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	<title>Bad credit car loans no credit no money down used car loans &#187; Payday loans</title>
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		<title>Car Title Loan With Bad Credit</title>
		<link>http://www.cardownloan.com/2009/10/car-title-loan-bad-credit/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cardownloan.com/2009/10/car-title-loan-bad-credit/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 20 Oct 2009 06:14:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Payday loans]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[car title bad credit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[car title loan with bad credit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[title loans with bad credit]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Auto title loans are considered to be short term loans specially designed for public to receive immediate funds for purchase of vehicle. Such short term loans are basically associated with early repayment options within two weeks or so. The fees linked with car title loan bad credit are comparatively high resulting in to a bad [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Auto title loans are considered to be short term loans specially designed for public to receive immediate funds for purchase of vehicle. Such short term loans are basically associated with early repayment options within two weeks or so. The fees linked with car title loan bad credit are comparatively high resulting in to a bad choice. Unfortunately such short term loans are considered to be a bad choice of borrowing money for long term. Car title loan is supposed to be a lending option to give title of vehicle to owner or borrower. Strict rules regarding car title loan bad credit are if borrower fails to repay loan amount in time, say within two weeks, he may lose the ownership of vehicle. Such money lending options are popularly called as pink slip loans. It is nothing but the cooler of car title, supposed to be pink. It is simple though to reach to a car title loan. To avoid any kind of hidden costs and charges in later period care is to be taken by the owner or borrower to read all terms in advance.</p>
<h2>Title loans with bad credit</h2>
<p>For people with a bad credit status or balance payment situation, car title loan bad credit is a practical option. People with negative credit status always hut for a good term title loan irrespective of comparatively high rates. Risking the vehicle on such loan might be an option to think twice before applying. The fact is if you require any vehicle for personal or official use one thing points out all the time at the back of mind, vehicle possession is under control of lender. In this case you are left with no transport at your place of employment. If in case the owner of car finds any kind of problem in repaying the title loan amount, he is left with an option of roll over. By the means of roll over option you get a chance to increase the period of loan. This in turn assures larger amount of money in long run for the lender. <a href="http://www.creditrepairfacts.com/bad-credit-car-loan.html">Car  loan bad credit</a> offers you a chance to achieve finance for your vehicle in no time. For all borrowers with bad credit history it is a chance to repay the balance and clear the credit score.</p>
<h2>Immediate funds with title loans</h2>
<p>Immediate funds in the form of title loans for your vehicle prove to be a perfect option for urgent car purchase. If you need cash for auto repairs, bills, accessories, new or old car purchase, reach to the best of car title loan bad credit. Be clear with all the terms of application and wait for approval. Online loan provider will help you out with the best in business title loan for your vehicle. It is simple to receive all quotes and rates of the loan online, compare them, and take further steps towards application. Say bye bye to complicated and long term loans when you need urgent financial support.</p>
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		<title>Predatory Lending</title>
		<link>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/11/predatory-lending/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/11/predatory-lending/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:00:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Payday loans]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Predatory lending is known to be a very profitable business, but the lenders are the only ones who get the profits and the clients are likely to have problems. It is considered to be the reason for most the housing problems that are happening now. The predatory lenders are taking advantage of the clients who [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">Predatory lending is known to be a very profitable business, but the  lenders are the only ones who get the profits and the clients are likely to have  problems. It is considered to be the reason for most the housing problems that  are happening now. The predatory lenders are taking advantage of the clients who  do not know about predatory lending. </p>
