The state of Virginia still allows payday loans and car title loans, but there is a good deal of legislation concerning both products in the state. Photo Credit: AR McLin/Flickr.com/CC-BY

The state of Virginia has been on the front lines of regulating short term loan lenders like payday loan and car title loan companies in attempt to reduce their use. Both consumer finance products have been subject to stricter legislation that has dramatically reduced the use of such products.

Car title loan lenders operating without license in Virginia

The state of Virginia has recently released its first report about use of car title loans in the state, according to WHSV, an ABC affiliate in Harrisburg, Va. The state of Virginia passed a law that capped the interest rate and fees that could be charged by car title lenders in the state. That law took effect in October of 2010. The law also required that any businesses lending such loans get a license to operate in the state. In the last three months of that year, 25,000 loans have been lent for a total of $21 million in loan capital. There were almost 200 people whose cars were taken away because of default. According to The News Leader, a Gannet newspaper in Staunton, Va., there are 23 title lenders operating in the state but only seven are licensed.

Illegal online lending considered a problem

Consumer advocate groups like the Virginia Poverty Law Center are advising Virginians not to enter into any contracts with any unauthorized parties such as unlicensed title loan lenders and online payday loan lenders. Lending online payday loans is a felony in Virginia. Payday loan lenders themselves are authorized if the businesses are licensed and contained to a brick-and-mortar store. Laws were passed in 2008 that regulated payday loan lenders. There were more than 800 payday lenders in Virginia in 2007, according to the Washington Post. By 2010, there were fewer than 300. Legislation that would institute an interest rate cap of 36 percent has been brought before the Virginia General Assembly but never passed.

Credit carries risk

Payday loan lending and car title lending are seen by some as predatory, while others see them as simply alternative forms of credit. Any and all forms of credit carry risks. Credit cards can keep a person indebted in perpetuity, and the thousands of people who have lost their homes to foreclosure can attest to the risks of mortgage foreclosure. People who have hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt with student loans can’t discharge the debts they accrued for their education, even in bankruptcy. Laws vary by state, and borrowers should always do their homework concerning any financial product they are interested in obtaining.

Sources

WHSV

News Leader

Washington Post

Virginia congressional candidate Krystal Ball called the use of racy photos from her past "sexist and wrong." (Photo Credit: CC BY/Nicholas Beaudrot/Flickr)

According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Virginia Democrat and 1^st Congressional District candidate Krystal Ball, 28, has “an image problem.” Widespread Krystal Ball photos of her dressed as a bad Santa are apparently too much for incumbent Republican opponent Robert Wittman to ignore. Wittman claims his camp had nothing to do with releasing the photos.

Krystal Ball photos include Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer

The Krystal Ball photos, which are approximately six years old, show the candidate at a college Halloween party with her then-husband. Ball’s husband is dressed as a reindeer with collar and small pet chain, and Ball is wearing a Santa hat. The scandal surrounding the Krystal Ball photos stems from the nose on Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, which resembles a sex toy, and photos of Ball and a friend interacting with it.

Wittman has asked that the photos be taken down

Whether it is because he doesn’t believe in dirty politics or believes that the damage has already been done, The Times-Dispatch reports that Wittman has requested that the Krystal Ball photos be taken down from the conservative blog where they first appeared. That hasn’t stopped Ball from taking matters into her own hands, however. She has released a YouTube video in which she lashes back at the release of the racy photos. Ball has not denied that the bad Santa in the photos is her and has expressed her embarrassment over the photos’ appearance.

Krystal Ball is angry

In her YouTube response (see below), Krystal Ball discusses important issues pertaining to the midterm election. Unemployment, budget deficits and school systems in need of repair are key themes. But Ball doesn’t sign off without firing back at the “crass political operatives (who) will resort to the politics of personal destruction when they can’t talk about the issues.” She calls the revelation of the Krystal Ball photos to be “sexist and wrong.” Ball also encourages young women with political aspirations – even those who may have done something embarrassing in front of a camera – to run for office and continue to fight.

Sources

Richmond Times-Dispatch

Ball takes ownership, calls out dirty politics