Payday loans mean that surprise expenses will never leave your budget in a bind. (Photo: Wikipedia.org)

Payday loans are quick short term loans that can be used for urgent situations such as paying off medical bills, car repair and more. The loan amount has to be returned on the day you receive your pay, and the interest rate is fixed by the lender. Payday loans may sound advantageous for meeting unexpected or urgent financial needs, but there are also some disadvantages that cannot be ignored.

Payday Loans Help with Unplanned or Unpredicted Money Requirements

Payday loans are instant loans, as you do not have to wait long to get this loan approved. Thus, the convenience of this loan system is that you can instantly use the loan money to meet your unexpected emergencies. The process of applying for this loan is fast and simple. You just need to fill out a short form and provide documents that include your general information such as your name, address and banking details.

A Few Preventive Steps to Make the Most of Payday Loans

1. Since you are required to provide your bank details and credit details to the lender, it is important to always check the credibility and the reputation of the lender you are going to deal with.
2. It is better to research a bit to find out the interest rates and compare the rates with what your lender is charging. Try to search for around three or four lenders (or even more) and compare their services to get the best deal.
3. Make sure that there are no hidden charges or terms included while applying for a payday loan. Always read the terms and conditions of the lenders providing you the payday loan in order to avoid these charges.
4. It is advisable to plan your loan repayment while applying for payday loans. Since the entire loan amount is to be returned on your next payday, you will need to plan this before so that you will avoid any extension on repayment as this can further burden the upcoming month’s expenditure and also can add to your increasing interest rate.
5. Payday Loans can be an easy solution against unexpected expenditures or monthly needs but we cannot ignore the fact that these loans come with quite a high interest rate.

Avoiding the Pitfalls: Using Payday Loans Well

1. Payday loans are not the best solution for every problem. These loans should not be taken for just any reason, such as fulfilling your luxuries, shopping for fun and so on.
2. You must search properly and go through a list of lenders in order to get the best deal in interest rates. The more you search, the better your chances of finding a good lender providing you with suitable interest rate.
3. You can deal with money shortage due to unplanned monthly budget or unexpected financial burdens with a payday loan easily. However, to avoid any more financial burden from your payday loan, you must have complete knowledge of payday loans. You must know the pros and cons in order to utilize them properly and safely.

Apply for Payday Loans HERE

Making Work Pay will cost millions of American taxpayers anywhere from $250 to $400 this coming tax season. These people may need payday loans. (Photo: flickr.com)

Were you one of those people who were elated to hear about the “Making Work Pay” tax break that President Obama gifted to the American people? Truly, it did benefit many people. Workers were paid back to the tune of 6.2 percent of their earned income, with a max of $400 for individuals and $800 for married couples filing jointly. Those singles making more than $95,000 and couples making more than $190,000 weren’t eligible, but then they didn’t have to be.

With that refund, those eligible didn’t have to resort to short term loan options like payday loans. However, for millions more, perhaps they’ll be wishing they had gotten a payday loan instead of having to pay back hundreds of dollars. And don’t even get me started on the farce that is tax refund loans (aka refund anticipation loans).

15-Million-Plus Owe Uncle Barack $250 Apiece

And that’s just the retirees!

That’s what the Associated Press is reporting as consumers are attempting to dig their way out of the blight of the recession. People are looking forward to some debt relief without the pain of tax refund loans, and in this instance, perhaps even without payday loans. But according to the IRS, many of people are going to be disappointed. What goes around comes around … and bites you in the hindquarters.

Who Will Owe Money Because of Making Work Pay?

We’re talking those with more than one job and married couples where both parties work (that’s a big one). These groups will have to repay $400, which could mean a smaller refund or even a tax bill. Even those in their golden years with rusty old Social Security and taxable wages will not have the lamb’s blood painted on their door. Their Obama giveback will be $250. Pony up, America!

Ah, the Memories of Magic Refunds and High Hopes

Individuals felt up to $400 worth of love for Making Work Pay, while couples doubled their pleasure up to $800. It was all part of the revolutionary stimulus package back in February of 2009. It pumped paychecks full of chicken broth, which most consumers promptly spent. If you spent it and you aren’t sure if you’re having enough withheld from your paycheck, click here for a handy calculator. If you don’t like what you find, file a new W-4… fast, because the 2009 tax year is almost over! The IRS has known about this problem since last spring, and they’ve been urging people to check their withholding amount since then.

Picking Up the Pieces of a Shattered Stimulus Plan

Payday loans may be short-term glue for what ails your budget, but this whole stimulus thing replaced pro-mise with pro-blems. For instance, a single worker with two jobs could get a $400 Obama-boost for each job, even though he’s only eligible for one $400 buff. That will have to be paid back. Similarly, with married couples where both work, if they combine to earn over $13,000, they enter a new tax bracket. There’s a total $1,200 boost instead of the $800 that should have been allowed. That’s $400 to pay back, friends. The Census Bureau says that 55 percent of all married couples in America are in this boat. That’s 33 million couples with 400 reasons to love Making Work Pay.

Wait, Don’t Forget Victimized Students

If they’re single and work part-time, they were eligible for the $400 credit. But, all my payday loans and garters, if their parents claimed them as a dependent, they didn’t qualify! In this case, Making Work Pay means paying back that $400.

Retirees Making Work Pay for Obama

More than 50 million Social Security recipients got $250 lump sum payments each, all thanks to Making Work Pay. But they were already receiving the credit for being employed, so the $250 refund will have to be paid back. It keeps getting better for American citizens.

Don’t Make the Same Mistakes in 2010

The Making Work Pay credit is still available, so tread cautiously. You certainly don’t want to create the same problem for yourself again. The average refund was about $2,800, so this Making Work Pay giveback will not result in a bill for many. However, some won’t be quite so lucky.

Iowa Sen. Chuck “Seppuku” Grassley of Iowa took a break from his more breathless moments to nail Making Work Pay on the head. It was “another unfortunate example of what can happen when Congress and the White House rush through legislation like the stimulus without thinking through the consequences,” he told the AP.

(Insert forehead slap and “I shoulda had a payday loan!” here)

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Have you had it up to here with your bank's overdraft protection schemes? You aren't alone, according to the Center for Responsible Lending. (Photo: flickr.com)

If you’re able to see past the shady origins and history of the Center for Responsible Lending, you’ll see that occasionally they do good work that benefits society. While they’re certainly no friend of the payday loans industry, I find that their recent report on the overdraft fees and overdraft protection rackets is worth noting for any financially conscious consumer. Personal Money Store wants you to be informed when it comes to your money, so take the CRL’s findings as a word of caution when it comes to the twisted world of overdraft fees and protection.

Major Overdraft Findings That Should Give You Pause

Overdraft fees and overdraft protection costs have skyrocketed in recent years. According to the CRL’s findings, there are three shocking points of which we should all be aware:

1. Overdraft occurs frequently. Over a 12-month period, the CRL found (based upon Federal Reserve data) that more than 50 million Americans overdrew their checking at least one time. Of those, more than half (27 million) had five or more.
2. How much operating income did overdraft feeds produce for banks and credit unions in 2008? Try $24 billion. Broken down, it’s been noted that a credit union could derive as much as 60 percent of their operating income from overdraft fees and overdraft protection.
3. Think overdraft is under control? Think again. From 2006 to 2008, the CRL found that banks and credit unions upped the penalty by 35 percent.

Were You Even Asked to Opt Into This?

For most people, the answer is no. When you sign up for a checking account at your bank or credit union of choice, you’re automatically enrolled in an overdraft program. And buried in the fine print of your contract is the overdraft fee schedule. Generally, transactions consumers don’t have the money to cover are automatically paid by the bank or credit union. What the consumer gets for the trouble is a penalty per transaction in the neighborhood of $34. Furthermore, banks and credit unions tend to charge an additional daily fee for as long as a consumer’s account balance remains overdrawn. Regardless of whether an account is overdrawn by $100 or $.01, fees can mount – and no bank or credit union I’m aware of works on a sliding scale. It’s all about flat fees that the consumer must pay. And CRL research indicates that for every $1 in overdraft protection credit extended to consumers using their debit cards, $2 in fees are assessed.

The Banks’ Defense

It’s all about protecting a consumer’s good name, they might say. By providing this “service” to customers, banks and credit unions claim they’re keeping people from bouncing checks. NSF fees from banks, bad check fees from merchants and (potentially) other late fees could amount to a person’s picture being hung on the wall in mug shot-like splendor.

Bouncing Checks Aren’t the Story, However

Debit card and ATM transactions are the big issue. The CRL finds that if banks and credit unions wanted to, they could simply decline transactions that would put consumers in the red. However, most do not do this. They pay for the transaction but “help” the consumer by severely penalizing them. While consumers should certainly be responsible with their money, digging unnecessarily deep holes for them to try to climb out of after they’ve already made mistakes is a questionable tactic on the public relations front. In the end, it comes across as a money grab.

The Reordering Transactions Shell Game

Did you know that banks and credit unions reserve the right to reorder your banking transactions from highest to lowest, even if the lesser transactions occurred first? This catches millions of consumers who gamble that a large expense won’t clear until after their paycheck is deposited. If you’ve ever done this (I know I have), know that you’re playing a losing game.

Automatically Dragged Over the Coals

This is what John and Jane Consumer typically get when they sign up for a standard checking account. Many aren’t even aware that cheaper options are available. Some banks may offer a cheaper, more formal line of overdraft credit, or even a link to a savings account in the case of overdraft. However, even these can be expensive. Payday loans, when used properly, can cost even less. Did you expect me to say otherwise?

