Trust check
Is North’n Loans legit?
North'n Loans has been in business for over a decade and has a published privacy policy. However, it has no BBB profile, no social media presence and is not CLA certified.
North’n Loans: Overview
North'n Loans is not a lender. It is a matching service that takes your application and passes it to payday lenders in its network, and it has been doing that since 2012.
You fill in one form, North'n Loans sends it out, and a lender who is willing to fund you contacts you with an offer. You can accept or decline it. If you accept, the money typically arrives by e-transfer within a day. Using the service costs you nothing. The lender you are matched with is the one who charges you.
Are You The Right Borrower For North'n Loans?
Applying through North'n Loans could make sense for you if:
- You Do Not Want To Apply Everywhere Yourself: One form goes out to a network of lenders, so you are not filling in the same details on six different websites.
- You Have Been Turned Down Before: Different lenders have different rules. A broker can place a file that one lender declines with another who will take it.
- Your Income Is Not A Regular Paycheque: Lenders in the network accept pensions, government benefits and other steady income, not just employment.
- You Need A Small Amount: Loans arranged through the service run up to $1,500, which covers a bill or a repair rather than a large purchase.
- You Are Comfortable Being Contacted: Your application is shared with lenders, so expect to hear from whoever picks it up.
What They Offer
North'n Loans offers a matching service rather than a loan.
Payday Loan Matching
Free to useYou submit one application and North'n Loans passes it to lenders in its network. A lender willing to fund you contacts you with terms, which you can accept or turn down.
What You Get From Using A Broker
- One Form Instead Of Six: You enter your details once and North'n Loans circulates them, rather than you repeating the process at every lender you find.
- A Wider Net If You Have Been Declined: Lenders set their own rules, so a file one turns down may be picked up by another in the network.
- It Costs You Nothing To Use: North'n Loans does not charge you a fee. It is paid by the lenders it refers business to.
- Softer Credit Handling: Lenders in the network typically run a soft credit check when they review your file, which does not affect your score.
- Available Across The Country: The province selector covers every province and territory, which is broader reach than most individual payday lenders offer.
Who Qualifies
| Requirement | What you need |
|---|---|
| Credit score | No minimum. Lenders in the network consider applicants with past bankruptcies and collections |
| Residency | A Canadian citizen, at the age of majority in your province |
| Income | A steady source. Employment, pension and government benefits are all accepted |
| Bank account | An active account that can receive an e-transfer |
| Loan size | Up to $1,500 |
| How you apply | Online |
Meeting these gets your application circulated. It does not guarantee an offer, since each lender applies its own criteria on top.
How To Apply
You are handing over your Social Insurance Number and your full banking details to a service that then shares your file with other companies. Read the privacy policy before you submit, so you know who ends up holding that information.
What It Costs You
Using North'n Loans is free. There is no brokerage fee, no application charge and nothing deducted from the money you receive. The service is paid by the lenders it sends applications to.
What the loan costs is a separate question, and North'n Loans does not set it. That comes from whichever lender funds you, and across most of Canada a payday loan is priced at the provincial maximum, commonly $14 to $15 per $100 borrowed over a two week term.
Note
Read the offer, not the website. Because a broker does not set your rate, the only numbers that apply to you are the ones in the agreement the lender sends. Check the total cost of borrowing, the due date, and what happens if a payment fails, before you sign anything.
Watch for administration fees, origination charges, NSF fees and late payment penalties. These come from the lender, not from the broker, and they are not visible when you fill in the matching form.
North'n Loans vs My Canada Payday vs Credit Club
Comparing North’n Loans, My Canada Payday and Credit Club on loan amount, interest rate, term, availability, funding time, funding method, repayment options, eligibility and required documents, as listed by each lender.
| Feature |  North’n Loans Payday Loans Learn more |  My Canada Payday Payday Loan Learn more |  Credit Club Short Term Loan Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loan amount | $100 – $1,500 | Up to $1,500 | $100 – $1,500 |
| Interest rate | $14 per $100 | $14 per $100 | $14 per $100 |
| Term | 14 – 90 days | Next payday, or the one after | Up to 62 days |
| Available in | All provinces | AB, BC, MB, NS, ON, SK | BC, NS, ON |
| Funding time | 24+ hours | As little as 15 minutes | 1 business day |
| Funding method | Funds are directly transferred into your bank account | Interac e-Transfer | Direct deposit |
| Repayment | Next payday | Automatic debit | Automatic debit |
| Eligibility |
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|
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| Requirements & documents | Must have proof of income |
| Not listed |
Figures are as listed by each lender and can change. Check the lender's site before you apply.
Things To Weigh Before You Use A Broker
Your Application Goes To More Than One Company
That is the point of the service, and it is also the trade off. Your name, your SIN and your banking information are circulated to a network you cannot see in advance. If you would rather keep that contained, applying directly to a single licensed lender does the same job with one recipient.
Licensing Sits With The Lender, Not The Broker
Payday lending licences are issued to the company handing over the money. Before you accept an offer, look up the lender's name on your province's register. If a lender cannot give you a licence number for the province you live in, that is a reason to stop.
Check Who You Are Actually Dealing With
Once you are matched, everything that matters, the rate, the due date, the fees and your rights if something goes wrong, is governed by your agreement with that lender. North'n Loans is not party to it.
North'n Loans Pros
- One Application, Many Lenders: You fill in a single form and it reaches a network, rather than you repeating the process site by site.
- Free For You To Use: No brokerage fee and nothing taken out of your loan. The lenders pay for the referral.
- A Second Chance After A Decline: If one lender says no, another in the network may say yes, because they do not all assess files the same way.
- Pensions And Benefits Count: The network accepts steady income that is not employment, including government benefits, which many lenders refuse.
- Coverage Everywhere In Canada: The form covers all provinces and territories, which is wider than most individual lenders reach.
- Long Established: Operating since 2012.
North'n Loans Cons
- You Still End Up With A Payday Loan: Whatever the broker does, the product at the end of it is among the most expensive credit available in Canada.
- They Do Not Set Your Rate Or Your Fees: Cost, due date and penalties all come from the lender, so you cannot compare prices before you apply.
- Your Information Is Shared: Your SIN and banking details are passed to lenders in a network you cannot review in advance.
- A Low Trustpilot Score: 2.5 out of 5 from 42 reviews, which is weak, though the sample is small.
- No Better Business Bureau Profile: There is no BBB file for North'n Loans, so there is no letter rating or complaint record to read.
- No Licence Of Its Own: As a broker it holds no lending licence, so the licensing check falls to you once you are matched.
