Being a military spouse is one of the hardest jobs in the world. Not only is there the fear during deployments, wondering if your spouse is okay, but even normal days in garrison are spent wondering when they’re actually going to get released for the day. You’ve no doubt dealt with surprise weekend recalls, leaving you dealing with the kids by yourself. Even if you love your duty station, sooner or later, you’ll have to PCS, leaving behind the close friends you’ve made over the years. To top it all off, balancing all of this while keeping a steady job is incredibly difficult, and can make it nearly impossible to build up a credit history. Under these circumstances, finding loans for military spouses with no credit can seem daunting.
Sad as it is, most of our armed service members simply don’t make enough money. While TRICARE and BAH definitely help, the majority of military families are single income by necessity. That often means those car payments, insurance payments, food, and other essentials aren’t going to be any easier; if anything, it’s more difficult.
With your spouse away from the house much of the time, managing the family’s finances often falls on you, and if you need a loan to help handle life’s essentials, your lack of a credit history can really complicate your search. Even if you’re finally in a position to start building your credit, it can take a long time. If this is your first loan, you may not have time to wait while you establish your credit history.
We know you take pride in your status as a military spouse, but that pride can also mean its difficult to admit when you need help. You might think that needing a loan means that you’re a failure or that you haven’t managed your house the way you feel like you should. As a U.S. Army veteran, I’m here to tell you – there’s no shame in asking for help.
To help you, and as a way to say thank you for your family’s service, we’re going to discuss some ways that you can get a loan as a military spouse, even if you don’t have an established credit history.
Use Your Service’s Emergency Relief Fund
Each of the different services maintains an emergency relief fund to help military families in their time of need. These loans don’t require a credit check, don’t have any interest, and cover a wide variety of emergencies. Examples include funerals, emergency travel, home maintenance, and automobile repair.
While the emergency relief fund provides great peace of mind for the service members who qualify, there are some severe restrictions that may prevent you from being able to access an emergency relief fund:
- The emergency relief fund is only available to active duty members and their spouses. If your spouse is in a reserve component, or in the Army National Guard, you don’t qualify.
- You can’t use a relief fund to consolidate your other debts.
- It cannot be used to purchase a home or to fund a home improvement project.
- It can’t be used for legal expenses.
Even if you qualify, the emergency relief funds have some real drawbacks that can make them very difficult to access:
- The unit commander, and often the ranking NCO, will need to review your application before it’s approved. If they don’t recommend approval, you’re not getting a loan.
- You can only have up to two relief requests submitted at a time.
- If your spouse has been labeled as exhibiting “High Risk” behavior, as defined by your service’s regulation, they will not be given access to the relief fund.
Even if a loan is approved, it can take weeks to get all the required reviews and signatures. If you need money now, the relief fund may not be the best option for you.
Seek Help from Another Military Spouse
If there’s one thing that military families do better than any other it’s to take care of each other. Since other military families endure the same hardships you do and understand you better than anyone else, they’re often the first to lend a helping hand when you need it most. This is especially true for new spouses just getting started in their new life.
If you need a loan and don’t have any credit history to help you, a fellow military spouse can be an absolute relief. There are no forms to fill out, no haggling over interest rates, and no waits – just a friend who loves you and wants to help you. Your unit’s FRG is a great starting point to get the help you need too.
With that being said, there are some very real risks that a peer-to-peer loan like this presents.
Another spouse probably can’t afford to loan you more than a few hundred dollars at most, and in many cases, that’s nowhere near enough to cover total expenses. Additionally, if you fail to pay back your loan, or take a long time to do it, you risk putting your friend’s family in financial strife and destroying your friendship.
You could alternately consider having your friend serve as a cosigner for a loan if they have a decent credit score. However, this carries many of the same risks as receiving a loan from them directly.
Find Lenders who Specialize in No Credit Loans
While it can be difficult to find on your own, there are lenders in the world who offer good terms, good rates, and won’t make you wait forever to receive your money. These lenders specialize in no credit loans and understand that not having an established history doesn’t mean you’re an irresponsible person.
The team at Loans Now has extensive experience working with lenders who not only honor your service but will treat you with respect and dignity. We work with dozens of high-quality lenders who will get you the money you need fast, whether you have a credit history or not. In addition, our company was founded by a U.S. Army veteran, so we understand what you’re going through, and we want to help.
The process is simple: we take some basic information from you, and then we generate different lending options you can choose from. The process is completely free, and if you don’t feel that any of the options we provide suits your needs, you can walk away at any time, with no additional charges.
Ultimately, you have to make the right decision for you and your family. The team at Loans Now is here to provide you with resources to help you make that decision. Contact us today, and let us help you find a great loan that you can use to take care of your family.
From our family at Loans Now, we’re grateful for the sacrifices that your families and the thousands of military families around the world make every day to help keep us safe. Thank you very much for your family’s service, and we look forward to serving you.