Rule 1: Only Say Yes if You Mean It

 

If you feel guilt-tripped into making the loan by the asker ("I'm desperate!") or you question your own hesitation¹ ("I must be a bad person or I wouldn't feel conflicted"), then turn her down, says Levine.

 

If you do cough up the cash when you aren't sure you want to, you risk feeling resentful, and that can cripple the relationship before it's even time for her to repay you. Not going through with the loan doesn't make you selfish or a bad friend; the response may actually protect your bond, she adds.

 

Rule 2: Lend Just What You Can Afford to Lose

 

Your friend or family member may check all the boxes for being trustworthy, financially stable and reliable, but "things can happen that prevent them from paying you back as originally planned," says Byron Ellis, a Certified² Financial Planner (TM) and managing director at Ellis and Ellis, a division of United Capital Financial Advisers³ in The Woodlands, Texas.

 

Rule 3: Create a Firm Repayment⁴ Timeline

 

Rule 4: Always Put the Loan in Writing

 

Rule 5: Never Let the Due Date Slide

 

If your dinero doesn't show on time, ignoring the lateness or making excuses for not confronting the borrower would be a mistake. She might continue going along as if the due date you set is a loose guideline rather than a rule.

 

Make it more businesslike, so neither of you feels like you're taking advantage of the other.

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