Had a friend living in Akron, Ohio call me the other day (I live in Columbus) and she was asking me where the best place to get a loan approved – she has really bad credit with a FICO score of 550. With FICO of 550 you are really up against a rock and a hard place when it comes to getting a bad credit loan at a decent APR.

I told my friend in Akron that is was the same in Columbus – as a matter of fact it’s the same all across the United States these days – it’s HARD for borrowers who have low credit scores to get approved for ANY kind of loan at all. I have a brother who lives in Cleveland, OH and he has really bad credit too – he got into a bad marriage and he went bankrupt. He lost all credit from any lender or bank you could find in all of Ohio and frankly, anywhere in the USA. He tried using the Internet to try and find a loan, but the interest rates and fees were brutally high.

$10000 – $5000 – $3000 Loans

The average loans a bad credit borrow gets these days is 3000 dollars, 5000 dollars, and 10000 dollars. Why I don’t know, but my guess is that most banks and lender prefer these round numbers when lending. Many reputable lenders won’t lend less than $5000 to a typical consumer (customer) because it’s just not worth it to them as far as interest rates go. These are after all, Micro loans and not a lending product that makes allot in fees and interest.

Of course there people that want start businesses and want to apply for $30000 all the way up to $100,000, and I’ve even seen individuals with bad credit apply to borrow over $1,000,000 (Yep! One Million Dollars!). Of course these kinds of loans are never approved and no funds were dispersed. From the data we have, there was never a loan approved for over a million dollars anywhere in Ohio if the wanna-be borrower (or Corporation) had a poor credit rating.

Suggest Borrowing from Local Banks

At OLF we always suggest that you apply for loans and borrower money at the local level in Ohio and don’t bother with an Internet lender. Your local lender in Akron, Columbus, or Cleveland will likely help you out with a bad credit loan in a legitimate loan agreement, whereas the online lenders will often try and take advantage of your low FICO score.

Below is a list of some decent local banks in the major cities in the Buckeye State (Akron, Cleveland and Columbus). Some of these are local banks that will service you well. If you are really desperate for a loan, I would try these lenders first. Remember, as a borrower, you are better off borrowing from a neighbor than a so-called stranger from a different state. Browse through and perhaps think about giving these banks a call (phone numbers included in the list below).

Banks and Lenders in Akron

National City‎
153 East Exchange Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 375-8377‎

FirstMerit Bank‎
106 South Main Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 384-7093‎

Fifth Third Bank‎
656 West Market Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 940-1680‎

Charter One‎
333 South Broadway Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 762-8491‎

Chase Bank and ATM‎
1835 West Market Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 972-1908‎

Akron Municipal Employees CU‎
146 South High Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 375-2020‎

FirstMerit Bank‎
855 West Market Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 762-4210‎

Buckeye State Credit Union
197 East Thornton Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 253-9106‎

North Akron Savings Bank: Tallmadge
169 Cuyahoga Street, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 922-8065‎

Akron Firefighters CU Inc‎.
161 Massillon Road, Akron, OH‎ – (330) 798-1994‎

Banks and Lenders In Columbus

Key Bank‎
88 East Broad Street, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 460-3415‎

Nat City Investments Inc‎.
763 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 621-5430‎

Huntington Bancshares‎
180 East Broad Street, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 583-8353‎

Nationwide Insurance‎
1 Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 249-7111‎

M&T Bank‎
155 East Broad Street, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 463-7605‎

Huntington Bank: Downtown‎
17 South High Street, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 480-4293‎

Chase Bank and ATM‎
1698 North High Street, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 248-2620‎

Fifth Third Securities‎
21 East State Street, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 744-7595‎

Us Bank
1717 West 5th Avenue, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 486-9668‎

Telhio Credit Union‎
96 North 4th Street, Columbus, OH‎ – (614) 221-3233‎

Banks and Lenders in Cleveland

First Merit Bank‎
101 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 621-1717‎

Key Bank‎
127 Public Square, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 689-5580‎

Fifth Third Bank‎
600 Superior Avenue East, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 274-5533‎

National City: Branches‎
1900 East 9th Street, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 222-2000‎

Huntington National Bank‎
917 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 515-6407‎

U.S. Bank: Renaissance Office‎
1350 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 861-0033‎

Am Trust Bank‎
1801 East 9th Street, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 696-2222‎

Wells Fargo Insurance Serv Of Ohio LL
1301 East 9th Street, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 902-5100‎

Key Bank‎
3370 Warrensville Center Road, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 283-1165‎

Park View Federal Savings Bank Corporate Center
11010 Clifton Boulevard, Cleveland, OH‎ – (216) 631-8900‎

So how did it go? Any luck getting approved? If you have been turned down for a loan from all of the above banks, then try the Yellow Pages as well. If you have tried ALL of this, then consider tying the Internet to find other local banks. You can also try some private lenders to get a loan – but be warned that private lenders will generally charge higher interest rates and they usually only work with short-term loan.

If you fail to get approved then you must clean up your credit rating with the major reporting agencies. You have to get control of your data held by the Credit Bureaus if you ever want to get approved for your loan with a decent interest rate. The APR (annual percentage rate) you get charged can be as high as 35%!

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