Why seek an alternative?
Paying off a loan can be expensive and the repayments take up part of your income which could be used elsewhere. Fortunately there may be better alternatives available to you if you want to raise some cash.

Have you got any savings?
If you have savings then these can be used to fund spending. You would lose interest on these savings, but the amount lost will probably be less than you would pay on a loan. If you have time then saving money over time is the best option. However do not use your overdraft as savings. Rather use accounts that pay the lowest rate of interest first and leave any money in tax-exempt schemes until last.

How about remortgaging?
If you have no savings or are unable/unwilling to delve into them then you could consider remortgaging. There are a large number of competitive, discounted deals available which offer good rates for borrowers.

A further advance?
If you need to fund spending quickly then getting a further advance on an existing mortgage is often faster than remortgaging, which is a tedious process. Unfortunately the advance will probably be at the lender's Standard Variable Rate which will be higher than the rate charged on a remortgage, although lower than the rate for a loan.

Lenders often have strict rules on the use of further advances. So you will need to check that the purpose for which you intend to borrow the money is acceptable to them. This is less likely if you have a flexible mortgage, which may allow you to draw down additional money on a regular basis for whatever purpose you wish.

The disadvantage of a further advance is that they are usually paid off over a longer period of time, breaking the golden rule of loans - the faster its paid off, the better. Also, since additional borrowings increase the size of you mortgage debt, you should be sure you can meet the necessary repayments or your house will be at risk.