Over the past two years the number of lenders for tenants has steadily decreased. Currently Black Horse are the only main stream lender that is active in the market and they are mostly lender to homeowners.

This has caused some Niche lenders to appear in the market, such as log book lenders, payday lenders and lenders that require a guarantor for such products as Guarantor Loans.

There is still significant demand for loans, however with less supply in the market this has unfortunately given rise to a number of unscrupulous companies that charge un upfront fee typically between 50 -70, who mislead the customer that they are guaranteed to get a loan, whereas in reality in some case they will not even look for a customer.

Consumer forums are full of the companies that allegedly mislead customers with these fees upfront, but the best advice is to not to make any application before you confirm that no upfront fee will be taken.

There has even been significant press coverage of companies who have been investigated by the likes of the BBC for unfairly treating customers.

Although the market is still not back to the level that it was several years ago it is still possible to find a company which charges no fee for making a loan application and can assist those with more colourful credit histories.

In short, if you are still in need of a loan and are unsure about applying, there are still some very reputable companies out there that are able to help you find the product you need that fits with your individual circumstances and that do not charge any upfront fees

Use the tools that are available in today's market to compare loan products online, in the press or on reviews sites - don't forget the old but best, word of mouth