Find the clause before you sign
Some personal loans charge a flat fee or a months-of-interest penalty if you refinance or pay off early. Others allow full prepayment with no cost. The difference only appears in the agreement.
Ask for a payoff quote example at month six and month twelve before funding.
Model your real behavior
If you are using the loan to kill 22% cards and will attack principal aggressively, a prepayment penalty can erase the strategy. Prefer no-penalty structures even at a slightly higher rate.
If you will amortize normally to term, the penalty may never bite — still know it exists.
Refinance math includes fees on both sides
When shopping a refinance, add originations and any old prepayment costs into the break-even. A lower rate that takes eighteen months to win is a bad deal if you might sell or refinance again sooner.
Keep copies of the note; future you will not remember verbal assurances.