ME Bank Personal Loans
Unsecured Joint Personal Loan
Interest rates tailored to your combined situation
Fixed
7.95%
up to 16.95%
9.56%
Unsecured Joint Personal Loan
ME Bank is an Australian-owned bank created by one of Australia’s leading industry super funds. In 2015, ME Bank rebranded and are now known as ME.
ME offers its customers a wide range of financial products and services, including a personal loan which can be used for a variety of purposes including a car, debt consolidation, holiday, medical bills, weddings and a wide range of other uses.
In addition to personal loans, ME Bank provides a range of award-winning home loans and term deposits, low-cost savings accounts, country-wide ATM access and banking experts that come to you at your convenience.
ME is an online-only operation, which means it doesn’t have branches. You can apply for personal loans online, however they also have a customer service line if you need to speak to someone.
ME Bank personal loan repayment calculator
Total interest paid
$8,245
Total amount to pay
$38,245
ME Bank personal loans rates
Product | Advertised Rate | Comparison Rate* | Company | Repayment | Upfront Fee | Features | Go to site | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fixed 10.98% | 11.35% | Personal Loan | $652 based on $30,000 loan amount for 5 years | $250 | Redraw facility Extra repayments Fully drawn advance Secured | More details |
- No ongoing fees
- Can apply online
- No penalties for early repayment
- Upfront fees
- No branch access
- No redraw facility
Features of a ME Bank personal loan
ME Bank offers personal loans between $5000 and $50,000 for periods between one to seven years. Borrowers can choose to pay ME Bank personal loans in either fortnightly or monthly instalments until the loan is paid off. A one-off establishment fee is included in the ME personal loan, but there are no ongoing fees attached to the loan. Borrowers wishing to pay off their ME Bank personal loan sooner can do so without penalty as there are no fees for extra repayments or early loan repayments.
ME Bank personal loans can be used for a range of different purposes including:
- Vehicles
- Boats
- Education fees
- Debt consolidation
- Home renovations
- Shares
- Holidays
- Medical bills
- Weddings
ME personal loans – customer service
ME Bank doesn’t have any branches, but you can apply for a personal loan through the ME website. You can also talk to them via email or over the phone.
- Online banking
- Phone, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm and Saturday 9am to 5pm (AEST)
Who is eligible for a ME Bank personal loan?
To be eligible for a ME Bank personal loan you’ll need to meet the following criteria:
- Be 18 years or over
- Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident
- Open an account for personal use
- Have a good credit history
How to apply for a ME Bank personal loan?
To apply for a ME Bank personal loan, borrowers can apply online through the website. The application process takes around 10-15 minutes to complete and involves the following steps:
- Once you’ve compared your personal loan options, you can apply online from any device
- Once you’ve completed your personal loan application and provided supporting documentation, ME will review your application
- Once approved for a personal loan, the funds will be available in your account within two business days.
At the time of application, you’ll need to provide the following documentation:
- Proof of identity
- Proof of income and employment
- Details of any other assets and financial commitments
ME Bank personal loans review
When it comes to comparing the ME Bank personal loan to other personal loans on the market, it’s worth noting that this personal loan has no ongoing account-keeping or annual fees. In addition to this, there is no charge for making additional repayments and no fees for paying off your personal loan before the loan term.
This ME Bank personal loan is unsecured, which means borrowers don’t need to provide security (i.e. collateral) when applying for the personal loan. This personal loan also has a fixed interest rate, which means your interest rate will stay the same throughout the loan term.
The ME personal loan can be used for a wide variety of purposes, including cars, holidays and debt consolidation. However, it can’t be used to pay business expenses, bills, or to fund a property purchase or tax costs.
Borrowers who prefer face-to-face customer support should take note that ME Bank is 100 per cent online. In saying that, borrowers can contact a ME lending specialist via phone, online and through email.
Before applying for a ME Bank personal loan, always do your research and compare your personal loan options to make sure you’re getting a loan that suits your budget, needs and lifestyle.
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FAQs
Before most providers of personal loans or medium amount loans will approve an application, they’ll want to know you can afford the loan’s repayments on your current income without ending up in financial stress. Several lenders don’t count Centrelink benefits when assessing a borrower’s income for this purpose, so these borrowers may find it more difficult to be approved for a loan.