A Terrible Trio for Consumers

Using FDIC data from 39 member banks, the CRL digs into just what the overdraft fee jungle means for consumers. They do this by addressing the three points raised above.

1. Overdraft Occurs Frequently

Of the 6.5 million accounts held in the FDIC sample, around one in four experienced at least one overdraft over the course of a year. One in seven experienced five or more. As mentioned earlier, this translates to about 51 million Americans stuck in the overdraft fee quagmire. Those with five or more instances are sinking beneath the muck. The CRL found that repeat offenders tended to be of lower income, single, non-Caucasian renters. Considering that the FDIC points to the 18 to 25 age group as being most likely to fall into the overdraft trap, it seems that more effective financial education is in order. Learning to control excessive impulse spending, balance the checkbook and consider options like payday loans in emergencies could help anyone.

2. Excessive Overdraft Fee Profits

Banks and credit unions are conveniently not obligated to report what they make on customers’ overdraft fees, but the FDIC did manage to compile from a sample of its member banks. They found that that around 69 percent of their service charge income came from NSF fees. Extrapolating the data, the CRL finds that this amounts to $34.3 billion in fees for 2008 alone for all service fees. Sixty-nine percent of that is $23.7 billion, a staggering sum that should be much lower. As banks, credit unions and even credit card companies are jacking up fees, that figure could be even larger in 2009.

3. Fees are Out of Control

As I was saying, overdraft fees are a source of concern for any consumer who depends upon the traditional banking industry to care for their money. As the collection has increased 35 percent from 2006 to 2008, the CRL wonders if there’s a ceiling. Organizations like the proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency and the Credit Card Bill of Rights are designed to help make right what has gone so far wrong, but will they have the healthy canine teeth to tear away the sweet meat?

As mentioned, fees for individual overdraft transactions and days a balance is in the red are commonplace. A cup of coffee, a tank of gas and a few miscellaneous convenience store purchases can quickly and silently become hundreds of dollars in overdraft fee debt. The CRL finds that the monthly average for individual debt card usage is 17. More than a quarter of those are for less than $10.17 on average. Imagine the possibilities across the banking industry. Since this use has exceeded credit card use since 2005, it’s also no wonder that the credit card industry has sought myriad ways to charge their customers with fine print clauses.

Fruits, Vegetables and Overdraft Fees

That sounds like part of a balanced diet these days. The CRL frightens us all with the details of how Americans spend “about the same amount” on overdraft as they do on fruits and vegetables. As for grains and other essentials like postal stamps and books, overdraft fees are clearly in the lead, say the CRL. Considering how difficult financial matters are during the recession, is it any wonder that the CRL found that most consumers would prefer that a transaction be denied than to have to paid exorbitant $34-per-transaction overdraft fees?

How Can This Problem Be Fixed?

This is your checking account on overdraft protection. (Photo: http://tolweb.org/)

Beyond preparing consumers to make sound financial choices, the financial abuses inherent in the traditional banking system must be exorcized. The Federal Reserve is considering that very matter, as is Congress. Large-scale change is needed.

Prohibit Overdraft Fees on Debit Card and ATM Transactions

This exception would be a welcome aid. If a fee is absolutely necessary, then a bank should have to provide a more highly visible, real-time warning so that debit and ATM infractions don’t fly under the radar and destroy overtaxed consumers’ budgets. If warning sign appears, consumers would have the choice to back out of the transaction (if the merchant didn’t simply rule out that method of payment). Some banks and credit unions block such transactions completely. The CRL suggests that all should follow the practice.

Overdraft Fees Should Be Proportional

The CRL’s finding that the amount that banks pay out to merchants for consumer overdraft is about half of what they actually charge consumers for the “convenience” is another signal beacon that change is needed. Flat fee overdraft charges are unnecessary when compared with the actual cost of covering the overdraft to banks and credit unions. It is understandable that banks and credit unions have to think of profit margins, but the current overdraft fee system is tantamount to gross customer abuse. The CRL suggests that an overdraft line with a reasonable rate of interest would be easier for consumers to swallow. Then again, rather than dealing with revolving interest, why not use payday loans?

There Should Be a Limit

If a consumer dashes their checking upon the overdraft fee rocks, banks and credit unions should be required to offer an alternative product at lower cost. A consumer shouldn’t be allowed to rack up more than six overdraft fees per year, says the CRL. This is what’s called weaning traditional financial institutions from their habits of excessive profit. Getting by with a reasonable profit margin may mean fewer executive retreats to Cabo San Lucas, but it’s the right thing to do.

No Overdraft Protection Without an Opt-In

This is self-explanatory. No service or accompanying gross fees should be thrown at a consumer without their approval. The CRL found that around 90 percent wanted to be able to choose whether they would have overdraft protection or not, so banks and credit unions should listen. If not, they run the risk of losing even more customers to payday loans when financial calamity strikes. Banks and credit unions certainly have a larger war chest to draw from, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t try to be competitive.

Make Banks Toe the TILA. Payday Lenders Do!

The Truth in Lending Act requires that lenders disclose certain information to the public. It seems that information regarding the amount of money banks collect in overdraft fees should be included in the purge, much the same way payday loan companies make their APR known. Since overdraft protection is an act of extending credit to a consumer, banks and credit unions should be forced to clarify just what they’re charging customers. No bank or credit union should be exempt from the law.

There’s Nothing Up My Sleeve

The Consumer Financial Protection Agency is on its way. President Obama made a great deal of show about the related Credit Card Bill of Rights. It’s time for banks and credit unions to be made to tow the line. If you’ve even gone through the hassle of dealing with overdraft, you know that there has to be something better behind the curtain. In the case of payday lenders, there’s nothing “up the sleeve.” In a short term financial emergency, payday loans are up front about fees, which typically are much less expensive than falling back on overdraft protection. The consumer should have the power to choose what fits their financial circumstances best.

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Installment loans are short-term loans that you can get automatically deposited in your account in just a couple of hours. You’ll start paying back your installment loan when you get your next paycheck, but you don’t have to pay back the full amount all at once. Installment loans allow you to make a few separate payments.

Here are three common reasons people use short-term loans, such as payday loans and installment loans.

1. To Save Money

The fee on a small payday loan or installment loan — $100 to $200 — is lower than a bank overdraft charge. And that’s for one overdraft charge, and most banks charge a fee of up to $35 each time you make a purchase on an overdrawn account. You could get a payday loan or installment loan of up to $600 for less than it would cost to make three purchases of any amount on an overdrawn account.

If your car gets towed, leaving it at the tow yard overnight is extremely expensive. If you take out a small short-term loan to get your car back just one day earlier than you could otherwise, you’ll save a lot of money. There are a lot of other ways payday loans and installment loans can save you money, but you can also use them…

2. To Protect Your Credit

If you have a very good credit score and you want to keep it that way, installment loans and payday loans can keep you from making a late payment at getting a black mark on your credit. You can apply online and get cash automatically deposited into your account today and use that money to avoid missing a payment.

Payday lenders don’t run your credit score, so your short term loan won’t show up on your credit report.

3. Emergency necessity expenses

If you have an emergency expense that needs to be taken care of right away and you don’t have the cash, payday loans and installment loans can help. If you heater breaks in the winter or your power is going to be shut off, you can use payday loans or installment loans. If an expensive appliance breaks, such as your fridge or washing machine, don’t suffer without it. Get an installment loan to repair or replace it right away.

You can get payday loans and installment loans online, and you can pay them back electronically, too. APPLY NOW.

Start Your Application For Payday Loans Online Here

Payday loans in Ohio still exist, but the opposition continues to bulk up for the next battle. (Photo: Wikipedia.org)

The battle for payday loans in Ohio has been a difficult one for consumers. The recession hit the Ohio workforce harder than most, and the need for emergency short term loans is greater than ever before. Yet the state legislature in their infinite wisdom decided that what their constituents needed was nanny state regulation. Rates were capped at 28 percent APR, which effectively crippled the industry in Ohio and sent credit- and liquid asset-constrained consumers scrambling toward more expensive options. That rate is more stringent that the federal rate of 36 percent APR set for lending to active military, and we know that even at that level, the business model in unsustainable.

Payday Lending is Now

Consumers desire the flexibility to choose what is best for their financial situation. The Columbus Dispatch, rather than turning away from this point in order to blow with the political wind, recently produced an article that was pleasantly even-handed. For some, it’s true: payday loans are “the only way to get by.” While no reputable lender would advocate payday loan dependency, it’s been proven not only in customer surveys but in studies conducted by the Federal Reserve and institutions of higher learning that payday loan can be an invaluable tool for smoothing out financial shocks.

Choice is Good

CheckSmart CEO Ted Saunders pointed out to the Dispatch that “There is a bank right there,” in reference to a traditional institution just a football field away from one of his stores. “They could go right there if they wanted to.”

Competition fosters choice. It also tends to help regulate prices, both of which are benefits to the consumer. But activists like Bill Faith of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COOHIO), who appears to be a firm believer in the nanny state, reminds that “People at one point also were excited about high-interest subprime mortgage loans that helped ruin the housing market.” Yet Faith makes an apples-to-oranges comparison. Wall Street shenanigans and impotent governmental policy that allowed it to go on are what destroyed the economy. Payday loans aren’t even in the same ballpark. In fact, studies like those by Dartmouth College’s Jonathan Zinman suggest that capping payday loan rates and otherwise restricting the industry harms consumers’ financial welfare.

