Bank Of America Balance Assist Review 2024

Bank of America’s Balance Assist works by giving you a short-term loan of $500 or less, which you repay over the course of three months.

You’ll need to meet certain qualifications, such as banking with Bank of America for at least one year, or two and a half if you don’t have a credit score. You’ll also need to have a positive balance in your bank account and get regular monthly deposits into this account. You’ll apply for the loan in your online account and specify how much you want to borrow (up to $500).

If approved, Bank of America will deposit the money into your checking account within a few minutes. It’ll tack a $5 fee onto your loan amount, then split this up into three monthly payments. Bank of America will also change the overdraft settings on your account so that any new charges that would drop your account balance below $0 will be automatically declined. Once you repay your loan, you can change this setting after five days.

Bank of America will also report your loan to the credit bureaus, so this can be a good way to build credit. Keep in mind that Balance Assist loans aren’t available if you only have a SafeBalance checking account, if you’re currently repaying another Balance Assist loan or if you’ve taken out six of these loans in the past year.

Balance Assist is best for existing Bank of America customers who:

• Only need to borrow a small amount. These are small-dollar loans, from $100 to $500. They won’t help you if you need to buy a car, for example, or complete a pricey home repair.
• Are able to pay it back relatively quickly. These loans are paid back in three monthly payments. This spreads out your payment more and makes it easier to repay the Balance Assist loan, compared to a traditional payday loan, which is usually paid back in full with your next paycheck.
• Want to build credit. Payday loans generally don’t rely on credit nor help you build it. This loan is different because although you’ll see a small credit ding from a hard credit inquiry, Bank of America also will report your payments, which can help you build credit.
• Need money fast. You can apply for a Balance Assist loan and find out if you’re approved entirely online. If you‘re approved, you can have money deposited into your account within minutes. That’s even faster than a typical payday loan.

Balance Assist may not be right for you if you:

• Want to avoid Bank of America. The company doesn’t have the most stellar customer service reputation, and its bank accounts generally aren’t as good as what you can find elsewhere.
• Need to borrow a larger amount of cash. $500 is the maximum loan size, and while that might be enough for the short-term needs it’s designed for, it won’t help you if you need to make a larger purchase.

Loan Amounts and Terms

• Loan amounts. You may be able to borrow between $100 and $500.
• Loan terms. Regardless of how much you borrow, each loan has a term length of three months, with equally-split payments plus the $5 flat-rate fee. For example, if you borrow $100, you’ll repay a total of $105 with three monthly payments of $35 each.

Loan Costs

Each loan has a flat fee of $5, regardless of whether you borrow $100, $500 or any amount in between. This is equivalent to an APR of approximately 5.99% to 29.76%, depending on how much you borrow. This is an affordable cost compared to a typical payday loan, which has fees equivalent to APRs around 400%.

There are no late fees so if you don’t make your payment you won’t owe anything else. However, keep in mind that a late payment could still damage your credit history, and it may make you ineligible for future Balance Assist loans.

Perks and Features

• Instant funding: You can complete the application entirely online. If approved, you’ll get the cash within a few minutes. That’s a much quicker process than even payday loans, which are typically touted as one of the fastest loan options.

Bank of America’s Balance Assist is one of the simplest types of loan you can apply for. You can do it online and find out if you’re approved almost instantaneously. If you’re approved, you’ll see the funds available in your account within a few minutes.

Bank of America is undeniably a large bank. Just on account of its size, you can expect that it generates a fair amount of customer complaints, and that’s true. Even so, reviews generally aren’t favorable.

According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), it’s closed nearly 3,000 complaints with Bank of America in just the past year alone. Still, the company has an A+ rating, even though it only maintains 1 out of 5 stars based on 600 reviews. Trustpilot also shows similarly poor customer satisfaction ratings, with an average of 1.4 out of 5 stars based on over 1,200 reviews.

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Example: A $5,900 loan with an administration fee of 4.75% and an amount financed of $5,619.75, repayable in 36 monthly installments, with an APR of 29.95% would have monthly payments of $250.30. If approved, the actual loan terms that a customer qualifies for may vary based on credit determination, state law, and other factors. Minimum loan amounts vary by state.

$2,000 to $35,000

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If approved, the actual loan terms that a customer qualifies for may vary based on credit determination, state law, and other factors. Minimum loan amounts vary by state.

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580

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Bank of America’s Balance Assist loan comes with specific requirements, including:

• Customer history. Balance Assist loans are only available to people who’ve had their Bank of America checking account open for at least one year.
• Credit requirements. Bank of America will perform a hard credit check each time you apply for a Balance Assist loan. However, Bank of America does not disclose its minimum credit score requirement.
• Checking account history. If your checking account is already overdrawn, you’re not eligible. Even if you’re listed as a joint account owner with someone else, if they overdraw the account, you’re still not eligible.
• Monthly deposits. You need to have regular monthly deposits into your checking account to be eligible. Bank of America does not disclose the minimum deposit requirement.
• Bank of America loan history. Bank of America limits you to six Balance Assist loans every 12-month period. In addition, if you already have an open loan, you’ll need to pay it off in full before you’re eligible for another.

We reviewed Bank of America Balance Assist based on 16 data points in the categories of loan details, loan costs, eligibility and accessibility, customer experience and the application process. We rated Bank of America Balance Assist based on the weighting assigned to each category:

• Loan cost: 35%
• Loan details: 20%
• Eligibility and accessibility: 20%
• Customer experience: 15%
• Application process: 10%

Within each category, we also considered several characteristics, including available loan amounts, repayment terms, APR ranges and applicable fees. We also looked at credit score requirements, whether the lender accepts co-signers or joint applications and the geographic availability of the lender. Finally, we evaluated Bank of America Balance Assist’s support tools, borrower perks and features that simplify the borrowing process—like prequalification options and mobile apps.

To learn more about how Forbes Advisor rates lenders, and our editorial process, check out our Loans Rating & Review Methodology.