Legal fee personal loans are the same as any other personal loan: they’re a product available from $5,001 to $75,000 for use on whatever you need and can be repaid over one to seven years. In this case, you can use a personal loan to cover any legal expenses you might encounter for any type of proceedings or area of law.
Why apply for a personal loan with Savvy?
What legal expenses might I need to cover with a personal loan?
There’s a wide variety of different situations under which you might look to take out a personal loan to cover your legal expenses, with the most common areas being:
- Contested probate – challenging the validity of a will as a party with an interest in the deceased’s estate
- Family law – matters such as divorce, custody disputes over children and property and asset settlement after separation
- Personal injury – covering damages of a physical and/or psychological nature sustained as a result of a separate party
In terms of what the expenses are that you can accrue, there are myriad legal costs that can be charged both by your lawyer and the court. These can include:
- Lawyers’ hourly rates, which generally range from as low as $200 up to over $600 and can be based on:
- Travelling time to court and to consult with you (where applicable)
- Reading and researching documents
- Expenses relating to witnesses
- Other administrative costs
- Court settlements
- Out of court settlements
- The opposing party’s legal fees
- Court costs, such as daily hearing and conciliation conference fees
Before committing to a particular lawyer or firm for representation, you should always be aware of the fees that you’ll be charged for the process. Lawyers should always be open and transparent about what these fees are, outlining clearly what they’ll be charging you for and the rate at which they do so. This can be an effective way of finding the right type of legal representation, as you can save money by comparing from a wider range of options.
How to compare legal fee personal loans
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Interest rates
One of the key aspects to compare on personal loans is the interest rate charged, as this will play the largest contributing role to the cost of your loan. A difference of just 1% can cost more than $800 on a $30,000, five-year loan, for instance. Comparing offers between different lenders is an effective way to help you save on overall interest, as you can find the lowest rates from a larger sample size. This shouldn’t be the only area in which you compare loans, though.
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Fees
Additionally, your loan is likely to come with a set of fees that you’ll be required to pay. Like interest rates, these differ between lenders, but they typically fall within the following ranges:
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Loan security
Unsecured personal loans are, by far, the more common of the two and avoid the need for you to put a valuable asset up as security for the loan. This makes them quicker to process and more available to a wider demographic of borrowers. Secured personal loans do utilise an asset as collateral, which means they’re not as fast but are cheaper in terms of rates and fees and can potentially expand your borrowing power up to $100,000.
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Loan amounts
Not all personal loan financiers are the same when it comes to the borrowing ranges that they offer for their loans. Some offer maximum amounts lower than $100,000 while others, more commonly, will set their minimum loans at $5,000 instead of $2,000. If you’re looking at a smaller amount, or a particularly large one, you should double-check your lender’s loan criteria to ensure your desired amount fits within their parameters.
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Loan terms
Similarly, different lenders offer different maximum and minimum loan terms. It’s imperative that you find the right loan length, as your personal loan should always be paid on terms that you’re comfortable with. Even a year shorter than your preferred length will cost a significant amount more each month, while a year longer will result in higher overall interest accrued across the life of the loan.
Types of personal loans
Personal loan repayment calculator
It’s important to have an idea of what different loans might cost you overall before you apply. Fortunately, Savvy’s personal loan repayment calculator is simple to use and tells you everything you need to know about how much different offers might add up to overall based on a variety of different factors.
Your estimated repayments
$98.62
| Total interest paid: | Total amount to pay: |
| $1233.43 | $5,143.99 |
Apply for your personal loan online
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Complete our simple online application form
First and foremost, you’ll need to fill out our quick and easy online form. Tell us about yourself, your finances, the loan you’re after and why you need it in just a few minutes.
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Compare your options with Savvy
Once you’ve done this, you’ll be able to assess the products on offer from our partnered lenders. A member of our team will reach out to help you choose the best available offer.
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Send your documents and formally apply
If you’re happy with one of the options available, you can go ahead and formally apply. We’ll handle this for you; simply send the required documents through our online portal and we’ll do the rest.
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Get approved and sign your contract
We’ll let you know when you’re formally approved, which can happen in a matter of hours, and all you’ll need to do is sign your loan contract electronically to receive your funds as soon as the same day.
Personal loan eligibility and documentation
Eligibility
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Age
You must be at least 18 years of age
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Residency
You must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident (or, in some cases, an eligible visa holder)
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Income
You must be earning a stable income that meets your lender’s minimum threshold (this can start from as little as $20,000 per year)
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Employment
You must be employed on a permanent, casual or self-employed basis
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Credit score
You must meet your lender’s minimum requirements related to your credit score and not be bankrupt or under a Part IX debt agreement
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Contact
You must have an active phone number, email address and online bank account in your name
Documents
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Personal information
Your full name, date of birth, address and contact details
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Photo ID
Such as a driver's licence or passport
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Payslips
Your last two consecutive payslips (or your last tax return if you're self-employed)
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Assets and liabilities
Information about any assets you own (such as a car or house) and liabilities in your name (such as other loans)
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Bank statements
90 days of bank statements may be requested, but not always
