There are many ways of finding a loan. Nowadays many people go online to dig out the crucial details of both lenders and loans. Here, John Mussi takes us through the process:

Researching the options available to you for a loan can be a long task, especially if you don’t take advantage of some of the features available to you on the internet. In addition to simply finding out basic loan information, you can whether certain types of loans are right for you and in the case of some lenders actually apply for your loan directly from the lender’s website.

In order to find out whether researching your loan options online is right for you and to learn how to do your research so as to optimize your experience, here is some information on online loan research options that you might find helpful.

Starting your search
When starting a search for loan information online, you should always use your preferred search engine to find the sites that may provide you with the information that you’re looking for. Use keywords for the type of loan or lender that you want information on, and you should receive several pages worth of results for potential lenders and financial information sites. Generally, the first page of results will offer you the most pertinent results for your search keywords, though some may also appear on the second page.

Of course, if you’re looking for a specific lender, you can search for their website or go directly to it if you have the website URL.

Researching physical lenders
If you’re looking for additional information on physical lenders in your area, you can likely find out about them and the loans that they offer form the lender’s website or from a portal website that has links and information on several different lenders of the same type.

Depending upon how complex the website is, you may be able to find either a large or a smaller amount of information on lender specifics or on certain types of loans. Even for those websites that are primitive and don’t offer much in the way of specific information, you can still find phone numbers and ways to contact customer support and make information requests.

You can also take time to research other methods of finding information, such as service reviews from online newspapers and e-zines as well as “best of” competitions that some communities have to determine which businesses in their area provides the best services.

Finding an online lender
In addition to simply finding information on physical lenders, you can use the internet to find a lender that does their business exclusively online. These lenders tend to offer competitive if not lower interest rates than their physical competitors, in large part due to the reduced overhead of doing their work online.

To find an online lender, you should begin in much the same way as you would begin your search for information on any other lender… utilize your preferred search engine or enter in the URL of an online lender’s website that you’ve seen advertised in newspapers, tabloids, or on the television.

Online lenders usually have large amounts of information on their services available on their website, though if you don’t find the information that you’re looking for then you will also have a variety of contact options available with which to request the information that you want.

When you can’t find the information that you want
It’s important to realize that a website, no matter how complex it may be, might not have the information that you’re looking for. If this is the case, feel free to use a contact form, send an e-mail, or call a provided phone number with your specific questions. That’s what they’re there for… to answer whatever questions you might have.

Our guest author is John Mussi, founder of Direct Online Loans which help homeowners find the best available loans via the www.directonlineloans.co.uk website. The Money Blog has no connections with this website.

Shopping around for a mortgage in the UK is not as simple as it seems. To begin with, it’s important to understand how mortgages are regulated and sold. There are some things you need to know and consider before you can go out looking for a mortgage.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) requires lenders to show you a special document called keyfacts. Make sure you read the keyfacts before getting a mortgage or choosing a financial adviser. The keyfacts will help you see the features of the mortgage product, how much it will cost you and also help you understand what service you are being offered. You’ll also be able to use this document to compare mortgage products or services from different lenders.

Also, check that the firm you are dealing with is authorized by the FSA. If they are not authorized you will not have access to complaints procedures and compensation schemes if things go wrong.

Some of the things you should consider when choosing a mortgage lender includes:

* Competitiveness of the lender’s rates,
* Mortgage fees and penalties,
* Customer service and the lender’s reputation.
* Trust (You’ll want a lender you can trust, and a company you can work with effectively since you’ll have to deal with this lender for many years to come.)

Ask your friends or family for recommendations of potential mortgage lenders or brokers. Then contact some of the lenders and discuss your needs with them. Using keyfacts to compare different mortgage packages and services will help you get a better deal. Read expert opinions in national newspapers and magazines. These publications usually publish editorials that rate mortgage and loan deals from various banks and lenders. This information will give you a better idea of what to expect when you start shopping around for a mortgage.

Take time to choose a lender so that you can save money on your mortgage. There are hundreds of mortgage deals available out there so don’t be tempted to settle for the first offer before finding out what deals are available elsewhere. Shopping around for a mortgage will help you to get the best financing deal. If you don’t have the time to do it yourself, you can use the services of a broker or use an internet site that offers a mortgage comparison facility.

Finally, think carefully before securing other debts against your home. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

Bwalya Mwaba manages the UK Council’s Directory at http://www.council-right-to-buy-mortgages.org.uk/ and he’s also webmaster for a home loans guide website.

Disclaimer: Information in this post does not constitute financial advice and should not be used as such.

If you’re looking for an alternative to the usual lenders out there, or would like to lend yourself, Zopa may be for you.

Zopa is UK-based and is said to be the financial equivalent of eBay. It puts borrowers and lenders directly in touch with one another.

Zopa has a very good management pedigree, it was created by the team that setup Egg, an online bank associated with the Abbey.

Pamela Atherton of the Telegraph writes: “Zopa was launched in March 2005, and has approximately 90,000 members. Sixty-three per cent are borrowers and 37 per cent lenders, with about 50 per cent of active lenders having already added to their original lending outlay. Zopa is coy about providing specific lending figures but insists that millions of pounds have been transacted since the launch, involving thousands of lenders and borrowers, and that more than 5,000 new members are being signed up each month.”

Another string to yet another financial bow.

A mortgage you don’t have to pay off, and can leave to your heirs, sounds almost too good to be true. In fact it’s a variation on the interest-only mortgage which has been around for a long time.

The real point of this shakeup in the industry is that in passing the debt onto your children you slash the amount of inheritance tax they might have to pay.

In recent years house prices have risen so fast that the threshold of death duties — £285,000 ($536,000) per estate — is being exceeded by many ordinary middleclass homeowners. The Chancellor seems in no hurry to fix the problem and so the mortgage industry is attempting to fix it for him.

This type of mortgage is very popular in countries like Switzerland and Japan, where the populations are known for their thrift.

The Kent Reliance Building Society is launching its version this week under the name, Inter-Generational Mortgages. Chief Executive Mike Lazenby said they’d thought of calling it the Deathbed Mortgage but thought “it would be a bit morbid.”

This is a good idea if an elderly parent wants to leave a big-ticket house to the children without death duties. Although in theory the mortgage could be passed down indefinitely, it’s unlikely to happen because the family would pay a lot of interest without ever owning the property.