Rules to Follow When Lending Money to Friends andFamily

 

借钱给家人和朋友的法则

 

Create a Firm Repayment Timeline

 

制定严格的还款时间表

 

Ten years ago Emily White, 43, lent her younger sister $20,000 to buy a house near their elderly parents, without discussing are payment date for the loan. “I loved that my sister would be there for my parents, and the idea was for her to pay me back once she got settled and found a new job, since she had moved from out of state,” recalls White.

 

But as it turned out, White's sister appeared to have another idea in mind. “Now she's been working for years, yet she hasn’tmentioned anything about payback,” says White. “I had no idea we were on a 10-years-and-counting plan. I wouldn't be upset, but now I'm considering someinvestments and that money would help.”

 

White’s mistake was thinking she and her sister were on the same page when it came to repayment—a situation that could have been avoided if she had a thought-out plan.

 

It might seem too businesslike, but “set specific terms for the loan that everybody can agree to,” says Ellis. “Discuss how much money will be loaned, interest rates and how long they will have to pay it back.” This way, she’ll know when she needs to come up with funds, and you’ll know when the money will be back in your account.

 

By nailing down this schedule, there's also no mistaking this money as a gift, adds Ellis. The loanee also can't postpone repayment indefinitely and claim she didn't know you needed it so soon.

 

As Ellis mentioned above, it’s also wise to charge interest and work that into your repayment schedule. Depending on the amount,loaning money can involve complicated tax rules; failing to charge interest might get you in trouble. To avoid this, you may want to charge the borrower the Applicable Federal Rate （APR）as interest.