Don’t Believe? Ask Somebody Who Has Used Payday Loans

The Dispatch interviewed Amie, a 47-year-old mother of six. Recessionary times have been tough for her budget, and her low earnings make getting ahead almost impossible. Even though she’s found herself jumping from one payday loan to another, she said “I can’t complain. At least they’re helping me,” referring to CheckSmart in Ohio.

That’s ammunition that payday loan critics would use to say that companies like CheckSmart are pulling Amie into an endless cycle of debt. But what we truly have here is a financial landscape where banks, credit unions and even employers have for the most part failed to serve the populace. Requirements to apply for consumer loans through old-school channels often exclude those who need the most help. As wages have not kept pace with the rise of inflation, too many consumers like Amie find themselves in a large hole.

Legislation: Like an Ant Lion’s Hole

Legislators who fight for 28 percent APR and other such unreasonable restrictions upon businesses without the deep pockets of the financial mainstream are creating a nanny state scenario where consumers with nowhere else to turn will have to depend upon the “alms” of the government and their banking tentacles. Freedom of choice sinks beneath the waves. Or, if the government does not assert total control and credit-restricted consumers are left to fend for themselves, regulating payday loan companies out of the market most frequently leaves consumers with even more expensive options, from loan sharks to overdraft fees. At least payday lenders make their costs clear up front. That’s something a bank never does with overdraft fees. If you’re skirting the red, using an ATM card becomes a deadly game, as every infraction can incur a fee of $25 or more, even if you overdraw your account by as little as one penny. But that’s OK, says banks. It’s all in the micro-fine print!

“Banks and other lending institutions aren’t doing their jobs,” says Koziura

That’s what House Financial Institutions Committee chair Rep. Joseph F. Koziura of Lorain, Ohio told the Dispatch. “The system is built on making money on fees now instead of the old-fashioned loaning money and putting money in the system. That’s 90 percent of the reason we’re screwed up.”

What happened when half of Ohio’s 1,600 payday lending outlets closed down after approval of a 28 percent APR rate cap? Lots of people hopped into the unemployment line, for one. Consumers kowtowed to the voice of government and made life more difficult for those who can ill afford such windmill chasing. There were certainly some payday lenders who were unscrupulous in their dealings with customers, but it was not a majority. Payday lending is a regulated industry with a keen eye toward consumer relations. Groups like the Community Financial Services Association and the Online Lenders Alliance are there to ensure that consumers can safely enjoy the use of payday loans.

But Payday Lenders Aren’t Being Allowed to Run Legitimate Business

Charging $15 per $100 loaned is common for a payday loan. For a two-week loan, paying 15 percent interest is reasonable for an emergency service that can expose the lender to a great deal of financial risk. But Ohio legislators managed to convince consumers (lead the lemmings?) into laws that prevent payday lenders from even doing that. According to the Dispatch, CheckSmart charges up to that rate, but it’s broken down into numerous fees in order to circumvent faulty legislation. It gets around the 28 percent APR rate cap as it currently exists. And CheckSmart makes each of the individual fees clear to its customers, who continue to use their services. The truth is what consumers want, not horror stories that leave you thinking, “Yeah, that really doesn’t happen to most people.” No hook hands scraping the door at midnight, no dolls that move on their own and no payday loan debt traps… that’s story time, kids.

Legislators Still Aren’t Satisfied

Ohio legislators are continuing to drive for a 28 percent APR rate cap that applies to any payday loan and closes the loopholes. “The latest bill up for debate in a House committee,” writes the Dispatch, “would cap interest at 28 percent for all loans of up to $1,000 made for a term of three months or less.” That would kill payday lending in Ohio. A vote is set for early December.

Payday Lending: A Tool to Be Used with Healthy Caution

Payday lending is not a magic ATM. It isn’t money to fulfill your wildest cash desires at a moment’s notice. Such unbridled use can easily lead to dependency, when what a consumer’s finances need is sound budgeting. But regulating payday lending out of business in Ohio because a minority of consumers use the payday loan product in ways it was not intended to be used is no answer. If people fear the nanny state when it comes to bailouts and healthcare, shouldn’t they also fear it in this avenue of consumer finance?

Speaking of government, there’s an invention called Social Security. While it has been a cash lifeline for some, many others worry that it may be a financial scam, a Ponzi scheme that is costing the modern workforce millions each year. Yet legislators make no earnest attempt to reform that system. They consider payday loans a more desirable target, perhaps? There might just be more of a campaign war chest in that field, thanks to the banking industry. Vote as the dollars go; isn’t that the way?

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Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/scobleizer/ / CC BY 2.0

In January 2009, for the first time in its history, Microsoft Corp. announced it would cut some 5,000 jobs over the year as the company witnessed a drastic decline in revenue. The company suffered an 11 percent drop in profit, leaving many Microsoft workers unemployed and in need of short term loans. However, according to several news reports, it appears this trend will only continue for Microsoft.

Microsoft Layoffs – Another 1,000 Down

According to Seattle’s Tech Flash News, Microsoft will lay off almost 1,000 employees as part of its budget cutting. Apparently, the plan to cut 5,000 jobs is not yet over. This wave of job cuts, however, is said to be part of the final phase of the company’s initial plan to cut 5,000 jobs over a period of 18 months. This time around, however, employees at Microsoft will not be as fortunate.

Earlier this year, during Microsoft’s massive layoffs in January and May, laid off employees were able to find other positions within the company. Unfortunately, with limited job openings and slow growth, people will have to go somewhere else to find employment.

Falling Revenues

Last month, Microsoft posted its quarterly revenue at $12.92 billion, down $730 million from the amount reported in its third quarter ending March 31, 2009. With the help of the Windows 7 launch and a steady demand for Xbox, the company says its revenue would have been $14.39 billion and earnings would have been 52 cents, up 8 percent, according to Tech Flash. However, through advance sales and negotiations, the key strategy behind the Windows 7 launch deferred about $1.5 billion in revenue from the quarter. According to accounting rules, customers must first be given an opportunity to actually get the final product they bargained for before the company can recognize the revenue.

The Unemployed – What can you do?

Since the beginning of the recession, the unemployment rate has been climbing significantly. More and more people have fallen in need of short term loans and debt relief. But what else can be done to alleviate the amount of stress and financial worries during such a trying time of need? Save, sacrifice, and safeguard; that’s what.

Payday Loans have the green light when it comes to going where the financial need is greatest. Access to conventional credit plays a large role. (Photo: flickr.com)

Payday loans are an inescapable landmark in America’s modern economic landscape. The popularity of the short term loan product has grown significantly since the early 1990s, and it’s no wonder. Giving consumers the ability to absorb financial shocks in the short term – enabling them to avoid hefty penalties – is useful for maintaining economic welfare. It is important for consumers to be educated as to their alternatives in a financial emergency, however. For their part, the payday lending industry (organized under such groups as the Community Financial Services Association and the Online Lenders Alliance) has helped to educate consumers as to how payday loans work and when they should or shouldn’t advisably be used. However, the responsibility rightly rests with the individual.

Unfortunately, the image still persists within the popular media that payday loans are an instrument through which unscrupulous businessmen and women exploit “at-risk” members of society. One of the primary means these critics use to attempt to prove their point is by focusing on the geographic clustering of brick-and-mortar payday loan locations (as well as pawn shops and check cashing outlets). This fails to take into account online payday loan companies and aggregators like Personal Money Store, whose average customer by income tends to fall comfortably into the middle class. However, when brick-and-mortar locations only are considered, a clear pattern of going where demand is greatest becomes apparent. A recent study by Robin Prager, the Assistant Director in the Division of Research and Statistics for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, supports the assertion that payday loan businesses tend to cluster in areas where access to credit may be restricted and liquid assets that help consumers handle financial surprises may be closer to scarce than abundant.

“Determinants of the Locations of Payday Lenders, Pawnshops and Check-Cashing Outlets“

Prager groups payday loans, pawn shops, check cashing and a number of related short term loan companies under the name “alternative financial service providers” (AFSPs). Recognizing the controversy the rapid growth of these institutions has generated, Prager analyzes the geographic placement of AFSPs. Using county-level data for the entire country, she expands upon the regional work most studies had undertaken before. Demographics, population, consumer credit profiles and the degree of strictness in state and local laws all play a role in where the largest clusters of AFSPs appear.

Rules and Regulations Facing AFSPs

Payday lending, pawn broking and check cashing aren’t overnight sensations. They date back to at least the 1930s, although payday lending may date back to Colonial America and pawn broking in its various forms is particularly ancient. As with any explosive growth industry, there has been a need for regulation. AFSPs are subject to regulations on the federal, state and local level. Such things as the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, the USA PATRIOT Act, and the Bank Secrecy Act all have jurisdiction. Moreover, all loan companies must follow the federal rules of the Truth in Lending Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and the Talent-Nelson Amendment to the 2007 Defense Authorization Bill, to name a few. On the state and local level, numerous and variable other regulations exist. It’s safe to say that a regulatory maze exists when it comes to AFSPs. While they do serve to protect consumers against potential exploitation, the question as to whether over-regulation has stifled competition with the consumer financial services industry is a more than legitimate area for study.

