Upgrade Loan Review:
When you’re in the market to buy an RV, you’ve got a few options. Of course, you can always pay cash. But if you don’t have tens of thousands of dollars on hand, it’s time to explore other avenues. You can shop RV loans, but you may also want to check out Upgrade’s loan offers.
They’ve only been around since 2017, but they’ve already offered more than $3 billion in credit to millions of people. They aim to issue affordable and responsible credit, so if you’re looking for a personal lender with ethics, they’ve got you covered.
Upgrade at a glance
Upgrade offers a handful of products and services. They have the Upgrade Card and credit monitoring services, plus they plan to launch mobile banking soon.
But if you’re in the market for an RV, there’s one product you’ll care about most: their personal loans.
With loans of up to $50,000, Upgrade could be your lender for the loan you need to buy a camper trailer or a fifth-wheel. If you’re looking for a full-blown motorhome, though, you might need to find a bigger RV loan.
If the $50,000 max could work for you, here’s a quick look at what Upgrade has to offer as far as personal loans are concerned:
| Loan maximum: | $50,000 |
| Loan term: | 36 months or 60 months |
| Prepayment fees: | No |
| Origination fees: | Yes (2.9% to 8% deducted from loan proceeds) |
| APR: | 7.99%-35.97% |
| Loan funding timeline: | One day (once you clear the required verifications) |
Like almost all lenders, the interest rate and loan terms Upgrade offers you will depend on things like your credit score and the steadiness of your income. Fortunately, you can check your rate on their website in just a few minutes to figure out what you’d be looking at. Just input your loan amount and choose “Large Purchase” from the dropdown menu, then click the green “Check Your Rate” button to get started.
Upgrade pros
- They emphasize responsible lending. Not all personal loans are created equal. Payday loans, for example, are notoriously sketchy. Upgrade seeks to give you peace of mind by only offering credit when you can handle it. As a lender that strives to be responsible, they protect you as a consumer.
- They’re quick and convenient. Checking your rate with Upgrade should take you a few minutes at most. If they offer you a loan option you like and you skate through the necessary verifications (i.e., a credit check and income verification), they can send the funds to your bank in just one day.
- You get a fixed rate and no prepayment fees. A personal loan with Upgrade should come with no surprises. Your monthly payment for your loan will be fixed so you know exactly how much you need to budget. And if you’re able to pay a little extra and pay back your loan early, you won’t get hit with a prepayment penalty.
Upgrade cons
- You pay an origination fee. This means you give Upgrade some money on the front end. When your loan funds hit your bank account, expect Upgrade to have already taken that origination fee out. For example, if you get a $10,000 loan with them with a 5% origination fee, you’ll only see $9,500 show up in your account.
Compare rates with a few lenders and factor Upgrade’s origination percentage into your APR. You still might get lower overall loan costs with Upgrade, but you’ll need to check.
- Their loans have a cap. Upgrade only offers personal loans up to $50,000. While you might be able to get a decent fifth-wheel with this money, you’ll probably need a bigger loan for a motorhome.
Who is Upgrade best for?
Upgrade strives to be a responsible lender, meaning they’ll only issue you credit when they can reasonably expect you to be able to repay it comfortably. If you’ve got decent credit and a steady income, they should be an option for you.
But if you’re looking for a hail-mary personal loan, you might need to look elsewhere. Still, though, because checking your rate with Upgrade takes only a few minutes, it can’t hurt to fill out their form and see if they’ll offer any financing for your RV.
What types of RV loans do they offer?
Rather than offering RV-specific loans, Upgrade offers personal loans that you can use for any large purchases, including your spiffy new (or new-to-you) RV. Just remember that they have a $50,000 loan limit, so you probably can’t use their loan to get a Class A motorhome.
What credit score do you need to qualify for Upgrade service?
While Upgrade doesn’t explicitly state a minimum credit score requirement, their emphasis on responsible lending means people with poor credit might need to look elsewhere. Several third-party sources say they have a credit score requirement of 620.
What kind of APR can you expect?
As of the writing of this article, Upgrade offers personal loans with an APR range from 7.99% to 35.97%. To confirm those rates still apply, scroll to the footnotes of their personal loan page.
That’s a pretty extensive range. You can expect a lower APR if you tick two key boxes: a good credit score and a steady income. The worse your credit or, the less reliable your payment, the higher risk Upgrade takes when issuing you a loan. They’ll stick you with a higher APR to cover that risk. If you want to score the lowest rate possible, get your income verification in order and work on your credit score.
Other Upgrade financial products
Beyond their persona loans, Upgrade also offers:
- The Upgrade Card: The card comes with credit lines of up to $25,000. With it, you get 1.5% cashback on payments and must make set payoffs each month. This theoretically helps people use the credit more responsibly and pay it off more quickly, keeping the amount they pay in interest low.
- Credit Monitoring, Alerts, and Education: No matter how you get your RV loan, your credit score will play a role. Upgrade offers free credit monitoring, plus email alerts and tools like a credit simulator to see how different actions will impact your score.
- Mobile banking: Upgrade’s About page says they’ll be rolling out mobile banking soon.
Upgrade customer service
Upgrade has a couple of channels through which you can access their customer service: an email address at support@upgrade.com and toll-free support at (844)-319-3909. They have representatives available at that line from Monday to Friday, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific Time.
Ultimately, it looks like their customer service is up to snuff. They have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau and a 4.78 out of 5-star ranking from nearly a thousand customer reviews.
They also get great reviews from:
They use Zendesk for their FAQs, so you can head there to learn more.
How to bank with Upgrade
The Upgrade personal loan process is pretty simple:
- Check your rate by filling out the “Get Started Here” form at the top of their personal loans webpage. Completing the subsequent forms should be quick. Plus, this rate inquiry only uses a soft credit check, which means it won’t impact your credit score.
- Choose your loan from the options Upgrade gives you after you complete the forms above. Depending on your credit score and income, you might get a handful of options, only one or none at all.
- Accept an offer to get your money. After choosing a loan from Upgrade, your loan proceeds (remember, minus the origination fee) should hit your bank account in one day.
Upgrade vs. other RV loan lenders
Upgrade is well worth looking at if you only need a loan of $50,000 or less for your RV. But if you’re hoping for a bigger RV shopping budget, check out other RV loans.
Upgrade details
Here are a few final pieces for you to consider:
Lender terms
Upgrade offers 36 and 60-month loan terms. Depending on your credit score and income, you might not qualify for both options, though.
Fixed-rate
Upgrade only offers fixed-rate personal loans. That means you’ll get one set monthly payment and won’t ever have to brace for a rate change.
Eligibility requirements
You’ll need a fair credit score or more to qualify for an Upgrade personal loan, along with a steady source of income.
How to apply with Upgrade
Head to their personal loans page. Input your RV loan amount and choose “Large Purchase” from the dropdown menu, then click “Check Your Rate” to start.
The verdict on Upgrade
As a lender emphasizing responsible credit with great reviews and an A+ BBB rating, Upgrade offers personal loans you can trust.
