Can I roll over a personal loan into a new loan when it expires?

How personal loans end: Unlike payday loans (which require lump-sum repayment and can be extended/rolled over for a fee), personal loans are installment products with fully amortizing payment schedules. Each monthly payment reduces principal. At the end of the term, the loan is paid off - there is no balloon payment, renewal, or rollover required or available.

Rollover vs refinancing: A rollover (payday loan style) means extending the repayment period in exchange for a fee, with the original balance staying fully intact. Refinancing a personal loan means: applying for a new personal loan, using the proceeds to pay off the existing loan (payoff quote), and paying the remainder of the term under the new loan's terms.

When refinancing makes sense: Your credit score has improved significantly since the original loan (a 50+ point improvement can lower your rate by several percentage points). Interest rates have dropped in the market. You need to lower your monthly payment by extending the term. You want to consolidate this loan with other debts.

When refinancing does not make sense: You are near the end of the original loan term - refinancing resets the amortization and you start paying mostly interest again. The new loan has an origination fee that negates the rate savings. Your credit score has not improved and the new rate is similar or higher.

Be cautious about serial refinancing: Repeatedly refinancing personal loans to extend the repayment window without making progress on principal means you pay interest indefinitely without payoff. This is a debt trap. Use refinancing to improve terms, not to perpetually delay repayment.