The average American is $38,000 in debt, which doesn’t include a mortgage.

You may think that taking out a personal loan will only make the debt worse, but that isn’t always the case. Instead, many people use personal loans in order to help consolidate debt so they can pay it off quickly and without paying as much interest.

If you’re interested in a personal loan, you may have asked yourself, “How may personal loans can you have at once?”

In this article, we’ll answer that question, as well as give you a few facts about personal loans.

• OPPLOANS

  Our take:Lender focused on poor credit, based out of Chicago currently offering loans in 29 statesAPPLY NOWLender: OppLoansCredit ScoreLoan Size/AmountLoan TermAPROrigination Fee350 – 600$500 – $5,0009 – 2459.00% – 199.00%0.00% – 3.00%

Who Applies for Personal Loans?

Individuals apply for personal loans for a wide variety of reasons. In the intro, we mentioned debt consolidation, which is one of the major reasons people apply for a personal loan. But, that isn’t the only reason by far.

In fact, many people apply for personal loans for things like remodeling their home, taking a big vacation or planning a big event like a wedding or 90th birthday party. Milestone events often cost quite a bit of money to organize, so many people want a little extra boost to help them throw a party to remember.

There are many reasons to apply for personal loans. If you’re looking to do so, don’t think it’s only for individuals who are “stuck” or need to get out of a tight spot. Instead, it can be used for a wide variety of reasons, and taking one out shouldn’t be looked at negatively.

How Do You Take Out a Personal Loan?

Taking out a personal loan depends on the lender you’re using. Each lender will have their own criteria and credit checks to deem if you’re entitled to a loan. You will likely have to fill out a series of forms (most likely online), where you’ll answer questions about your income and your credit history. You may also be asked questions about what you’ll be using the loan for.

The lender will then likely perform a credit check to ensure that they’ll get the money back they lend you. However, there are some lenders that will give money without a credit check, but they often have higher interest rates.

How Many Personal Loans Can You Have at Once?

There is no limit to the number of personal loans that you can have, in theory. Theoretically, you can be granted 1,000 personal loans, but that’s not very likely to occur due to a variety of factors.

• BONSAI FINANCE

  Our take:Online marketplace to find you a personal loan offer that matches your needsAPPLY NOWCredit ScoreLoan Size/AmountLoan TermAPROrigination FeeAll can apply$100 – $15,0001 – 604.99% – 1,386%Varies by lender

While there is no limit to the number of personal loans you can have at one time, lending institutions will likely limit the number of loans they can give you at once. Some lending institutions expressly state that they will only give you one personal loan at a time. Others will state that they cap the limit at two or three.

There may be lending institutions that have no personal loan limits. But, this doesn’t mean you can have as many personal loans as you wish. You’ll still be vetted and may be turned down for multiple loans.

In the next few sections of the article, we’ll talk about why some people can only have a loan or two at a time.

Why Your Loans are Limited: Debt

If you want to take out a personal loan to consolidate debt, it isn’t likely you’ll be able to obtain several loans at once. While you may be able to try several lending institutions, you may find it impossible to get an additional loan after your first loan.

This is because your personal loan will show up when the institution does a credit check. If you have a history of outstanding debt, the institution may see you as too much of a risk to loan money to. As a result, you may find that you’re limited on the number of loans you’ll actually receive.

Your Credit Score Isn’t Up to Snuff

If you’re looking to obtain a personal loan, or several at once, you’ve likely already heard about credit scores. A credit score is a number that tells potential lenders how healthy your finances are. It includes information like a credit to debt ratio and if you’ve ever filed for bankruptcy, in addition to a variety of other factors.

For those who have a poor credit score, they may have trouble obtaining a personal loan in the first place, much less getting several at once.

You Already Have a Personal Loan

It may sound silly that a personal loan can be a deterrent to obtaining more personal loans, but often that is the case. If a lending institution sees that you already have a personal loan with another institution during a credit check, they may decide you’re too much of a risk to lend to. It may not be against the rules expressly to offer you a second or third personal loan, but they may rule it so in your case because they feel it isn’t likely they’ll get their money back.

Managing Your Debt

We hope this answered the question of, “How many personal loans can you have at once?” With most things in life, the answer is entirely dependent on the individual and their circumstances. A personal loan, however, may help you manage your debt so you can climb out of it much more quickly.

Looking for solutions on how to finance projects, vacations and more? Visit our blog, which is chock full of information on bad credit loans, personal loans and payday loans.