Urban vs. Rural Distribution

Prager found that in 2006, 98.9 percent of rural and 99.6 percent of urban counties in the U.S. featured at least one bank or thrift branch. Furthermore, two-thirds of rural and 90 percent of urban counties had at least one AFSP provider (payday lender, pawnshop, check casher, etc). Considering population by county, the average of 33,000 people were serviced by 2.5 payday loan stores, 1.2 pawn shops, 1.7 check-cashing outlets and 10.7 bank and thrift branches. On the urban side, the numbers change to 220,000 people, 16.6 payday loan stores, 7.4 pawnshops, 21.2 check cashers and 67.5 bank and thrift branches. AFSPs like payday loan companies are certainly not more prevalent than banks in Prager’s sample.

Where Do the Payday Lenders Congregate?

Prager found that the highest concentration of payday loans outlets on a per capita basis came in southern states where regulation is more forgiving: Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana. Pawn shops concentration was also high in such areas (primarily Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee), although check cashing ranked highest in California, Delaware, Mississippi and North Carolina.

Banks and thrifts found their highest concentration in the north central states, including Kansas, Nebraska and North Dakota. This did not tend to correlate into having a negative effect on the number of pawn shops and check cashing outlets in a county, but Prager did find a positive correlation when it came to payday loan stores.

Credit Scores Point to Subprime

Here is where we get to the heart of the matter with AFSPs like payday loan stores. They tend to appear where the need is greatest. If consumers have difficulty security mainstream credit in an emergency, then payday loans become a very attractive option. Prager introduces an equation that factors credit availability and a variety of other factors in order to express the number of AFSP outlets as a function. It is a function of the following demographic data: racial/ethnic mixture, age, consumer education, poverty standing and the county’s population density. As stated, creditworthiness and area regulations are also factors.

Here are some of Prager’s comments on results:

Looking first at the equations explaining the number of payday loan stores per million capita, we see that the results are fairly similar for urban and rural counties. In both cases the number of payday loan stores per million capita is negatively related to the share of the population that is Hispanic, positively related to the share of the population that is non-Hispanic black, and unrelated to the share that is Asian. Payday lenders are more prevalent in both urban and rural counties where a larger share of the population is below the age of 40 and less prevalent in both urban and rural counties where a larger share of the population lives below the poverty level. The number of payday loan stores per million capita is significantly related to the share of the population with a high school diploma (negative sign) and population density (positive sign) in rural, but not urban, counties.

Patterns in Payday Loan/AFSP Placement

Prager recognizes a few general patterns: 1) Payday lenders/AFSPs appear in credit challenged areas; 2) But they tend to avoid areas where the poverty level is highest; 3) AFSPs and other payday loan businesses aren’t seen to be particularly concentrated in Hispanic regions; 4) Payday lenders do tend to appear more in the African-American community; 5) population density and payday lending presence are connected in rural areas, but not as much in urban; and 6) Not surprisingly, areas with tighter regulation show a much lower instance of payday loan companies.

Payday Lenders Do Not Prey on the Poor

This is what Prager found based upon county-to-county data and it runs contrary not only to what the mainstream media would have you believe, but to the findings of a number of past studies. Credit scores remain a prime factor in distribution of AFSP. Going where the need is greatest is an idea that holds up in this instance. Mainstream credit may be less expensive on average, but if a consumer does not have the credit to access such a thing, then payday loans are the best options. As federal, state and local governments devise new ways of continuing to limit the industry, what exactly do they think credit-challenged individuals are going to do? If sinking beneath the waves of poverty so that they’re “out of sight, out of mind” is a feasible solution for elected officials, then perhaps people who can display more reason and human compassion deserve a turn.

Apply for Payday Loans here!

Think this represents the average payday loan company CEO? Think again. Profitability is hardly out of sight, even if it has allowed the industry to grow. (Photo: flickr.com)

Infinite profits earned off the backs of the infinite suffering masses. If you take your news from the multi-colored, sugar-laden toothpaste tube that is the mainstream media, then you believe that the payday loan industry is reaping massive profits while those who crawl about on their bellies are drowning in six inches of debt. It’s such an affecting image that it resides in some nether-region beyond belief. In other words, don’t buy the hype.

Payday loan companies aren’t a charitable organization, to be sure. They profit from the service they offer to consumers, but as studies like “The Profitability of Payday Loans” by Paige Skiba of Vanderbilt University Law School and Jeremy Tobacman of Oxford University indicate, the profits derived from interest are very much in line with those taken by more “traditional” lending institutions.

Short-Term Liquidity Has its Price

That’s exactly what payday loans and similar forms of short term loans provide. Their convenient immediacy (sans an extensive battery of credit and background checks) presents a certain amount of risk for lenders, so price protection is understandable. Skiba and Tobacman use financial data from the Center for Research in Security Prices (CRSP) and SEC filings, as well as loan data from several major payday loan companies.

While the most expensive payday lenders charge what amounts to over 1,000 percent APR (somewhat moot; payday lenders typically charge 12 to 20 percent for two- to four-week loans), the authors find that “lenders’ firm-level returns differ little from typical financial returns.” The implication here is that on a per-loan and per-store basis, the payday loan industry experiences high costs that bite into their “profits.”

Methodology of the Study

The authors examine the CRSP and SEC numbers for seven First we summarize publicly available, firm-level profitability data from CRSP and SEC filings. They find average returns of 10 to 25 percent each year in profit. That’s on a per-firm level.

On the individual level, it is observed that loans are generally small, yielding a meager $49 in interest on average. Yet five percent loss ratios eat up more than one quarter of that interest. Net returns (interest minus defaults) amount “in expectation over all of the marginal borrower’s loans to only about $100,” find the authors. Payday lenders, then, would appear to exist in a highly competitive environment where per-loan and per-store costs are indeed large when compared with interest earnings.

Firm-Level Profits

According to the data, payday lenders have performed well on average, earning 10.1 percent profit. Yet because returns have been volatile, the Sharpe ratio (of excess return) is close to zero. Stock data has revealed little indication of excess dividends and SEC 10-K and 10-Q show only “moderate” return on equity, find the authors. Looking at the data of the payday loan firms involved in the study and comparing their returns against those of companies in the S&P 500, the authors once again find that there is “a profile of firm-level profits that fails to approach annualized payday loan interest rates.”

It should be noted that government regulation of the payday loan industry, particularly the September 2006 Talent-Nelson Amendment cap on lending to active-duty military, have impacted firm-level large risk premiums, to the point where the FDIC even released a report (http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/safety/payday/) suggesting that the “unusual risk” accepted by payday lenders justifies the interest and suggests ways payday loan companies can effectively handle this risk.

Individual-Level Profits

How does interest as high as 7,295 percent (the highest instance in the authors’ study) per year lead to only a 10 percent equity return? The authors look at individual-level data for payday loan origination, repayment and instances of customer defaults. The authors determine a mean payday loan size of $283 and median of $269. Eighteen percent interest leads to average revenue of $49 per payday loan, but once losses are taken into account, the story changes. The authors observed that approximately nine percent of post-dated collateral checks bounce. Collections were found to be pursued internally for 60 days, during which time the lenders collected on about half.

Credit standards tell an important tale as well. The better the short term loan applicant’s credit score, the greater revenues payday lenders derive. The authors find that “the intercept of the best-fitting line at the credit score threshold is $100.49. Thus, if the industry is competitive, the total economic costs of servicing the marginal borrower equal $100.49.”

Small Money, Big Default

Returns are astronomical in theory only. Stock returns are also observed to be modest for payday lenders. Store-level costs have to play a major role in this. A 2003 study by Jerry Robinson and John Wheeler estimated 40,000 employees in the payday lending industry. Their wages totaled $1.4 billion annually. They also found that total interest revenue for payday loans totaled $4.0 to $4.3 billion in 2002, indicating that employee salaries eat up a significant portion of that (about one-third).

A 2003 study by Michael Stegman and Robert Faris found that while the 2000 per-payday loan outlet profit in North Carolina was $57,999, the capital requirements for these outlets amount to at least $35,606. This doesn’t factor in wage costs, rent, marketing or administrative expenses, but it does include bounced-check fees, screening costs and loan losses.

You begin to see how expensive it is to operate a payday loan business. Flannery and Samolyk (2005) found that store costs and their revenues are related to store age, too. Start-up costs and establishing a clientele are difficult hurdles that have led newer entrants into the payday lending market to consider the online payday loan market.

A Cash Flow Example

Skiba and Tobacman present this hypothetical. Let’s say a payday loan store has $10,000 in capital at the beginning of the year. If risk is loan default risk is eliminated from the equation and 18 percent interest is earned every two weeks, the take would be $739,500 by year’s end. If annual wages amount to $30,000 (paid out every two weeks), that bill would be a large part of the $1,800 in interest income at the beginning of the year. At that time, the store would only early six percent on its capital. The year-end result would be an annual net of 2,150 percent, which is profitable but hardly extortionary.

So Someone Thinks Payday Lenders Should Only Charge by Cost?

Critics want a flat fee for payday loans – regardless of loan size – but the truth is that so many cost variables exist such as the cost of firms to originate payday loans that per-store differences in fees charged are necessary. Considering the explosive growth within the industry (200 stores observed in 1990 according to the authors vs. 30,000 in 2004), which came in no small part due to lobbying, there is both a consumer need for the product and an environment in which they can successfully exist on the subprime market.

Pricing behavior is largely regulated by oversight organizations like the Community Financial Services Association and the Online Lenders’ Association, but businesses that exist outside these member organizations may unfortunately set rates that are far beyond what is necessary. This is where government regulation can help rein in payday loan companies with the most excessive prices (even if this group may be in the minority of the industry), but excessive regulation is not desirable. Stifling market competition and limiting consumer choice are hardly a desirable alternative.