<p>What is good about predatory  lending is that the client can get a mortgage for large sums of money with very  low interest rates. But the problem is that if the client misses a payment or  paid late, the low interest rate will increase and if it leads to more late or  missed payments the loan totally goes into foreclosure. The lending institution  now owns the property after the foreclosure and the lenders can now sell it with  high price than the original price of the mortgage. </p>
<p>The client easily  falls to predatory lending because more often than not an agent&rsquo;s offer is  irresistible to them and can sometimes be deceiving. The agent will assure the  client that he/she can get a loan because he knows a lender that will approve  the client&rsquo;s loan. The agent will now refer the client to the lender where he  works. The lender will offer a loan to the client but this loan has a high  interest rate, exceedingly high closing rate, and repayment that will make it  hard for the client to refinance. Without knowing of the process and thinking  that he/she cannot get loan from any other lender the client will now sign the  loan agreement even with the high stake of the loan.</p>
<p>Here are some points  that can help the clients from falling to </font><a href="http://www.securedloanscompared.com/personal_loans/predatory_lending.htm" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">predatory lending</font></a><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> and save themselves some heartache. Watch out for  lenders like this:</p>
<p></font><a href="http://www.securedloanscompared.com/" target="_blank"></a></p>
<p><span id="more-101"></span><br /><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">1. Lenders that will charge with excessive fees and  hide them in the finance structure. The lenders can easily do this to first time  homebuyers and those who doesn&rsquo;t know what is excessive loan charges and not.  </p>
<p>2. Lenders that provide abusive repayment penalties. Those lenders in  the subprime market are the ones who usually perform this kind of repayment  penalties. </p>
<p>3. Unscrupulous brokers that give you an increased loan rate.  If your loan interest is too much for the bank, the bank will give the broker a  kickback or &ldquo;yield spread premiums.&rdquo; </p>
<p>4. The worst is the mandatory  arbitration. With this, you are not allowed any legal action if you find out  that you are given unfavorable loan terms.</p>
<p>5. The lenders that perform  aggressive </font><a href="http://www.moneysupermarket.com/" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">sales</font></a><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> tricks that pushes you into a subprime loan even if you can meet the  criteria of a conventional </font><a href="http://www.securedloanscompared.com/" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">secured loan</font></a></p>
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		<title>Payday loan foes aim at car-title loans</title>
		<link>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/03/payday-loan-foes-aim-at-car-title-loans/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/03/payday-loan-foes-aim-at-car-title-loans/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Payday loans]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[By DENA POTTER Associated Press Writer The Dodge pickup has rust on the tailgate and a Harley-Davidson sticker on its back windshield. Beside it sits a Honda Accord with a big, white butterfly on the windshield and American flag butterflies on each side of the trunk. There&#39;s the minivan sporting a tattoo parlor bumper sticker [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>By DENA POTTER Associated Press Writer</p>
<p>The Dodge pickup has rust on the tailgate and a Harley-Davidson sticker on its back windshield. Beside it sits a Honda Accord with a big, white butterfly on the windshield and American flag butterflies on each side of the trunk. <br />There&#39;s the minivan sporting a tattoo parlor bumper sticker and a miniature San Francisco football jersey suctioned to a window of a red Cougar with a scuffed-up driver&#39;s side. </p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>They all have one thing in common: Their owners didn&#39;t pay off a car title loan, and now they&#39;re getting ready for auction. </p>
<p>For years payday lenders have been the bad guy in the predatory lending debate while their close cousin, car title lenders, have cruised along unnoticed&mdash;and perhaps more disturbing for some&mdash;unregulated in several states. Many efforts to regulate the industry have failed as the lenders pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into legislative campaigns. </p>
<p><span id="more-100"></span>
<p>Advocates for the poor say they don&#39;t have the resources to fight both industries at the same time. Once the payday lenders are in check, they vow to go after car title lenders. </p>
