When looking for money for yourself, the most important thing to think about is how much of your own money a loan will take away. If you go to a store and see a loaf of bread that costs 60p and another that looks exactly the same but costs 90p, you might wonder: Should I choose the cheaper one, or is it cheaper because there's something wrong with it? If so, you should choose the 90p loaf. Some people would buy the cheaper one without thinking, while others would buy the more expensive one. Still, one of them could just have the wrong price written on it. In the same way, denim is denim, but a pair of jeans with a designer label can cost many times as much as a pair without a label.
So, can this strange thing about people be used to explain spending in all areas? Is there a difference, for example, between a loan with an APR of 8% and one with an APR of 16%? In other words, should you take out the cheapest loans or not? When it comes down to it, money is money, and it's better to pay GBP100 in interest on a loan than GBP101. But you really need to look at the details of the loan to figure out what's a good deal. For example, is the low rate only for the first few months? Do you want a loan for high-risk borrowers even though you're a low-risk borrower with a good credit score? Does it cost extra to pay off the loan early? Are there any requirements for low-interest loans that might not apply to the loan you need? One of the most common factors is the size of the loan, since interest rates tend to be lower for bigger loans.
The least expensive loan is the one that costs you the least to pay back, not the one with the lowest interest rate. And because of your own situation, you might be able to get a loan that costs a lot less than it would for someone else. But don't think that a loan that costs more must be "better" in some way. It's more likely that it's just more expensive.
The best advice is to think very carefully about what you need, ask as many questions as you can of the lender, and try to imagine what your most likely future will be like. This means that it doesn't make sense to pay more interest to be able to pay off a loan early if you're not likely to need to.
