card satisfaction study in 2020 and 2021. Because American Express personal loans are offered to cardholders, the customer satisfaction findings are related to credit card issues.
Frequently Asked Questions
American Express personal loans are given to borrowers who are pre-approved cardholders. According to American Express, your loan offer is based on your creditworthiness and other factors.
American Express does not charge origination fees for a personal loan or anything else other than a $39 late payment fee. The overall cost of the loan is wrapped up in the total APR which is between 7.98% and 19.98% of the total amount owed.
You can apply and obtain a loan without the American Express personal loan affecting your credit score. You won’t have to undergo a hard credit check when you apply because offers are made only to cardholders and American Express has your financial information and historical record.
After receiving an offer you have three days to accept. American Express will send your approach known as soon as possible. You will charge interest and start making payments on the funds you borrowed regardless of what you do with the money, even if you decide to keep it in your account.
American Express will typically send your loan funds within three to five business days after you sign your loan agreement to the bank or credit card account you designated in your application.
If you are required to add a bank account to receive your loan funds, we will typically send your loan funds to that bank account within three to five business days after we verify your bank account. If we cannot verify your bank account, we will not be able to send your loan funds to you and will cancel your loan.
Please note that your bank or credit card issuer may take additional time to post your loan funds to your account. If any loan funds do not post to your bank or credit card account within two weeks, please contact us, your bank or credit card issuer.
About The App
American Express has an app that allows you to access your account from anywhere. It is available for download on Apple Store and Google Play. On Apple Store, the app has a 4.9 rating. It is available for iPhone and Android.
Conclusion
American Express personal loans are meant for members alone. It is restricted with offers given to cardholders alone. For prospective borrowers make sure to know everything about American Express loans to know if it’s the loan for you or if weighing other options will be better.
References
- thesimpledollar.com/loans/lender-reviews/american-express-loans-review/
- americanexpress.com/us/loans/personal-loans/faq/
- investopedia.com/american-express-personal-loans-review/
- nerdwallet.com/reviews/loans/personal-loans/american-express-personal-loans
- thebalance.com/american-express-personal-loan/
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