<p>They claim title loans&mdash;short-term, high interest loans secured by a car title&mdash;can be even more disastrous than payday loans. </p>
<p>&quot;They can both trap borrowers in long-term debt, but with a payday loan the collateral is a personal check. With a car title loan, it&#39;s the family&#39;s probably most important asset,&quot; said Leslie Parrish, senior researcher for the Center for Responsible Lending. </p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Car title lenders operate in nearly half the states, about a dozen of which have specific laws regulating how much the lenders can charge, Parrish said. </p>
<p>Where there are no laws specific to the industry title lenders operate under regulations governing pawn shop brokers or other lenders, except in Virginia, where car title lenders have clinched onto laws that regulate credit cards. </p>
<p>By structuring their loans as open-end credit, the lenders can charge triple-digit interest and whatever terms they wish as long as they don&#39;t charge anything for 25 days. In most states, the entire loan is due in one month, but can be rolled over and new fees charged. </p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>This year, legislation was introduced in at least eight states, from Florida to South Dakota. Last year, 16 states took on car title lenders, and six of those&mdash;Iowa, Mississippi, Nevada, Montana, Oregon and Utah&mdash;passed some sort of regulations. </p>
<p>Some have taken on both payday and car title lenders at once. New Hampshire legislators are close to an agreement on a 36 percent interest rate cap on payday and car title loans, and the governor there has said he would support it. Congress also banned payday lenders, car title lenders and tax refund anticipation loan companies from charging members of the military or their families more than 36 percent interest. </p>
<p>The lenders have fought hard against regulations. </p>
<p>In Virginia alone, four car title lenders contributed more than $280,000 to legislators in 2007. One company, Anderson Financial Services, which does business as LoanMax and several other lenders, donated more than $185,000, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, an independent, nonprofit tracker of money in state politics. </p>
<p>Repeated calls to LoanMax officials were not returned. </p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Jeff Smith, a lobbyist for Community Loans of America, one of the nation&#39;s largest car title and payday lenders, said car title loans aren&#39;t as problematic as payday loans because borrowers can&#39;t get more than one at a time unless they have multiple cars. Many payday borrowers take out numerous loans, sinking deep into debt. </p>
<p>&quot;A lot of the consumer protection issues that are debated in regard to payday lending don&#39;t exist in title lending,&quot; Smith said. </p>
<p>Here&#39;s how the loans usually work: A borrower gives the title to his vehicle and a copy of its keys to a lender in exchange for a loan up to about half of the car&#39;s wholesale value. The borrower agrees to repay the loan plus triple-digit annual interest and other fees and often must pay back the loan in a month or two. If the borrower falls behind, he could lose his car. </p>
<p>There is no nationwide data on the industry. Because the lenders are unregulated in several states, officials have no way of keeping track of the loans. </p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&quot;We know they are operating in Virginia, I just couldn&#39;t tell you how many or who they are,&quot; said E. Joseph Face Jr., commissioner of the state&#39;s Bureau of Financial Institutions. </p>
<p>There also is no way to know how many borrowers are losing their cars. </p>
<p>Many of those repossessed in Virginia wind up at Bryan Buchanan Auto Auction near Roanoke. The auction runs through about 100 car title loan repos each month. </p>
<p>On a chilly February night, about 20 repossessed by LoanMax were auctioned, most bringing between $750 and $2,500. </p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>That&#39;s good news for Lorenzo Gill, 28, and Kisha Hunter, 20, both of Roanoke. They were there to find a reasonably priced car, placing the winning $2,200 bid on a 2000 Chrysler LHS. </p>
<p>&quot;It&#39;s sad,&quot; Gill said as he looked out over the line of cars in the gravel lot. &quot;But one man&#39;s loss is another man&#39;s gain.&quot; </p>
<p>Bruce Johnson is trying hard not to lose his 2000 Dodge Neon. He and his wife, Helen, took out an $800 loan from Fast Auto Loans Inc. near Richmond. They&#39;ve paid three payments&mdash;$533&mdash;and still owe more than $900. </p>
<p>Johnson is paying about $40 per month on the principal and about $200 in interest. If he stops, he&#39;ll lose the car. If he continues, he&#39;ll sink more money into the car than it&#39;s worth. </p>
<p>&quot;I&#39;m paying $5,000 for a car that cost me $1,300, and if I get sick and miss a payment or can&#39;t make a payment they&#39;re going to come take my car away,&quot; Johnson, a 67-year-old retired carpenter, said in a telephone interview. </p>
