Payday lenders charge exorbitant fees to borrowers without assessing their ability to repay, and the annual interest rates on these loans are in the triple digits.
A few high-cost lenders are evading state consumer protections through rent-a-bank schemes. Through these sham arrangements, these companies are exploding right through the interest rate limits that most states have put in place for good reason, to protect people from high-cost debt traps that drain them of their hard-earned income. In the following states, payday lenders are using banks, which...
City's poor often have few affordable options for banking, other financial services
Kyra Bowerman was trapped in a vicious banking cycle. The Indianapolis teacher and single mom of two would open a bank account. An expensive day care bill would come due at the same time she needed to pay for rent, utilities and food. The bank would charge an overdraft fee. The account would close.
Groups oppose Senate Bill 613 on lending
Several organizations, including the Indiana Institute for Working Families, met at the Indiana Statehouse 3rd floor atrium March 11 to explain their opposition to a subprime lending bill co-authored by Huntington’s state senator. State Sen. Andy Zay, R-Huntington, co-authored Senate Bill 613, which the Center for Responsible Lending said would allow lenders to exceed for everyone but active military personnel...
Advocacy Groups Say Lending Bill Would Create Cycle Of Debt For Hoosiers
A large coalition of consumer advocacy, non-profit and religious groups is calling on state legislators to scrap a controversial short-term lending bill. The legislation passed through the state Senate and now awaits a hearing in a house committee. While some lawmakers say the proposal gives more options to Hoosiers with bad credit, opponents say it will only worsen their financial...
SB 613 increases the rates for existing consumer loans in Indiana, adds additional high-cost loan products to the marketplace, and significantly increases the rates that are considered to be criminal loan sharking. For each of these changes, lenders are provided extraordinary leverage over the borrower, are able to structure the loans in a way that incentivizes repeat re-borrowing, and are...
Payday and car title loans are small-dollar, high-cost products that thrive on keeping consumers in a cycle of debt. With lenders doing essentially no underwriting, consumers find it easy to obtain these loans, often marketed as a solution to financial emergency. However, the unaffordability of the loan and the lenders extreme leverage over the borrowers – either through direct access...
Payday and car-title loans typically carry annual percentage rates (APR) of at least 300%. These high-cost loans are marketed as quick solutions to a financial emergency. Research demonstrates, however, that they frequently lead to debt that is nearly impossible to escape. In addition, these loans are related to a cascade of other financial consequences, such as increased overdraft fees, delinquency...
This color-coded map of payday stores by household reveals a disturbing pattern. Southern states are among the most targeted for these high-cost, low-dollar loans.
Indiana prohibits car title loans to its residents with an annual interest rate above 36%. In 2006, the car title lending industry lost a fight in the Indiana legislature to have that interest cap removed. But now the industry's lawyers believe they have found a loophole in the restriction by drawing Indiana residents across the border into car title lender's...