Personal Line of Credit Loans
Written by True Tamplin, BSc, CEPF®
Updated on March 30, 2021
A personal line of credit is different from a loan in a few ways:
- It is a revolving line of credit instead of a lump sum
- It has a variable interest rate rather than fixed
- You pay interest on the money you spend rather than the whole amount
Personal Line of Credit Loans FAQs
Line of Credit (LOC) Definition
What Is a Line of Credit and How Does it Work? Revolving vs Non-Revolving
Lines of credit will either remain open, or will close, once the loan has been repaid.
Revolving lines of credit are considered “revolving”because an individual’s credit is replenished when some or all of the outstanding debt has been paid off.
In contrast, a non-revolving line of credit is closed once the account is fully paid off, such as a student loan or mortgage.
Non-revolving credit usually has a lower interest rate.
How does a Line of Credit Work? Secured vs Unsecured
Loans may be unsecured loans, or secured by collateral.
A home equity loan is an example of a collateralized loan, whereby the home is the collateral and will be claimed by the creditor in the event of a default on the loan.
Credit card loans are almost always unsecured, which causes creditors to take on more risk and is why credit card interest rates are generally higher and the borrowing limits are generally lower than secured loans.