<p>Johnson now wishes he&#39;d just gotten a payday loan. At least then, he says, he would have known what he owed. Either way, he said, legislators need to protect families like his from predatory lenders. </p>
<p>While industry opponents want caps on the amount car title lenders can charge, they fear regulating the industry will legitimize it the way it has payday lenders. </p>
<p>States that have regulated payday lenders have seen a proliferation of the storefront cash advance shops. Last year, 24,000 payday lenders made about $40 billion in loans nationwide, according to The Center for Responsible Lending. </p>
<p>Republican Delegate Harvey Morgan championed the 2002 law that opened Virginia&#39;s doors to payday lenders and now regrets it. He hopes car title lenders will simply go away as legislators pass stricter regulations on payday lenders, but he&#39;s not optimistic. </p>
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		<title>Poverty often worsened by payday loans</title>
		<link>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/01/poverty-often-worsened-by-payday-loans/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/01/poverty-often-worsened-by-payday-loans/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Payday loans]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Those of us with traditional bank accounts and a credit card or two in our pockets tend not to notice the rapid proliferation of payday loan stores in our community. Whether out of sound financial planning or just plain luck, we have no need for fast cash to offset the occasional crisis. When the car [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Those of us with traditional bank accounts and a credit card or two in our pockets tend not to notice the rapid proliferation of payday loan stores in our community. Whether out of sound financial planning or just plain luck, we have no need for fast cash to offset the occasional crisis.
<p>When the car breaks down, we take it to the shop and write a check. If the heater goes out, we can always put it on the card.</p>
<p>For people with bad credit or insufficient funds to maintain a bank account without piling up overdraft fees, however, these payment options don&#39;t exist. Without such options, the promise of ready money begins to have a powerful appeal.</p>
<p>That&#39;s when the signs that some people simply ignore start to cry out to the person who is strapped for cash. And judging by the names of the payday loan stores, as well as their advertising, the process is both fast and easy.</p>
<p><span id="more-99"></span>
<p>In Ponderay alone &#8212; where as of this month there are now five payday loan businesses located next door to or very near Wal-Mart &#8212; one can choose to borrow from Quik Cash, EZ Money, the Cash Store, the Money Depot or Check &#39;n Go. Only minutes away in Sandpoint, there are another four payday lenders clustered next door to or very near the Goodwill Industries thrift store</p>
<p>No credit check. No waiting. All it takes is a recent pay stub, a driver&#39;s license and the ability to write a check. You can borrow up to $1,000 today in what one lender advertises is &quot;a smart way to get cash.&quot;</p>
<p>How Payday Loans Work</p>
<p>Let&#39;s say you have car problems and the mechanic has estimated repairs to be about $500. You can borrow that amount &#8212; quickly and easily &#8212; by writing a check to the payday lender in the amount of $600, or a rate of $20 for every $100 you borrow. The lender holds the check for two weeks &#8212; your next payday &#8212; at which time they deposit the check or you can redeem it for cash.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Some consumer advocates argue that the lending rate is too high and should be capped at a significantly lower amount. The payday loan industry points out that these are high-risk borrowers and, accordingly, the interest rate is both necessary and appropriate.</p>
<p>&quot;We&#39;ve already got an interest rate cap &#8212; it&#39;s 20 percent,&quot; said one staffer at a payday loan store in Ponderay, referring to the rate-per-hundred-borrowed figure. &quot;Of course, our annual rates are right up there.&quot;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>In the spirit of full disclosure, it&#39;s helpful to look at our car repair loan scenario in terms of the annual percentage rate (APR). After all, that&#39;s the rate banks and credit card companies use to calculate loan repayment schedules, so it makes sense to use it here, as well.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&quot;It doesn&#39;t sound like much when you think of it as $20 per $100,&quot; said Jean Ann Fox, director of financial services and a consumer protection advocate for the Consumer Federation of America. But that&#39;s 520 percent APR if you get two weeks to pay it back.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&quot;The payday loan industry complains about having to quote the annual percentage rate to borrowers,&quot; she added. &quot;I&#39;d complain too, if I were charging more than 500 percent interest on a loan.&quot;</p>
