Key takeaways
- Joint personal loans, which involves taking out a loan with a co-borrower, is when two people take out a loan together.
- Joint borrowing can help you qualify for a loan easier, get a better rate or be approved for a higher loan amount.
- Both people are responsible for paying back the loan and have equal access to funding.
- Joint borrowing comes with risks like making a separation or divorce trickier and putting another person on the line to cover the amount of the loan.
Joint borrowing is the process of taking out a loan or other type of financing with another person as a co-borrower. Although joint loans offer advantages, like potentially qualifying for a wider range of financing options and receiving competitive interest rate offers, it has considerable risks.
The largest risk joint borrowers assume is being contractually responsible for repaying the entire loan or debt. If you are interested in this option, you should know how joint borrowing works and whether it’s an option that’s worth exploring in your situation.
What are joint personal loans?
If you don’t meet the application requirements for a loan or want to qualify for a better interest rate, you can co-borrow the funds with another person in a process called joint loan.
If your application is approved, the personal loan is issued in both of your names and you are both legally liable for repaying the debt. Joint borrowing can also have an impact — negatively and positively — on both of your credit reports and scores based on your repayment history.
How joint loans works
To take out a loan with someone else, start by finding a lender that allows joint borrowing. While joint personal loans are common in the mortgage and auto lending industries, finding lenders that allow joint applications for personal loans can be more challenging.
Once you find a lender, you can submit a joint application for credit. The lender will likely ask you to provide some general information for both yourself and your co-borrower, such as:
- Personal identifying information
- Employment history
- Annual or monthly income
From there, the lender will likely check your credit reports and credit score in a process called a hard credit check. After conducting a hard check, your score will drop a few points, but with a positive repayment history, it’s fairly easy to bring the score back up.
Depending on the loan, the lender may also review your debt-to-income ratio (DTI), the discretionary income left over after dividing your monthly debts by your annual gross income. Ideally, most lenders prefer a DTI under 36 percent for approval, so check to make sure your co-borrower meets the lender’s DTI requirement if yours is on the higher side.
Can you use your spouse’s income to get a personal loan?
You can use your spouse’s income to get a personal loan, but they have to be listed as a joint applicant. If you don’t opt for a joint loan, only your income will be considered by the lender.
How joint loans affect credit
When you co-borrow with another person, the account may show up on your three credit reports and your co-borrower’s credit reports, depending on the lender’s credit reporting policy. Any loan that requires a hard check has the potential to decrease your score, so you’ll want to avoid multiple hard checks in quick succession.
Lenders may interpret multiple checks within a short time as a credit risk, making it harder to get approved for a loan. What’s more, a hard check can stay on your report for two years, regardless of your repayment history.
Late payments on a joint account can also damage your credit scores. Because most of your credit score (35 percent of your FICO score) is your repayment history, it’s important to manage your monthly payments well.
Joint borrowing vs. co-signing
Joint borrowing and co-signing may seem like the same thing on the surface. However, these two ways of borrowing work differently.
With joint personal loans, both parties share ownership of the funds and assets from the loan. A co-signer will not share legal claims over the funds and assets from the loan. Further, a co-signer is only responsible for paying the loan if the primary borrower defaults.
The main point of a co-signer is some added support to help the primary borrower secure the loan. The co-signer’s income is also not typically considered on top of the primary borrower’s income. On the other hand, joint borrowing assures the lender that multiple sources of income are going towards the payments.
When to choose a joint personal loan
In some cases, applying for a loan with someone else may help you qualify for financing when you wouldn’t be eligible on your own. For example, joint personal loans are fairly common among couples when one person has lower credit or when two incomes can help the couple qualify for a larger loan amount.
Applying for a joint loan with someone who has an excellent credit rating might also help you secure lower interest rates or better terms. This is one reason parents may apply for joint personal loans with their children, since joint borrowing may be an effective way to help your child build credit for the first time.
However, co-borrowing a loan should be done after considering the benefits and drawbacks.
Advantages of joint borrowing
- Better chance of qualifying (or securing a better deal): The right co-borrower could make a huge difference if you have bad credit or debt-to-income ratio challenges.
- Qualify for a larger loan amount: Even with good credit, your borrowing capacity is limited based on income and existing credit obligations. Adding a joint applicant to your loan application who earns a separate income from you might make you eligible to borrow more money.
- Build or rebuild your credit: A well-managed joint account could help you improve your credit history and scores over time.
Disadvantages of joint borrowing
- Potential to be liable for the full debt: With a joint loan, you accept full responsibility for the debt. If your co-borrower can’t or won’t pay, the lender will still expect you to do so. For this reason, joint debts can be especially difficult to navigate in the event of a separation or divorce.
- Credit risk: A joint account might drive your credit scores downward if you fall behind on your payments.
- May be hard to qualify for new financing: A new joint loan increases the amount of debt you owe, raising your debt-to-income ratio. Even if the new account positively affects your credit score, it could reduce your borrowing capacity for future loans.
Are joint loans a good idea?
It’s generally best to avoid co-borrowing — and co-signing, for that matter — whenever possible. If you’re considering a joint loan, ask yourself the following questions first:
- Can you or your potential co-borrower qualify for the loan without adding the other person as a joint borrower? If so, there may be little upside to opening the account together.
- Is a co-borrower required to share ownership of an asset, like a home or car? A joint loan might not be your only option. You can talk to an attorney about making sure both names appear on the property title, even if only one person takes out the loan.
Of course, sometimes joint borrowing may be necessary to qualify for the money you need. Depending on your situation, you might not qualify for the payments on a large home improvement loan or mortgage with your income alone. If you decide to co-borrow with someone else, just be sure you understand the risks before you sign on the dotted line.
Lenders that offer joint personal loans
If you’re considering a joint personal loan, a few online lenders accept this financing option. Here are some lenders to look into:
- LendingClub: When checking your rate with LendingClub, select the “Two of Us” option to indicate that you intend on exploring offers for a joint loan. You’ll need to provide information about you and your co-borrower to get started.
- SoFi: Another financing option is through SoFi, which offers a joint-borrower personal loan. Loan applications with a co-applicant can take an extra one to two weeks to process.
- Prosper: Prosper requires individual borrowers to have a minimum credit score of 560 to qualify for a personal loan. However, if you don’t meet this qualification, you can apply with a co-borrower who has strong credit.
Next steps
Before you co-borrow, it’s important to do your homework, just like you would with any other type of loan. You can start by checking your three credit reports for errors. Ideally, both you and your co-borrower should complete this step.
Next, take the time to shop for loans with multiple lenders. Compare interest rates, fees, repayment terms and anything else that might affect the cost of your joint loan or the size of your monthly payments. Once you and your co-borrower have all of the information, you’ll be able to choose the best loan for your situation.
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