Planning a wedding? Expecting a child? Investing in a house? Regardless of what reason you may have to need money immediately, a collateral lender can buy your items or provide you with a loan with your valuables as collateral.

But first, what on earth is collateral? In the most basic terms, collateral is a guarantee or pledge as a security for settlement of a loan. A collateral is something precious to you - no, not the lock of hair when your child had his first hair cut (those are considered priceless items *wink*) - but an asset or property.

Types of Collateral

There's a broad range of assets you can utilize as collateral. Physical assets which includes cars, properties, memorabilia, jewelry, precious metals, etc.

Lenders are taking a risk when they loan you money - a risk simply because they don't know with certainty when and if you're gonna pay, so collaterals come in handy to ensure you can fulfill your payment deadlines. It has to be equal to both parties - they're going to risk something, so better you risk something too.

Listed here are a number of the frequently asked questions lenders get whenever they have clients who'd like to loan or sell their items to these upscale collateral lenders.

What kind of items are approved for loan or purchase?

Virtually all items of value are accepted. This can include lending or purchasing items such as precious metals (gold, silver, platinum), diamonds, fancy, scrap, or estate/antique jewelry, auto titles like boat, rv, motorcycle, artwork, coins, high end electronics, sports memorabilia, antiques or collectibles, etc. If you have any assets you believe has value, then don't be scared away and speak to your trusted lender to appraise the worth of your item and just how much you may get for it.

Precisely how much can someone be lent for a loan?

Determined by your asset, these are generally appraised and evaluated by expert appraisers. Don't be fooled by fly by night appraisers, check your local directory sites for referrals and good honest reviews of collateral lenders.

Precisely how does it work?

In order to start off your loan, your assets are scrutinized, evaluated, and a value is determined for it. Once this is established, basic paperwork should be done, and information on the loan terms is divulged. Just sign the contract and your money is given.

Precisely how long are loan terms?

Depends on you, really. You can decide to consider a yearlong loan, something to last many years or something as short as 30 days.

Will there be interest to be charged on the loan?

Needless to say there is, however it is flexible and will rely on the amount of your loan and timeframe. The interest for loans is determined by each state. But each collateral appraiser can set up a consumer friendly rate to obtain more customers.

The above mentioned is only the tip of the iceberg with regards to collateral lenders and loans. A word of advice: when searching for a collateral lender, search for one with an excellent reputation, at the same time a solid foundation of experience in the industry. Honesty and integrity can also be things you ought to consider in a collateral lender, simply because once you've got those, then you already know you can trust them about the privacy of your loan.