<p>Where Idaho Stands</p>
<p>The Gem State is one of only eight in the nation that have not either prohibited payday loans within their borders or imposed tight restrictions on interest rates and loan terms. In Idaho, the industry is regulated by the Department of Finance, which requires that lenders disclose dollar rates and APR, but currently places no cap on how high those rates might climb.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Calling that description &quot;partially accurate,&quot; the department&#39;s director, Gavin Gee, said the fact that the state has no usury statute is the primary reason there are no limitations on fees.</p>
<p>&quot;It&#39;s a very risky business, because they don&#39;t take collateral,&quot; Gee explained. &quot;Which is a big reason why they charge high interest rates.&quot;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>The Idaho Department of Finance is limited in its ability to regulate payday lenders, overseeing only the licensing of those lenders and monitoring the reporting process once a business license has been approved &#8212; a process that usually takes about 30 days. The department is also working with the federal government to impose a 36 percent APR cap for loans to military personnel, but, for the average borrower, state regulations spell out that &quot;finance charges are allowed as agreed upon by the parties to the agreement.&quot;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>In other words, the lender may charge as much interest as the borrower is willing to pay, whether or not that borrower understands the terms.</p>
<p>&quot;Essentially, that&#39;s no rate cap at all,&quot; Fox said. &quot;Idaho needs to put some meaningful usury restrictions in place to protect low-income families from rate gouging.&quot;</p>
<p>Proposed Legislation</p>
<p>As of this week, Sen. Shawn Keough, working with Rep. George Eskridge and other legislators, is in the process of drafting proposed legislation that would place Idaho among the ranks of states that impose tighter restrictions on payday loans.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&quot;I have pledged to work on this issue to strengthen Idaho&#39;s regulations and I am working on crafting a bill that puts some restrictions in place to help the consumer,&quot; the senator said.</p>
<p>Keough was first approached by the Community Action Partnership office in Sandpoint, which also administers the Circles Initiative &#8212; a local coalition designed to help individuals work their way out of poverty while they learn to create a budget and save money for emergencies.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Brenda Hammond, who works a Circles Initiative coach with families in the poverty fighting program, said the senator came to the group for input and told them she would be willing to introduce legislation. Among the recommendations proposed were and APR cap of 36 percent, a rate limit of $5 per $100 borrowed, restrictions on the number of loans an individual could have out at one time and a cooling-off period of 60 days between loans, so that borrowers would not be allowed to &quot;roll over&quot; payday loans and accrue further debt.</p>
<p>At present, Idaho allows consumers to roll over a payday loan up to three times. When that happens, the cycle of debt can become insurmountable for many low-income borrowers.</p>
<p>&quot;I was working with one family to help them create a household budget and learned that they had two payday loans out,&quot; said Shirley Paulison, community engagement liaison for CAP. &quot;They were paying more than $300 every payday &#8212; over $600 a month &#8212; to try and cover those loan payments.&quot;</p>
<p>According to the Center for Responsible Lending, a consumer advocacy group based in North Carolina, the payday loan industry depends heavily on repeat business &#8212; particularly so on &quot;flipped&quot; loans that roll over the principal amount for additional fees at high interest rates. On average, the center reported, borrowers who use this approach will be forced to pay back almost $800 on an original principal amount of a little more than $300.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&quot;It&#39;s kind of onerous,&quot; said Eskridge, who is helping to draft Idaho&#39;s proposed regulatory legislation. &quot;The same people that are in financial trouble just keep getting into more trouble.&quot;</p>
<p>(Tomorrow: How banking deregulation fueled growth in the payday loan industry, why local lenders believe legislation could put them out of business and a look at the strategy behind locating a payday loan store.)</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Submit your payday loan experiences, comments, etc. on the Daily Bee&#39;s weblog at <a href="http://www.bonnercountydailybee.com/"><u><font color="#810081">www.bonnercountydailybee.com</font></u></a>.</p>
