Payday Loans ? The Legal Loan Sharking Industry

Laws have been created to protect people against "Loan Shark" practices in which short-term loans are given out at excessive interest rates. There is an industry that has come of age the last couple of years that has circumvented these laws. Enter the Payday loan industry.

Payday loans is a some-what new multi-billion dollar industry in which people borrow money to tithe them over until their next payday. These loans also go by the names cash advance loans and paycheck loans. They prey on the lower class that find themselves short of money before a payday.

The one thing to consider when looking into a payday loan is the APR or Annual Percentage Rate that these loans carry. At first glance, you may think paying $240.00 for a loan of $200.00 for two weeks is ok. The A.P.R of this loan comes to a whopping 520%. That is the amount this loan would cost if played over a years time. Compare this with a high interest credit card of 29%. When you see it compared to these numbers, you can see they are not the bargain you first thought it was.

A representative from a payday loan company has agreed to be interviewed for this article on the condition his identity and that of his company be anonymous.

I asked him, how can they can justify such enormous interest charges. His reply was "Because we can. There are loopholes out there that allow us to do this. This is a high risk loan for most cases so we need to charge enough to cover bad loans and to make a profit."

When asked about if payday loans are ever a good idea, his response was "Sure. For example if you will be late on a credit card payment of $70.00 and will be charged a late fee of $30.00 then the APR of the payday loan justifies getting one. You will save points if you get a payday loan and not pay the higher interest rate of the late fee."

When you should get a payday loan:

There are times when payday loans are justified as discussed above. The primary example when your late fees are more expensive than the late fees paid to your creditors.

Another non-tangible justification is when you can avoid getting reported for a late payment. This can be far more expensive than any payday loan fee in that it could affect the cost you pay for future loans. This is especially true if it's your mortgage or car payments.

Yet another reason to get a payday loan is that you determine that the cost is worth it to you personally. If you are headed for the long awaited vacation and could use a few extra bucks to enjoy and can afford the fees then you should look into this.

A final thought on when you should get a payday loan is if you need that cash and it's free. That's right free. There are a many sites out there that charge ZERO interest to all first-time customers. One such site can be found at Low Cost Payday Loans.

What to look for when getting a payday loan:

The first thing to look for is the APR. Federal law has made it so that every lender must disclose the cost of any money borrow through a Truth in Lending Disclosure. This must break down the cost by APR (Annual Percentage Rate). This is the first thing to compare loans by.

Another thing to look for is the length of the term. If two companies charge the same rate for every hundred dollars borrowed but company A has a term of up to four weeks and company B has a term of two weeks, then go for Company A and take advantage of the extra four weeks. The APR of Company A is half of Company B. The reason this differs from the first item is that sometimes they base APR on a fixed amount of time (two-three weeks usually). When you read the fine print that the fee charge is fixed and may allow you to pay it back in a longer term such as four weeks.

The bottom line:

Do your homework when getting a payday loan and look for free to low cost payday loans if possible. The money you save can be substantial. Look for lower cost payday loans and No Fax Payday Loans. These faxless payday loans allow you to apply without needing to submit documentation via fax.

R Vigil
Finance Consultant At
Faxless Payday Loans.

Latest News


Aljazeera.net

Added Loans to Iceland Will Help Pay Depositors
Wall Street Journal - 19 hours ago
While loans from the International Monetary Fund and the Nordic countries are aimed at supporting Iceland's tottering economy, the British, Dutch and German ...
IMF, Nordics pledge $4.6 billion loans to Iceland The Associated Press
Iceland welcomes loans from IMF, Nordics and Poland (Roundup) Monsters and Critics.com
IMF, Nordic Neighbors Agree Billion-Euro Loans for Iceland Deutsche Welle
Shropshire Star - guardian.co.uk
all 735 news articles

GETTING PERSONAL: Family Loans Serve Multiple Purposes
CNNMoney.com - 13 hours ago
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- If you want to help out a family member without giving a handout, consider a family loan. Loans between relatives can help the ...

Fort Worth's Trinity Bank Profits up 31%
MarketWatch - 11 hours ago
In a day when many banks are fighting for their existence because of bad loan decisions, we are fortunate that we have yet to have one loan loss or one ...
RMG Capital Corporation Reports Third Quarter Earnings CNNMoney.com
all 22 news articles

LendingTree Loans Selects IBM for Loan Fulfillment Services
MarketWatch - 20 hours ago
LendingTree Loans(SM), the company's consumer direct online mortgage lender, to provide comprehensive, private label mortgage loan fulfillment services. ...
LendingTree inks deal with IBM Bizjournals.com
LendingTree Loans Selects IBM for Loan Fulfillment Services International Business Times
IBM to provide loan fulfillment services to Tree.com's LendingTree ... RTT News
all 18 news articles

Wall Street Journal Blogs

December 22 Is Deadline to Apply for SBA Economic Injury Disaster ...
MarketWatch - Nov 19, 2008
The deadline to file applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) is December 22, 2008. Small businesses and small agricultural cooperatives that ...
Loans tougher to get but still available Salt Lake Tribune
Loans available for September storm damage Columbia Missourian
Low-interest loans available for Sept.-Oct storms Chicago Tribune
Marshall County Journal - MLive.com
all 253 news articles

International Business Times

Fitch Downgrades 1 Class of JP Morgan Chase, Series 2001-A ...
MarketWatch - 11 hours ago
In addition to the largest loan, Fitch has identified three other Loans of Concern, which includes the specially serviced asset. ...
Fitch Affirms Bear Stearns 2000-WF1: Assigns Outlooks MarketWatch
Fitch Downgrades 1 Class of Banc of America Commercial Mortgage ... MarketWatch
all 23 news articles

Voice of America

Congress Delays Action on Auto Industry Loans
Voice of America - 17 hours ago
The chiefs of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler asked for twenty-five billion dollars in new loans. Congress already approved twenty-five billion in ...
Ailing automakers plead for $25b in loans Boston Globe (registration)
Auto Execs Reset Bailout Pitch; Republicans to Rewrite CAFE for Loans Ward's Auto (subscription)
Big 3 automakers warn of crisis without bailout MarketWatch
Bloomberg - Oakland Press
all 1,762 news articles

SBA loans drop, rationing under way
Bizjournals.com, NC - 18 hours ago
US Small Business Administration-guaranteed loans for the 24 counties south of Orlando were down almost $150 million in fiscal year 2008, which ended Sept. ...
Allegan, Barry country residents hit by flood eligible for loans MLive.com
Small business loans dwindle The Tennessean
SBA steps aimed to fuel small-business lending Finance and Commerce
Huffington Post
all 18 news articles

Voice of America

UAW may give up jobs bank to revive auto loans
Detroit Free Press, United States - 19 hours ago
2 for how the loans might be used to transform them into viable companies, promising to bring Congress back into session Dec. 8 if the plans measure up -- a ...
Congress: Auto execs must show 'significant sacrifices' DetNews.com
Big Three's plea for aid fizzles in Congress Seattle Post Intelligencer
Detroit's fight hits home in Wisconsin Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Trading Markets (press release) - MarketWatch
all 2,890 news articles

Straits Times

Who's Getting $2 Trillion In Fed Loans?
CBS News, NY - 19 hours ago
The Federal Reserve Board has been quietly providing $2 trillion in "emergency" loans to banks, and the pace has been quickening, Early Show National ...
Video: Consumer Prices Drop Record 1 Percent in October AssociatedPress
Can the Fed fight deflation? How? BloggingStocks
Depressing Times CFO.com Magazine
all 1,568 news articles

Resources