Cultural Notes
Directions：Read the following short passage related to the video you are going to watch.
How to Get a Loan
Borrowing money can help you do things，but the process can be complicated.The first step is to figure out what you need.The type of loan you get will depend on what you plan to do with the money.Some common loan types include：
•Auto loans for buying a vehicle
•Home loans（mortgage loans）
•Personal loans，which can be used for almost any purpose(https://www.daowen.com)
•Business loans for starting or expanding your business
•Education loans（student loans）
Your choices may be limited based on the kind of loan you want：some places don’t offer business loans or student loans.Start your search at the institutions best known for making affordable（负担得起的）loans（for example，go through your school’s Student Aid Office for an education loan before you go to the bank for a private loan）.Using a loan that matches your need will improve your chances of getting approved and will keep your costs low.
You need to understand the loan before you get one，take a look at how the loan works.How will you repay it—monthly or all at once？What are the interest costs？Do you have to repay（偿还）a certain way（perhaps the lender requires you to pay electronically through your bank account）？Make sure you understand what you’re getting into and how everything will work before you borrow.
It’s a good idea to run loan calculations before getting a loan.This allows you to see how much you’ll pay for the loan，and how a different loan amount（or interest rate）might save you money.
Get a loan that you can really handle—one that you can comfortably repay and that won’t prevent you from doing other important things.Figure out how much of your income will go towards loan repayment—lenders call this a debt⁃to⁃income ratio—and borrow less if you don’t like what you see.Lenders often want to see a ratio below 30%or so.