Personal Loans

It really comes down to you. When you apply for a loan, there’s a lot of different things we look at to decide how much you can borrow. Your credit history and credit rating are a big part of it, but the relationship we’ve built with you is also important. Your income, assets and other debts will all play a part in how much you qualify for. We look at the whole picture and trust that if you’ve managed your debts successfully in the past, there’s a good chance you’ll do the same in future.

A loan’s all about risk, so we’ll only lend an amount that is manageable for you to pay back. This ethical approach to lending ensures that you don’t take on more debt than you can handle.

What you plan to do with the money also plays a role in how much you can borrow. You’ll get a larger loan amount for your mortgage than you would for a car loan or a line of credit, for example.

Your credit rating is the story of your life told through borrowing. Every time you take out a credit card or loan, you make an entry into this record. It includes a bunch of information on you, like your birth date and social insurance number. It also lists any times you’ve been late on loan payments and exactly how late you’ve been. Bankruptcies, foreclosures, loan inquiries, collections, liens and many other things can all be included on your credit rating.

There are important differences between your credit rating and your credit score – they’re definitely not the same thing and it’s worth knowing the difference.

It takes time to build good credit, so you’re not going to be able to improve your credit rating overnight. The best first step to a good credit rating is to make your loan payments and pay them on time. If you do this consistently for a number of years, you’ll end up with good credit.

You need to borrow to build your credit rating. If you’ve never had a credit card and never taken out a loan, you won’t have any credit rating at all. That could cause you problems if you eventually need to borrow for a home, business or anything else.

Having a credit card or a personal loan is a great way to build your credit rating. You can also improve your rating by taking advantage of increases in your credit card limit. Access to more credit shows you can manage it responsibly, and that’s the catch – you have to manage it responsibly. It takes discipline not to rack up thousands of dollars in high-interest credit card debt and that discipline translates into good credit.

There are three main things you’ll need to have with you when you’re applying for a loan.

1. Two sources of income verification.
1. If you’re a salaried employee, this would be your last two paystubs or a letter from your employer and either your most recent T4, Notice of Assessment (NOA) or the previous year end paystub.
2. If you’re self-employed or a business owner, you’ll need to supply copies of your T1 General (income tax returns and Notice of Assessment) and T2125 (Statement of Business or Professional Activities) for the past three years. We’ll also need to conduct a Corporate Registry Search, but we’ll do this for you. If your business is a corporation or partnership, you're also required to provide your financial statements for the last three years.
2. A full list of your assets – what you own.
3. A full list of your liabilities – what you owe.

Every loan is unique so there may be times when we need more information. We’ll let you know if that’s the case.

Call our Contact Centre to get your loan application started or get the process rolling online.

Payment protection is like an insurance policy for your loan. It keeps you covered if life throws you a curveball and you can’t make your loan payments. Coverage and payment options can be tailored to your specific situation, and you can learn a lot more about it by calling our Contact Centre.