Bethany Hickey

Banking editor

Bethany Hickey is a banking editor and personal finance expert at Finder, specializing in banking, lending, insurance, and crypto.

Bethany’s expertise in personal finance has garnered recognition from esteemed media outlets, such as Nasdaq, MSN, Yahoo Finance, GOBankingRates, SuperMoney, AOL and Newsweek. Her articles offer practical financial strategies to Americans, empowering them to make decisions that meet their financial goals. Her past work includes articles on generational spending and saving habits, lending, budgeting and managing debt.

Before joining Finder, she was a content manager where she wrote hundreds of articles and news pieces on auto financing and credit repair for CarsDirect, Auto Credit Express and The Car Connection, among others.

Bethany holds a BA in English from the University of Michigan-Flint, and was poetry editor for the university’s Qua Literary and Fine Arts Magazine.

Expertise

Personal finance
Banking
Auto loans
Insurance
Cryptocurrency and NFTs

Education

Bachelor of Arts, English-Writing

Educational organizations

University of Michigan-Flint

Featured publications

Industry insights from Bethany Hickey

We asked Bethany Hickey for her thoughts on borrowing during a recession and how to choose the best loan.

Is it a good idea to take out a loan during a recession?

The answer isn’t so straightforward, unfortunately. In a recession, it may be harder to qualify for a loan, because lenders are known to tighten up stipulations to reduce risk. We occasionally see lower rates in business loans as a way to stimulate the economy, but that’s not always the case. It can be good before a full-out recession to prepare by sorting out your finances — such as consolidating your credit card debt or refinancing a home for a lower interest rate while the getting is good. But if rates are high and your credit isn’t great, it may be a better idea to hold off on taking on new loans to reduce your risk of default during a recession.

How do I choose the best personal loan when my credit isn’t great?

Personal loan rates can get high if you have poor credit. Most personal loans are unsecured, so they carry a little more risk and lenders tend to charge higher rates. And with short-term installment loans and payday loans, you could see a 200% APR or higher. My advice would be to avoid no-credit-check payday loans, if at all possible. And even with a credit score of around 580 to 670, there are plenty of personal loan providers that could work if you have steady income. Also consider a cosigner or coborrower to increase your approval odds. And adding someone else to the loan could get you a higher loan amount or lower interest rate (or both!).