If you’re unemployed, self-employed, or if more than 50% of your income come from Centrelink, consider contacting a potential lender before applying, to find out whether they accept borrowers on Centrelink.
Most lenders will need to you provide the following information in your application for a fast loan:
- Proof of identity
- Proof of residence
- Proof of income
- Details of any assets you own (e.g. car, home etc.)
- Details of any liabilities you owe (other personal loans, credit cards, mortgages etc.)
- How much you want to borrow
- How long you want to pay it back
- Purpose of your loan
The worse your credit history, the harder you will find it to consolidate your debts, because lenders will be less willing to lend you money and will charge you higher interest rates.
However, people with bad credit histories can make debt consolidation work by following this three-step process. First, find a lender willing to give you a bad credit personal loan – this process will be simplified if you go through a mortgage broker or use a comparison website like RateCity. Second, make sure the interest repayments on your new loan are less than the repayments on the loans being replaced. Third, instead of spending those savings, use them to repay the new loan.
Personal loans and medium amount loans from responsible lenders don’t have guaranteed approval, as the lender will want to check that you can afford the loan repayments on your current income without ending up in financial hardship.
Having a good credit score can increase the likelihood of your personal loan application being approved. Bad credit borrowers who opt for a medium amount loan with no credit checks may need to prove they can afford the repayments on their current income (Centrelink payments may not count – so you should check with the lender prior to making an application).
Fixed personal loans keep your interest rate the same for the full loan term, while interest rates on variable personal loans may be raised or lowered during your loan term.
A fixed rate personal loan keeps your repayments consistent, which can help keep your budgeting consistent, without worrying about ending up out of pocket if your rates were to rise. However, on a fixed loan you’ll also potentially miss out on more affordable repayments if variable rates were to fall.
Few, if any, lenders would be willing to give guaranteed approval for a bad credit personal loan. Borrowers with bad credit histories can have more complicated financial circumstances than other borrowers, so lenders will want time to study your application.
It’s all about risk. When someone applies for a personal loan, the lender evaluates how likely that borrower would be to repay the money. Lenders are more willing to give personal loans to borrowers with good credit than bad credit, because there’s a higher likelihood that the personal loan will be repaid.
So a borrower with good credit is more likely to have a loan approved and to get that approval faster, while a borrower with bad credit is less likely to have a loan approved and to get that approval slower.
The Australian personal loans market contains dozens of lenders offering several hundred different products. Personal loans are available through a range of institutions, including:
- The big four banks (ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, NAB and Westpac)
- Smaller banks (such as Bank of Queensland, Bendigo Bank and MyState)
- Mutual banks (such as Heritage Bank, Greater Bank and Newcastle Permanent)
- Credit unions (such as People’s Choice Credit Union, BCU and Community First Credit Union)
- Non-bank lenders (such as Pepper Money, Liberty and RACV)
- Peer-to-peer marketplaces (such as Harmoney, SocietyOne and RateSetter)
There are three main ways to access personal loans. You can go through a comparison website, such as RateCity. You can use a finance broker. Or you can directly contact the lender.
It is hard, but not impossible, to qualify for a personal loan if you receive Centrelink payments. Some lenders won’t lend money to people who are on welfare. However, other lenders will simply consider Centrelink payments as another factor to weigh up when they assess a person’s capacity to repay a loan.
If more than half of your income comes from Centrelink benefits, it may be more difficult to have a $2000 loan application approved. Many lenders will check if you can afford a loan’s repayments on the income from your job before they’ll approve an application, and many won’t count Centrelink payments when assessing your income for this purpose.
Some lenders will offer $2000 loans to borrowers on Centrelink – consider contacting potential lenders to check before applying.
It may be much more difficult for a self-employed borrower to successfully apply for a personal loan if they also have bad credit. Many lenders already consider self-employed borrowers to be riskier than those in full time employment, so several self-employed personal loans require borrowers to have excellent credit.
If you’re a self-employed borrower with a bad credit history, there may still be personal loan options available to you, such as securing your personal loan against a vehicle of equity in a property, though your interest rates may be higher than those of other borrowers. Consider contacting a lender before applying to discuss your options.