Ah, Payless. Image from Flickr.

Though Oprah Payless coupons do exist in the usual, online download and print out format, this time there is a twist. If you go to Oprah.com/payless, you have the choice of downloading and printing the Oprah Payless coupons or getting a text message that says you are entitled to the savings.

So what’s the big deal about the Oprah Payless coupons? Fifty percent off, that’s what! Payless already has such great prices, 50 percent of products from Payless are a steal. And I could actually use some new shoes…

Texting technology

I think most people will probably choose the text message option for receiving their Oprah Payless coupon. Sending a text message is a whole lot easier and faster than downloading the Oprah Payless coupons from Acrobat reader and printing it out.

I tried it, and I got the text message back saying I was entitled to 50 percent off my entire purchase at Payless instantly. The deal is only good for today, so don’t drag your feet. Fifty percent off is such a good deal, it might even be worth it to get short term loans so you can take advantage of it if you don’t have the money right now.

Oprah coupons

I won’t be surprised if I hear reports of or see packed Payless stores tonight. When Oprah speaks, whatever she says is heard around the world. KFCs went totally crazy a few months ago when she had coupons for free chicken on her web site.

This new idea of getting a text message coupon is a good one, though. I really hope it catches on. It saves paper and it’s super fast and easy. What could be better than getting Oprah Payless coupons or other coupons sent to  your phone? I can think of one thing: getting a $5 pair of shoes. Get your Oprah Payless coupon at www.oprah.com/payless.

Parenthood is as sacred a thing as exists for human beings. What's fair is what the child needs, not that you keep up with Martha Jones' in number of vacation days. (Photo: flickr.com)

I think that America has the wrong idea when it comes to work-life balance. The wheels of business have to turn for our economy to function, but do we honestly have to spend the vast majority of our waking lives (and sleeping lives, if you dream about work) at work to keep the engine running? There a host of other countries – many of them European – that aren’t mired in poverty. Salaried employees there tend to have more time outside of the office than Americans. I’d wager that they’re happier for it.

Take Paid Maternity Leave, For Instance

Compared with other nations like the Czech Republic, America’s paid maternity leave is pathetic. Certainly it’s an expensive venture to cover a woman’s salary while she’s away from work for an extended period of time. No short term loans can cover that kind of gap, which means tax dollars must be used. And I understand that some object to using their tax dollars to subsidize another woman’s pregnancy. But I simply cannot agree with people like those who would claim that they’re entitled to the same amount of paid maternity leave as a new mother.

2,000 U.K. Women Were Surveyed

Bethany Sanders writes in Forbes that 74 percent of childless women surveyed want paid maternity leave, too. The survey, which originally ran in the Telegraph, shows that most women want the same year of maternity leave (39 weeks paid) that new U.K. mothers receive.

Is it envy? Is it an overwhelming desire for justice and fair play? Or is it all of the above? Whatever the case, it seems to me that the entire point of childbirth, parent-child bonding and the handing over the keys to the kingdom from the old to the young is undervalued. Do they think it’s all a blissful vacation? Being a parent is joyous. It is also a great responsibility – and a time where parents get little or no rest. Such is the way of parenthood. And remember: we all started out as children. Bonding time with parents is invaluable.

Businesses Do the Spit Take

Businesses certainly aren’t warming to the idea of paid maternity for everyone (men included, as paternity). Of course, if the work-life balance was handled properly to begin with, they’d be conditioned to granting more time. The Industrial Revolution took us down the wrong path in this regard, and much of the world still hasn’t recovered. Yet if everyone had a sufficient-sized pool to draw from, perhaps there would be less squabbling and more relaxation.

Childless Men and Women, Listen Up

Your desire for time off is justifiable. And your time is as personal and valuable as another person’s. Yet you’re missing the point. Children are a class of society that deserves privileged status and special treatment more than any other. Having this early time to bond with parents should not be optional. It should be considered a requirement like eating, breathing, sleeping and pooping. Give children that and the odds are even greater that societies to come will be more well-adjusted and happy. Give the children time and we will be rewarded as a whole.

Pregnant women also need extra time to recuperate (or at least to take a stab at recuperation). If you’ve ever been there, you know. I helped keep one alive – twice – so I’ve at least seen it.

Do the Childless Deserve Paid “Maternity?”

They absolutely do not. But we all deserve more time away from the working world. We neglect personal development and family time at our peril. Knock Humpty from the wall and see just how inadequate short term loans are to put him back together again. But if things were different and we needed to buy diapers we couldn’t afford (child or adult diapers) between paychecks, short term loans would be a reasonable option.

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Consumerism is American. Free market capitalism and payday loans are all part of necessary competition, despite what critics would have you believe. (Photo: flickr.com)

If media and banking industry critics of payday lending are to be believed, payday loan outlets are perched in the reeds, muscles coiled in anticipation of springing upon unsuspecting consumers. “Predatory lending” is the fallback term such misinformed critics use, under the assumption that people who use payday loans are tricked or somehow lured into doing so. Yet ample evidence exists that indicates that payday loan customers are educated and take time to consider their options before choosing the short term loan product.

Understand Who Uses Payday Loans

Edward Lawrence and Gregory Elliehausen studied who uses payday loans and why in their April 2008 Contemporary Economic Policy article “A Comparative Analysis of Payday Loan Customers.” Using a national survey that takes into account numerous payday loan outlets belonging to industry trade association the Community Financial Services Association (CFSA), the authors reach beyond the veil of anecdotal evidence as they interview 427 payday loan customers from the survey. Rather than finding an uneducated, unsophisticated group that is being victimized against their will or better judgment, Lawrence and Elliehausen found that payday loan customers consider their decisions carefully and weigh the cost of payday loans against other costs both monetary and environmental.

Consumers, Consumption and Debt Burden

Consumer credit fills a definite need, particularly for segments of society without a great deal of liquid assets at their easy disposal and a significant debt burden. Building upon Juster and Shay’s 1964 study “Consumer Sensitivity to Finance Rates: An Empirical and Analytical Investigation,” where consumer credit is seen to be used on household durable goods, and multiple studies that suggest that such a method is financially feasible when the rate of return is high, Lawrence and Elliehausen point toward a model where high interest payday lending may be optimal for certain consumers. The conditions under which the authors see this would be the case are “relatively high-return investment opportunities, low current income and strong preferences for current consumption.”

Yes, We Live in a Consumer Culture

Americans see it as their right (and their curse) to “keep up with the Joneses.” When this behavior is left unchecked, personal debt can spiral out of control. Thus, when consumers look to short term loans like payday loans to handle financial shocks, they do so in large part because they do not have the liquid assets available to handle their debt obligations in lump sums. Creditors know this, so they tend to limit the amount of credit they extend so as to protect themselves from default. Unsecured personal loans are available from payday lenders to make up the difference. They are available at a cost that the authors find consumers are more willing to swallow than more expensive or socially taboo alternatives.

The Rise of Rationed Borrowers

The authors refer to the Juster and Shay study in stating that borrowers constrained by their debt loads are “rationed” borrowers. Juster and Shay theorize that rationed borrowers are “in early family life-cycle stages where rates of return on household investments would be high.” Their income would be low to moderate, which would explain the small amount of liquid assets available. Furthermore, their demand for consumer credit would be connected less to interest rates and more to the general lack of standard credit available.

That’s the way Juster and Shay saw it in 1964, 45 years ago. Things have changed a great deal since then. Creditors have a greater technical facility for assessing and pricing risk, say Lawrence and Elliehausen. The requirements for equity have lessened and the time for short term loans to reach maturity have lengthened. Unsecured credit through bank-issued credit cards has also become more readily available. There is a “subprime credit card market” for today’s rationed borrowers, but there are other alternatives that do not deal so heavily in the constant spiral of revolving debt. Payday loans have been a prime alternative for rationed borrowers.

NOT Preying Upon the Elderly

Some critics of payday loans claim the industry preys upon the elderly. However, numerous recent studies indicate that young and middle-aged consumers have contributed to an increasing demand for short term loans. Their drives are somewhat different, as Lawrence and Elliehausen’s findings show. For the young, their demand for payday loans has been predicated on how quickly they can pay off their short term loans (seven to 20 days is standard) and hence regiment their budget, whereas middle-aged  consumers’ demand is more in tune with obtaining better interest rates.

Budgetary Discipline

This sense of maintaining a budget in the face of environmental pressures resonates through various other studies. Katona’s “Psychological Economics” (1975) indicates that consumers “may be reluctant to increase credit card debt because they fear that they will not have the discipline to make payments on the additional debt.”In this case, Lawrence and Elliehausen hypothesize that consumer use of payday loans via a standard contract may be expensive in a traditional sense, but if the alternative is increased vulnerability to higher debt or even an inability to access credit, the short term loans are preferable in the long run.

Survey Says

Payday loan customers surveyed by Lawrence and Elliehausen tend to break many of the stereotypical notions spread by critics of the industry. They are not in fact poor; just over half had family incomes between $25,000 and $49,999. Considering that having an active checking account is a requirement for obtaining a payday loan, unbanked households (generally lower income) are not being exploited by such short term loans. In terms of age, two-thirds were under 45 years old, with more than one-third under 35. Only 10 percent were 55 or older, so clearly the elderly is not being targeted. Family situations indicated more than half were married or living with a partner, and 65 percent of respondents had children under 18 years of age living in the household. These are young families with debt loads who are attempting to deal with financial shocks as best they can. Now that America is in a recession, I’m sure that if Lawrence and Elliehausen conducted their survey today, the numbers would continue to support this idea.