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		<title>Payday Loans: A Choice that Virginia Consumers Need and Want</title>
		<link>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/01/payday-loans-a-choice-that-virginia-consumers-need-and-want/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cardownloan.com/2008/01/payday-loans-a-choice-that-virginia-consumers-need-and-want/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Payday loans]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[George C. Landrith Payday loans are an important financial resource for Virginia consumers who may need immediate help paying unexpected and urgent expenses such as medical bills or car repairs. Banks and credit unions do not typically make these sorts of loans. Thus, payday loan services are needed and provide a significant benefit to consumers [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><em>George C. Landrith</em> </p>
<p>Payday loans are an important financial resource for Virginia consumers who may need immediate help paying unexpected and urgent expenses such as medical bills or car repairs. Banks and credit unions do not typically make these sorts of loans. Thus, payday loan services are needed and provide a significant benefit to consumers by expanding their choices and giving them greater ability to deal with unexpected or urgent needs.</p>
<p><span id="more-98"></span><br />The payday loan industry is regulated by the Bureau of Financial Institutions and only 43 consumer complaints were filed against payday lenders from among the 3.6 million loan transactions that were completed in 2006. The numbers for 2007 are similarly impressive. These impressive numbers makes one wonder what is the big push for greater government regulation? Moreover, the industry serves a customer base that is middle class, educated, employed and has a banking relationship.</p>
<p>Some consumer advocates and politicians argue that payday loans hurt consumers and should be effectively banned or strictly regulated. However, if we look at other states, we find that payday loans are helpful to consumers and provide them with needed options and choices. For example, a Federal Reserve Bank Staff Report released in November 2007, concluded that the absence of payday loans in Georgia and North Carolina left consumers without a reasonable credit option and often forced consumers to seek less favorable alternatives that often led to long-term financial problems. The report stated: </p>
<p>Compared with households in all other states, households in Georgia have bounced more checks, complained more to the Federal Trade Commission about lenders and debt collectors, and filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection at a higher rate. North Carolina households have fared about the same. </p>
<p>Thus, it becomes clear that payday loans actually help consumers by giving them additional choices and options when dealing with urgent unexpected expenses. Those who want to limit or ban payday loans seem to assume that consumers are ignorant and cannot make choices that serve their best interests. Yet, the entire economy is based on the idea that consumers make rational choices and can pursue transactions that meet their unique needs. Regulations that require full disclosure so that consumers can make informed choices, make sense. Regulations that limit or effectively ban payday loans simply take choices and options away from consumers.</p>
<p>Banks, credit unions and other financial institutions have yet to offer a viable way to offer short-term credit like payday loans. The Federal Reserve Staff Report concluded: &ldquo;Banning payday loans is not, by itself, going to motivate competitors to lower prices or invent new products.&rdquo; Thus, banning payday loans will only close off options and choices for consumers and create more serious financial problems.</p>
<p>The Federal Reserve Staff Report also supports the idea that payday loans are a reasonable alternative to the costs and other adverse consequences that often follow cash flow problems. The report states, &ldquo;[O]ur findings contradict the debt trap/addiction hypothesis against payday lending.&rdquo; Additionally, the Report concluded that &ldquo;[Payday loans] are consistent with the alternative hypothesis that payday credit is cheaper than the bounce &ldquo;protection&rdquo; that earns millions for credit unions and banks.&rdquo;</p>
<p>A January 2007 Federal Reserve Bank of New York study, &ldquo;Defining and Detecting Predatory Lending,&rdquo; concludes that payday loans do not reduce the financial well-being of consumers. To the contrary, the authors of the study concluded that payday lenders enhance the welfare of households by increasing the supply of credit and giving consumers additional financial options. The report made the following points:</p>
