Low-income loans: Personal loans for a tight budget

Group 1 - Prosper operates as a peer-to-peer lender, allowing loans to be funded by individual investors without a direct lender, and supports co-borrowers for easier qualification [1] - Happy Money provides a single loan product aimed at consolidating high-interest credit card debt, with a starting APR significantly lower than the average credit card rate, which exceeds 20 percent [2] - Universal Credit has no income requirement and a lower minimum credit score threshold of 580, but offers higher APRs compared to competitors, with small loan amounts starting at $1,000 [7] Group 2 - Upgrade does not impose a minimum income requirement, but applicants must demonstrate sufficient income to support loan repayment, and offers direct payments to creditors for debt consolidation [9] - Upstart has a low annual minimum income requirement of $12,000 and caters to borrowers across the credit spectrum, but may charge high APRs and origination fees, with the latter reaching up to 12 percent [14] - Lenders typically require proof of income and may consider other factors such as credit history and debt-to-income ratio when assessing loan applications [28]