Do They Have Other Options?

The survey indicated that a whopping 91.6 percent of payday loan customers do rely on other types of consumer credit at times. However, considering the finding that payday loan customers are less likely to use revolving credit like credit cards, one would think that they find an advantage in using the more regimented payday loan model. I would offer that it is precisely that budgetary discipline discussed earlier that makes payday loans more appealing for these rationed borrowers.

Of course, having other credit options tends to go hand-in-hand with the potential for a greater debt burden. As such, the authors’ survey found that 73 percent of payday loan customers had been turned down or limited in their ability to secure other types of loans over the past five years. Payday loans become a necessity during financial emergencies if other options are limited. In fact, two-thirds of respondents claimed they used payday loans due to unforeseen financial events.

Making Informed Decisions

Lawrence and Elliehausen found that respondents to the payday loan survey tended to follow cognitive models suggested in other consumer credit studies. Specifically, they go through a process where they recognize need, gather details, consider options, decide and then evaluate how it went in the aftermath. As the majority of consumers in the survey appeared educated (the majority were high school graduates or had college experience), it would stand to reason that payday loan customers tend to display cognitive ability and efficiency. In the case of details like APRs and finance charges, greater education tended to equate to greater awareness (where such factors were considered important in the decision-making process).

Young Families Who Consider Options Carefully

Lawrence and Elliehausen’s findings speak to the financial realities facing many American families. They’re just starting out, their wages are not yet high and they don’t have many liquid assets lying around for a rainy day. Used in a non-habitual fashion, payday loans help absorb financial shocks during times of financial difficulty. They give consumers “a little control over their financial affairs they otherwise would not have,” write the authors. Is it any wonder then that customer attitudes toward payday lending were positive in the survey? There is peace of mind in being able to handle one’s own affairs. Since the majority of those surveyed did not show signs that they were using payday loans beyond the fashion for which they were intended, why is it that the government should be so gung-ho to step in with heavy regulation and taxation? By stymieing competition in a free market economy and restricting payday loan availability, aren’t they harming both consumers in need and their own capitalist system?

Still looking for pumpkin templates to help decorate for Halloween? Heidi Braley of eHow has a simple how-to for your carving delight! (Photo: flickr.com)

This past weekend, I sat down at the dining room table with my children to decorate a Jack O’ Lantern for Halloween. They’re a bit too young to handle the sharp carving implements, but I had them take the pumpkin innards out and draw designs. It was a simple, wholesome affair that provided us with the kind of daddy-daughter-son bonding time we cherish.

And Guess What? It Wasn’t Expensive!

That’s right, no short term loans were required to fund our holiday merriment. This isn’t to say that you can’t use them if you want to go all-out in your Halloween decorating, just that you don’t have to break the bank. That’s something wallets carved up by the recession can appreciate, am I right?

eHow Has a Great How-To for Your Pumpkin-Carving Needs

Heidi Braley gives a simple, step-by-step summary of how to carve a pumpkin. With some simple tools and perhaps pumpkin templates of your choice, you can make your pumpkin scream like there’s no tomorrow.

Cutting, Cutting, Cutting

First, take a sufficiently sharp knife (Braley suggests a boning knife; I used a “pumpkin carving” knife I bought at a craft store) to cut a hole in the pumpkin. Then reach in and rip out the guts! Contrary to popular method, Braley says it’s easier to cut the hole from the bottom of the pumpkin. I’ve never been one to go easy, so I cut a hole in the top. What a fool I was! It’s much easier to place and light the candle if you’re dealing with the bottom of the pumpkin.

Oh, don’t forget to save the insides, even the seeds. There are lots of nifty dishes you can make! Braley suggests this recipe for the pumpkin seeds.

Paste on the Pumpkin Template

I used tape, but of course I’ve already told you what a mechanically declined fool I am. Stick it right on there and carve through the template and the pumpkin wall. Or if you’re artistic and don’t need pumpkin templates, draw right on that gourd with a marker and cut into that. It helps if the pumpkin is dry so the marker ink will stay.

I included one of Braley’s recommended pumpkin templates links above. Here’s another.

Carving Apparatus Recommendations

A Dremel is nice, but I said you didn’t necessarily need short term loans for this project. But if you bring in the power tools, set them to low for tracing purposes and high to bite into those larger areas. A sharp tool you can poke with also works.

Get that Paper and Marker Out of There

What are you, a slob?

OK, I am. I confess.

Most people will want to get the excess paste, paper from pumpkin templates and marker ink off the finished product. Scrub it all off. To stave off shriveling (because the chill touch of the grave spares no pumpkin), soak your gourd in water. Make sure to put the pumpkin in water, too. Then air-dry it and rub petroleum jelly over the cut areas. Otherwise, the edges will go dry. For your own gourd, the edges are going to go dry eventually, so just submit to the ravages of time and get on with it.

Set a Fire in its (Pumpkin) Flesh

Tea candles and glass votives work quite well here, suggests Braley. And like the rest of this project, they are inexpensive and free of the need for short term loans. But if you do need a short term loan to clean your house after the paint has been damaged by all the egging and wet toilet paper, Personal Money Store will keep a loan on for you.

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Before you apply for a payday loan, installment loan or other form of short term loan, it pays for a consumer to do their research on www.cashnetusa.com. That way, you know where your loan is coming from and where your assets are going when it comes time to repay the debt.

If you’re considering doing business with CashNet, here’s some information to aid you in your decision. As always, please keep in mind that payday loans, installment loans and other short term loan products should be used responsibly. If you enlist the services of a payday lender, you should feel comfortable that they will treat your business in an equally responsible manner.

CashNetUSA.com – Since 2004

According to their Web site at www.cashnetusa.com, CashNetUSA is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The 500-plus-employee payday loan business claims membership in the Community Financial Services Association and the Better Business Bureau, although a search at the BBB Web site reveals that only one of CashNetUSA.com’s locations is a BBB Accredited Business (1600 W 7^th Street in Fort Worth, Texas). Yet this doesn’t seem to have hurt customer response, if their claim that they service over 1 million customers is accurate.

CashNetUSA.com’s online ranking at the Web metrics site Compete.com seems to support this idea as well. Their total of 376,735 unique visitors in September 2009 (a 24.66 percent increase over the previous year’s figure) helped contribute to a Compete rank of 4,957, which indicates that CashNetUSA has a fairly significant online presense.

In terms of Web traffic, CashNetUSA.com gets their largest share from consumers who use the Yahoo.com search engine (15.93 percent), while world-leading search engine Google ranks second (9.7 percent). According to Compete.com, the leading search terms that consumers use to locate CashNetUSA.com are “cashnetusa.com” (12.42 percent), “cashnetusa” (11.3 percent) and www.cashnetusa.com (10.22 percent).

Curious Keywords

Interestingly, none of these terms are industry-wide keywords like payday loan, payday loans, installment loans or short term loans, which could suggest that the bulk of the traffic CashNetUSA.com receives is from people who are already familiar with the name of the company. For consumers who don’t know company names but know that they want a payday loan, they would be more likely to locate a company like Personal Money Store, which ranks highly for the all-important “payday loan” type of search terms of which more consumers would be aware.

CashNetUSA: Backed by Cash American International

In 2006, CashNetUSA was acquired by Cash America International, Inc., a leading brick and mortar payday lending company. Now they consider themselves one of the industry leaders in secure online lending and credit services. Their services are currently available in over 30 states.

What CashNetUSA.com Offers

Consumers looking for payday loans are asked to use CashNetUSA’s quick and easy online application form. Thirty-minute approval decisions are advertised, and approved loans are typically funded on the next business day. Faxing information is rarely required and applicants needn’t have a “perfect” FICO score, as CashNetUSA.com (as well as other online lenders and loan aggregators) tend to use sub-prime monitors like Teletrack to make lending determinations. New customers can receive up to $700 via direct deposit into an active checking account, while repeat customers may be approved for more. Depending upon the laws that exist in the consumer’s state, the maximum receivable loan amount can be as high as $1,500. Loan fees vary by total loan amount received; special programs that grant up to a 30 percent discounts and $20 referral credit are available for returning customers.

CashNetUSA Loan Types

The specific types of short term loans that CashNetUSA offers are the payday loan, installment loan and credit service organization loan. The availability of each varies by state.

Payday loans are short term loans, relatively small in principal, which typically come to maturity on the consumer’s next payday (from eight to 25 days away). Some states allow loan extensions.

Installment loans tend to carry a higher principal balance and are repaid over a period of four to five months. Early repayment is possible without penalty; in some cases, CashNetUSA.com claims that a portion of fees are refundable to the consumer when early payment occurs.

Credit service organization loans are essentially third-party loans. A lender in CashNetUSA.com’s network will fund the payday loan. Repayment is due on the customer’s following payday.

What You Need to Qualify with CashNetUSA.com

In order for a consumer to be eligible to receive funds via CashNetUSA.com, the following conditions must be met:

• The consumer must have an active checking account
• They must have held their current job for at least one month
• The applicant must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Applicant must be at least 18 years old

CashNetUSA Repayment Options

Payday, installment or credit service organization loan repayment is generally taken via ACH payment. This operates in the same matter as a paper check, but the deduction is automatic at the agreed upon maturity date. If sufficient funds are not available, “CashNetUSA can and will re-present the ACH Authorization to (the consumer’s) bank,” according to their Web site.