<p>A payday cash loan &ldquo;raises household welfare by providing a preferable alternative&rdquo; and can help households &ldquo;better manage their finances.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Households that use payday loans &ldquo;are less likely to have missed a debt payment over the previous year.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Consumers are not ignorant or unsophisticated and like other credit and financial products, know the risks associated with payday advances. The Report noted that &ldquo;despite their alleged naivet&eacute;, payday borrowers appear sophisticated enough to shop for lower prices.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Another study conducted by Bretton Woods concluded that consumers in North Carolina paid approximately $652 million in non-sufficient funds and over-draft protection fees in 2006.&nbsp; These fees are often referred to as &ldquo;bounced check&rdquo; fees. Banks collected an estimated $538 million through such fees, according to the study. North Carolina&rsquo;s credit unions &mdash; including the Durham-based Self Help Credit Union, which is affiliated with the Center for Responsible Lending &mdash; collected $114 million from their customers through such fees. </p>
<p>Interestingly, the Center for Responsible Lending argued that eliminating payday loans in North Carolina would save consumers about $93 million a year. But North Carolinian consumers paid more than six times that amount in so-called bounced check fees to banks and credit unions. Thus, it is clear that payday loans are a responsible and consumer friendly option compared to the options that banks and credit unions typically provide.</p>
<p>Other&rsquo;s argue that the annualized interest rate on a payday loan is too high saying that it can reach more than 300%. (A payday loan of $100 would require a $15 fee when it is repaid in two weeks. If the $15 fee is multiplied 26 times to get to 56 weeks or one year so that the fee is &ldquo;annualized,&rdquo; that is how one gets to the high interest rate claims.) However, the loan is not for a year and it is repaid after two weeks. </p>
<p>Nonetheless, it is interesting to note that if the costs of a bounced check imposed by a bank or credit union are similarly annualized, the interest rate approaches 1000%. If one annualizes the late fee on a typical credit card bill, the interest rate exceeds 700%. If one annualizes the late fees and the reconnect fees for a typical utility service, the interest rate exceeds 1300%. And if the bounced check fees charged by a store or merchant are annualized, the interest rate would also exceed 1300%. The point is, a payday loan is a bargain in comparison to these financial options. Consumers are smart and understand this. This explains the popularity of payday loans to solve urgent, unexpected, short term cash flow problems. </p>
<p>Some have suggested that an interest rate cap of 36% should be imposed to bring payday loans in line with other lenders. However, payday loans are one of only three financial products that have any rate caps. Thus it is completely inaccurate to suggest that payday loans are somehow an overlooked financial product that need to be &ldquo;brought into line&rdquo; with other financial products.</p>
<p>It is interesting to note that car loans (which are secured loans) do not have a statutory rate cap. Nor do credit cards, student loans, bounced check fees, or ATM fees. If the 36% rule were imposed on payday loans, a $100 loan would be able to charge only a $1.38 fee. Banks typically charge more than that for a customer to simply withdraw the own money. How can anyone rationally suggest that is a reasonable fee to borrow money on an unsecured basis? </p>
<p>The truth is if consumer advocates want lower rates for consumers, they should encourage the growth of the payday loan industry so that there is ample competition which will drive costs to their lowest possible point. Government regulation rarely provides the cheapest cost or the highest quality service. But vibrant competition has proven time and again to be a consumer&rsquo;s best friend &ndash; bringing both low prices and high quality goods and services. </p>
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<p>Frontiers of Freedom Institute was founded in 1994 by U.S. Senator Malcolm Wallop and is an educational institute (or think tank) whose mission is to promote conservative public policy based on the principles of individual freedom, peace through strength, limited government, free enterprise, and traditional American values as found in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. <em>### </em><em>
<p>Mr. Landrith is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was Business Editor of the Virginia Journal of Law and Politics. He had a successful law practice in business and litigation. In 1994 and 1996, Mr. Landrith was a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia&#39;s Fifth Congressional District. He served on the Albemarle County School Board. Mr. Landrith is an adjunct professor at the George Mason School of Law. He is recognized as an authority on constitutional law and jurisprudence, federalism, global warming, and property rights. </p>
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