Secured loan VS Unsecured question

[rchvmz]

Chapter 13 fully discharged 12/21---several CC with oldest line-13 months. None are secured, one is with Cap1--4k limit. Total available credit 17k---Utilization is 4%-- I have a share secured installment with Penfed---600.00 which I have paid down to just under 8.5 % balance. No payment is due till August. 

Question--would it behoove me to pay that off and get a unsecured Installment for say 1000, pay the balance down to under the 9% or does a secured loan have the same effect, score wise, as a unsecured loan would?..........current Fico scores   EQ 703    TU 662   EX 680 

I have locked all my CRA's and am commited to the garden, unless getting a small, unsecured Installment would help?      Thanks in advance

[OmarGB9]

Secured or unsecured doesn't matter. As long as it's an installment loan, the requirement will be fulfilled.

[Who_wuda_thought]

@OmarGB9 

What about when manual UW is involved in making loan evaluation/decision?  Score itself isn't all that is reviewed/considered.  Even with algorithm based decisions, can it really be said there is no difference if installment loans or LOC's are secured or unsecured?

ETA - I do see OP asked re: score effect...my question is one I personally have, as I have been evaluating obtaining either an unsecured or secured loan to fill in absence of installment loan history on my CBR's.

[FireMedic1]

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@Who_wuda_thought wrote:

@OmarGB9 

What about when manual UW is involved in making loan evaluation/decision?  Score itself isn't all that is reviewed/considered.  Even with algorithm based decisions, can it really be said there is no difference if installment loans or LOC's are secured or unsecured?

ETA - I do see OP asked re: score effect...my question is one I personally have, as I have been evaluating obtaining either an unsecured or secured loan to fill in absence of installment loan history on my CBR's.

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Same effect. Plus you save a HP with a SSL. Your still borrowing ,omey either way.

[OmarGB9]

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@Who_wuda_thought wrote:

@OmarGB9 

What about when manual UW is involved in making loan evaluation/decision?  Score itself isn't all that is reviewed/considered.  Even with algorithm based decisions, can it really be said there is no difference if installment loans or LOC's are secured or unsecured?

ETA - I do see OP asked re: score effect...my question is one I personally have, as I have been evaluating obtaining either an unsecured or secured loan to fill in absence of installment loan history on my CBR's

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While I can't speak for banks themselves, I still don't see how UW would view secured or unsecured loans differently. I have had both secured and unsecured loans on my reports throughout the years, and the only reason I've been denied credit in the past is due to some charge offs/collections I used to have. But they never said anything about having or not having secured loans/unsecured loans. UW I imagine would just care to know whether you have/had installment loans on your reports, and whether they were paid satisfactorily. I don't understand why it matters whether they're secured or not.

[jrwa81]

As far a credit reporting, there is absolutely no difference between a secured and a unsecured loan.  I have had both and they report the exact same way.