General Repayment Options

1. Pay in Full: On the due date for the payday loan, the balance is paid off completely.
2. Extend Your Loan: If the consumer’s state allows, only the loan fee need be paid at maturity. The principal is then repaid on the consumer’s next payday. An additional fee will apply for this service.
3. Make Partial Payment and Extend: Similar to the previous option, but a portion of the principal is also paid at the initial maturity date.

Loan extensions, if needed, must be requested in order for the extension to take effect. This can be done via the Web site, E-mail or a telephone call. Credit card payments can also be arranged. If another loan is desired, a customer must generally wait at least two business days before the new loan can be issued (as it generally takes that long for ACH payment on the previous payday loan to clear the bank). See CashNetUSA.com for more details.

Revoking an ACH Payment?

It should be noted that this cannot be done until a loan has been paid in full. CashNetUSA reserves the right to deny revoking an ACH at an earlier time. This is in accordance with the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (ETTA), where “a lender cannot require a consumer to repay a loan by means of preauthorized electronic funds transfers as a condition to approving the consumer’s loan.”

As CashNetUSA’s one-time lump ACH payment does not meet the EFTA’s definition of “preauthorized electronic funds transfer” in terms of it being a “repayment of loans by electronic means on a preauthorized, recurring basis,” CashNetUSA is legally entitled to deny requests to revoke an ACH payment before final loan repayment. Some exceptions for written notices may apply.

CashNetUSA.com Financial Information

12-month share price comparison of CashNetUSA.com, a payday loan company. (Credit: thestreet.com)

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Listed on the New York Stock Exchange as CSH, Financial, CashNetUSA.com (at this writing; financials update dynamically) is trading at $32.64 per share. Over the course of the past year to date, this reflects a 19.78 percent increase. The price-to-earnings ratio is currently 12.33, which compares somewhat unfavorably to the sector average (13.20) and the S&P 500 average (51.90).

The compound annual growth rate for revenue, net income and earnings per share hovers around the 20 percent mark (20 percent for revenue, 22 percent for net income and 21 percent for earnings per share). TheStreet.com’s stock rating screener gives CashNetUSA a “HOLD C+” rating, which could be the buzzword for the best of payday loan companies these days, considering possible rate cap legislation that has been considered by the federal government.

It's people like these who voted to evict six-year-old Kimberly Broffman. Not these people specifically, but people like them. You can see it in their eyes. (Photo: flickr.com)

I’m a parent, so I’m going to proudly display just a bit of bias here. If the homeowners’ association at the Largo, Florida retirement community where Jimmy and Judie Stottler live think it’s a good idea to force them to evict their six-year-old granddaughter Kimberly Broffman, I cry for their misplaced humanity. That is, if I give them the benefit of the doubt that they possessed any humanity in the first place. With short term loans, perhaps they could afford more mirrors so they’d be forced to take long, deep glances at themselves.

Yes, that’s right. “Grandparents ordered to evict 6 year old” isn’t something you hear every day. The Huffington Post reports that the bylaws of the retirement community require that all residents must be older than 55. This is unlike many communities where only one of the residents has to be 55 or older. In the infinite benevolence of the HOA, young Kimberly is the only one mandated to leave.

The Stottlers Have Tried to Sell

Considering what a lovely place it must be to live (And the people! Oy!), it comes as quite a shock that Jimmy and Judie have been looking to sell their home and return to humanity. Yet the housing crash has made sale that much more difficult. They’re now asking for $129,000, so if you know any miserly folks who love petty rules and regulations, have them call the Stottlers. I’ll take out short term loans for their bus fare.

So despite the unreasonable requests of their HOA, the Stottlers have tried to comply in the best way they could imagine.

Kimberly Broffman Could Become a Foster Child

NBC News claims that “there is a real possibility that (Kimberly) could be placed in state foster care.” That’s a road that nobody should have to travel if there are other options present. The feelings of rejection and confusion at being uprooted from all that she knows could certainly be enough to cause depression and anger in what appears to be a perfectly happy little girl. Blindly adhering to rules rather than looking out for the best interests of humanity is a sure sign that the HOA members are either intensely confused or deliberately deserving of being slammed against a bed of nails continually.

Wither Justice?

A judge’s ruling in the matter is to come, and I hope Kimberly Broffman is allowed to remain in the place she calls home. An interesting note here (which is unconfirmed) comes from a reader response to this story on the Huffington Post Web site. Supposedly, the May 2009 HOA meeting minutes for this same retirement community included discussion of renting out their lodge for high school graduation parties. The HOA is apparently aware that alcohol to minors is served at these parties, but they continue to rent the hall… because they’re making money off the deal! They don’t want short term loans, they want cash without questions!

So, if Kimberly Broffman simply went out and got a job (perhaps in a fiberglass insulation plant) and paid dues, the HOA would happily withdraw their hasty complaints. Lesson learned, little Kimberly. Adults can be mean and nasty, but money tames the savage beast.

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Direct Deposit of Short Term Loan in 2 hours

Apply for Short term loans for bad credit at PersonalMoneyStore.com! (Photo: picasaweb.google.com)

When you need extra cash in two hours or less, there is no better way than to apply online for a short term loan for bad credit. Personal Money Store provides applicants with the best chance of getting approved. The best thing is there are no credit checks, faxing, or collateral required to get a short term loan online.

Bad Credit Is No Problem with Short Term Loans

Because there are no credit checks, it is exceptionally easy to get a short term loan from direct lenders through our Web site. We have the best lender-finding service available on the Web. Our applications are secure and hassle-free. Bad credit, poor credit and bankruptcies are no problem.

No Faxing Required for Short Term Loans for Bad Credit

Many Web sites require you to fax all kinds of personal information about you, your identity and your financial situation in order to get approved. Personal Money Store does not cause you this type of problem. Headaches are the last thing you need when you need short term loans for bad credit.

No Collateral for Unsecured Short Term Loans

There is more good news! Not only are there no credit checks, faxing, or other hassles, but you don’t have to provide any collateral or pledge of personal assets to get a short term loan online. You don’t even have to agree to a lien on your checking or savings accounts as a legal pledge. All you have to do is agree to an automatic debit of the payment from your account. How easy is that?

4.5 Minute Application Process and Immediate Decision

You will get an instant decision on your bad credit short term loan application. It takes just a couple of minutes to fill out the application and another few to get an actual decision. You will get approved and redirected to the approving lender’s Web site to sign the E-signature or you will be told a lender was not found and redirected to a secondary financial offer that hopefully still helps you.

Start the Application for a Short Term Loan for Bad Credit Now!

Quick Cash for Immediate Money Requirements

Even if you have bad credit, short term loans are available to help you in an emergency! (Photo: picasaweb.google.com)

When we have to buy a gift for a loved one, need funds for repairs, face an unforeseen emergency, or maybe we just want to celebrate a special occasion, most of us will need quick cash long before our next paycheck. This is a very problematic situation that all of us face regularly. Short term loans for bad credit may serve the purpose of getting a cash advance immediately without all the hassles of traditional lending.

Short Term Loan for Bad Credit is Collateral-Free

A short term loan for bad credit is hassle free because it is totally confidential and easy to obtain. Typically they do not require credit checks. So even if you have a bad credit history, you may secure an easy loan with no collateral required.

Short Duration Loan with a Low Fee

You may apply for a short term loan for bad credit for amounts ranging from $100 to $1,500. The industry average for lenders when charging a fee is $15 for every $100 borrowed. The industry average loan duration is 14 days. Due to increasing competition amongst lenders, you may research and find a lower fee without much effort. In some cases, just inquiring about lower interest rates or longer payment periods can get you what you want.

Faxless Application for the Short Term Loan

You’ll have to apply for a short term loan online if you want quick cash. You’ll fill out an application form giving details like your name, address, phone, E-mail and details about your job. Once this information is verified and approved, the loan amount will be electronically deposited into your bank account usually on the same day and sometimes in a just matter of hours.

No Fax Means Saving of Time and Money

For a no fax short term loan for bad credit, you won’t have to go out to a loan store where everyone in town may see that you are short on cash. You will be happy to know the application process is totally private and confidential. You do not even need to fax any documents to the lender. That saves on fax fees, which are usually charged per page. You needn’t hunt for a fax store either.
Fax stores can easily charge you up to $1 per page. So if you have to fax 10 pages, it’s a $10 savings for you. Because the loan process is completely online, you may even sign your application form online. This is called an E-signature.

Plan and Repay Your Short Term Loan on Time

It can be easier to repay the loan on time if you authorize the lender to withdraw funds electronically from your bank account after your next pay date. You may have the loan rolled-over for a little extra fee, but by delaying the deadline you deliberately allow interest to add up. Since it’s a short term loan and the fee is usually high, the situation may easily get worse than it was before you opted for the loan. Realize that this loan is a temporary solution and not a long-term solution for your financial troubles.
So if you are in need of some extra cash and you are caught between paychecks, a short term loan for bad credit is the fastest and easiest way to obtain a quick loan. Most lenders have customer service representatives and loan advocates there to assist you with your online short term loan application process.

