Here is a useful guide to Home Improvement Loans. What is a Home Improvement Loan? Basically, a Home Improvement Loan is a loan to be used for home improvement purposes.

Home Improvement Loans are secured on your property and can be used by anybody looking to make home improvements. A home improvement loan is particularly good if you don't want to use your savings or do not have sufficient saved for your home improvement project.

The amount you will be allowed to borrow will really depend on the lender you use and the amount of equity in your property. You will also be assessed on criteria such as your income, your spending and your credit rating in certain cases.

Some lenders will also limit amounts depending on what you want to use your home improvement loan for. You can raise home improvement finance to cover anything from a small project to major building work.

With a Home Improvement Loan you can borrow from £5,000 to £75,000 with low monthly repayments. The loan can be repaid over any term between 5 and 25 years, depending on your available income and the amount of equity in the property that is to provide the security for the loan.

With a Home Improvement Loan, you can afford the extension, new kitchen or bathroom, conservatory, landscaped garden, redecoration you want right where you are, in your own home. You can add value to your property and save on all those moving costs too.

If you take out a specialist home improvement loan deal then you may find that your money is paid in instalments before pre-agreed work is completed. This allows you to manage your budget much more effectively and access your cash simply when you need it.

So, if you spend less than you budgeted for, then you could save yourself some money by not borrowing more than you needed to.

If you go over budget, then you'll still have ready access to the money you need. You can also tie your home improvement loan into your existing mortgage package - so you will benefit from lower interest rates and may be able to release equity to help fund your project.

Most consumers will secure their home improvement loan against their property to access better rates - there is always the risk here that you could lose your home if you don't make all your regular repayments. Although you can take out payment protection insurance to help prevent this, it will cost you more to do so.

About the author John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.