If Short Term Loans for Bad Credit could help you, APPLY HERE

Short term loans are still a viable option for funding. Consumers with bad credit are definitely not alone. In today’s recession, even people with excellent credit have suffered at the hands of credit card companies. Others have made mistakes with credit, such as charging over limits or not paying their bills on time due to unemployment. Regardless of how they got there, consumers are suffering from a combination of bad decisions and the economic downturn. In addition, prices are high and many people have had to downsize to a one-income home as a result of the burgeoning unemployment rate. As a result of the economy many people watched their credit scores decline rapidly.

The good news is that a bad credit score or negative payment history does not have to hold people back from borrowing money needed for unforeseen expenses. Unsecured short term loans are a great option for qualified customers. Many people are looking to these types of loans for money, rather than the traditional bank loans that are difficult to procure in today’s recession.

How short term loans work

An unsecured short term loan lasts until qualified consumers’ application times and their next payday. This loan is also known as a payday loan, payday advance loan, or cash advance loan.

If qualified for this type of unsecured loan, consumers give lenders a postdated check in the amount that they qualified for plus fees. The lender holds the postdated check until the next payday, which is typically up to 30 days later. On the date the unsecured short term loan comes due, the lender will cash the check.

Unexpected expenses

The most common use for short term loans is to meet emergency expenses. Car repairs, medical bills and last-minute shopping needs are all common uses for this type of funding. The general rule of thumb is that these loans are effective to use if the money for the expense will be available, but isn’t available yet. If a consumer will have the funds in a few days, or even a few weeks, but the bill needs to be paid immediately, then an unsecured short term loan may be the best option.

The amount borrowers qualify for is based on their current income. Depending on what the needs are, communication can be helpful. If the amount is substantial there are some lenders who will consider both incomes from a two-income household when considering the borrowing sum.

Popularity making short term loans more competitive

The advantage of short term loans is their popularity has spurred a wide variety of options. Because it’s paperless, appplicants know within minutes whether they qualify. This is another advantage of the short term loan.

With the uncertainty of the economy, short term loans are becoming a staple in budgeting for qualified consumers. They are quick, convenient and a life-saver for those who are eligible.

For short term loans, apply here.

Well, perhaps not until the end of 2009. People need more short term loans than ever. (Photo: flickr.com)

People are still looking to short term loans as further data on the market continues to be reported. Although trade, housing and employment are all seeing weak performances in the market, some economists are saying stabilization is close at hand.

One major concern is the continued lag of U.S. exporting, which potentially could hamper improvement in the economy. The hindrance is particularly damaging to large manufacturing giants like Honeywell International and 3M Co., which are companies that have huge foreign markets.

Although U.S. imports also fell, analysts are claiming that this drop is signifying a leveling-off point is within reach. Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight, stated, “The composition of exports suggest that the global economy is beginning to stabilize. The steepest export declines are behind us. But given the weak state of overseas economies, we do not expect the U.S. recovery to be export-led.”

3M Company

3M Company is a huge exporter of Scotch tape, Post-It notes and automotive parts. Even this giant has seen sales drastically diminish throughout the first quarter of the year. This can be attributed to a significantly lower overseas demand for products. In the past, 3M made approximately two-thirds of its annual revenues from outside the U.S.

Impact on Individual Homes

When large companies are suffering, the American people’s situations reflect the same hardship. Many people are trying to find creative ways of wading through the recession by extreme budgeting and short term loan options. Anne Frienstein of Greenwich, Connecticut stated, “We used to have money left over at the end of each pay week. Now, we’re just trying to get to the end of the week by using serious cut backs and short term loans. Like a lot of our friends we’re down to one paycheck.”

Many homes are seeing a great stress in the recessive economy. Although President Obama’s stimulus plan is hefty, it has yet to work itself through the economy and make a positive impact on everyday life for consumers. They are left to manage their budgets with a vigilance that is reminiscent of The Great Depression of the 1930s and 1940s. Beginning with Black Tuesday, the day the stock market crashed, the Great Depression brought about many of the same results consumers are seeing today. International trade fell by 50 to 67 percent, personal income fell and profits dwindled. The industrial areas of the country suffered, with construction being almost completely halted in many places.

An Upturn Coming Soon

Most analysts agree, however, that there is an upturn on the way. Analyst for Deutsche Bank, David Beglieter, said that there are “clear signs of improvement…especially with demand in China expected to pick up due to Beijing’s stimulus package.” Though China reported a decline of almost 23 percent in its exporting, their trade remains stable. Analyst Dilip Sarangan noted that “Some companies have entrenched themselves into local economies, and this increased focus helps them weather the storm better than companies that use standardized approaches for all foreign countries.”

What the Future Holds

The U.S. recession’s analysts agree that the end of 2009 should be when the country hits its low. Then slowly, it should start rebounding. Hopefully, when the turnaround does come, consumers will start seeing tangible benefits. Americans would gladly exchange short term loans, budgeting and cut-backs for more jobs, rising house values and better tax policies. Most economists and analysts believe that if people are patient, soon there will be some relief.

Get short term loans here

In uncertainty, sometimes what we need is something like short term loans to hit us on the nose. (Photo: flickr.com)

Many people are turning to short term loans in order to get through unexpected expenses. The world is a very confusing place. It’s impossible to estimate exactly how much you will have to spend each month. There are all sorts of problems which could result in costing you more than you have budgeted. If your car breaks down, then a payday loan could help to tide you over until you actually get paid.

No Need for a Credit Check

Short term loans are provided as a form of cash advance. This means that you can get some of the money from your job before you actually get paid. Taking out one of these loans is very easy because it shouldn’t require the use of a credit check. Few people enjoy credit checks; they are horrible for everyone concerned. Being told that you can’t have something because your credit score is too low is terrible. As long as you or your partner is currently employed and has a regular monthly income, then it should be possible to take out a short term loan very easily.

Cash Flow

Most people will get paid monthly or sometimes weekly. This means that you will have a long time without any income. If there are any unexpected expenses during the time when you are not paid, then you may struggle to make your payments. Short term loans can provide you with some of the money from your paycheck before you actually get paid. Using a fast short term loan can ensure that you get the money you so desperately need as quickly as possible.

Make Ends Meet

Most people only make just enough money to survive each month. They are just managing to make ends meet and that’s why any unexpected expenses can quite easily push you over the edge. Quite often you will spend your entire salary very quickly and then wait the rest of your time for your next paycheck.

Secured or Unsecured

Most other types of loans are secured against something; this could be your car or property. Fast Payday loans are an example of an unsecured loan. This means that the lender assesses how much they can lend you by listening to the information you tell them. There is no need for property valuations to be carried out. Because the loans are unsecured, you will be limited to how much you can borrow. Once you have built up some goodwill with the lender, then it may be possible to borrow more.

Who Qualifies?

If you’re interested in short term loans, then you will want to know who qualifies. Most people qualify for these loans. Normally speaking, anyone who is employed or has a regular income can apply for these loans. You also need to be over 18 years old and have a bank account. Depending on the loan company, you might also need a check book to write a post dated check. You will simply write a check with the date when you get paid; this is how the lender will be repaid.

To apply for short term loans, click here!

Don't go with blinders on when you need money this recession. Payday loans pay. (Photo: flickr.com)

Payday loans are still helping people fund expenses as most other loans are tightening up their application processes. According to the Federal Reserve, the last three months have seen banks making qualification for loans harder than ever in response to the struggling market. A Federal survey showed that 50 percent of banks have revamped their lending policies, up from 45 percent earlier in the year.

Sixty-five percent of banks said that non-traditional loans, like adjustable-rate loans and payment options, are also hard to procure. Earlier this year, only 50 percent of banks were revamping their non-traditional loan packages. Richard Yamarone, economist for Argus Research, stated “Even if you had a stellar credit history, banks were reluctant to lend in this environment.” The odds of people going into default is high considering the unemployment rate for the country hasn’t yet hit its high according to analyst.

How Are Credit Cards Faring?

Almost 60 percent of banks said that credit card loans are going through the same reworking process, making it harder for consumes to get funds. Overall, people are no longer at the liberty of using credit cards to pay off debt at their leisure. There was a time when credit cards helped to pay bills on time. Those days are gone and payday loans are replacing the typical credit card usage. In the future, most banks predict that there will be a continued deterioration in credit quality for all home and business loans, with more than 70 percent of all banks admitting their loan portfolios were less than what they used to be.

The Recession’s Cure

It is critical to spur lending once again if the economy is ever to get out of a recession. The Fed has created a record low in interest rate to persuade businesses and consumers to start spending again. This is in response to the housing boom of the former year when lenders were approving people without concern for their actual financial health. Suddenly as a result, home values plummeted and foreclosures increased drastically. Banks were in the position of having to manage huge losses.

Understandably, banks are wary of lending again. Yet without some return to normalcy on the lending front, the recession will continue. The government is working hard to stimulate lending in an effort to revive the economy. Both banks and tax payers are being targeted for aid in this difficult financial time.

Traditional Lenders Aren’t Helping

With traditional lenders being unable to help consumers, they are left to find other ways of finding funding. One way many people are making their bill payments is through payday loan companies. These are companies that set up short term loans for qualified applicants. They extend a certain amount of funds, as based on the applicant’s salary, for a short period of time to accepted borrowers. The funds are automatically paid out to the customer’s bank account once he or she is approved. Funds are then recouped on the borrower’s next payday. The simple loan process and application process is making these types of loans popular with Americans who need immediate money. With traditional loans unavailable, and with the climate of financial uncertainty for at least the upcoming year, people are happy to have the payday loan option.

Get Payday Loans HERE!