April 6th, 2010 by GabeRodriguez
Consumer Credit Options Trampled in Push for Financial Regulation By: Gabriel Rodriguez
The newly proposed and widely debated creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA) under house legislation (H.R. 4173) have critics questioning how its regulation could realistically help the current state of economic crisis and its potential for limiting consumer credit options…
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April 5th, 2010 by GabeRodriguez
I came across a rather amusing article today at the Minnesota Independent.
The OCC doesn’t have a problem with national banks offering this type of loan, spokesman Dean DeBuck said. “It’s not a payday loan. It’s available through banks and bank branches. It’s something you don’t get at a storefront,” DeBuck said. “This is a product that is offered to customers and they don’t have to use it. If it works for them, fine. If it’s not suitable for them, they can find something else. “
Wow! So the definition of Payday Lending has mainly to do with WHERE we are located, as opposed to the products we offer.
I don’t see the difference myself, but it looks like if we can rent out a space within a bank lobby, as opposed to a “store-front”, making payday loans are completely acceptable!
March 1st, 2010 by GabeRodriguez
As with most days, I like to spend a bit of dedicated time each day to look for useful and current information regarding the Payday Lending Industry, a task which sounds easier than it actually can be at times. I have found a surprising (and on some levels, not so surprising) lack of relevant and more importantly, CURRENT information about Payday Loans online. Of course if you do deep enough you can find some up-to-date info on a wide range of subjects related to the Payday Loan Industry. My tips would include the following…
-Find and Bookmark some “trusted” sites as you find them. Be sure to wipe them from your bookmarks if they become to outdated or biased. I am personally a big fan of the Payday Pundit and the PDL Industry News.
-Follow the “blue-underlined” road! One of the best ways to find relevant material is to ACTUALLY FOLLOW the hyperlinks you will find on almost any of the top Payday Loan Industry sites/blogs. Of course you’ll get a glimpse of the article and some commentary right then and there, but by actually reading the whole of the article quoted, you’ll find a wealth or relevant information.
-CHECK POSTING DATES!!! Seems like common sense, but it doesn’t always stand out. Before you know it, you’re 2 paragraphs deep on an article about “New Legislation in Arizona” only to find out it was posted in March of 2005 (I used the example of Arizona because it happened to me, and as I read in disbelief the information which was contrary to everything else I knew about the ACTUAL current situation in Arizona, I finally found the buried posting date!! Argh!!) and that all the information within is now out-dated and false! If you’re new to the industry a mistake like that could be VERY costly and time-consuming, which is why I always suggest consultation before jumping into the Payday Loan Industry with little or no experience. You’ll find it to be a very small investment into your business, and can save you big in the long run. But that’s for another Post…..
Although there is a sea of bad information out there, there is a wealth of current info as well, it just takes a little effort. In the long run, you’ll know where to go and that will save you time. But there is NO SUBSTITUTE for staying current in this industry, so get out there and start reading, clicking and leaving comments!!
March 1st, 2010 by GabeRodriguez
I would like to discuss an article I have found today. And it started off so well…..
“The best thing that can be said of payday lenders is that their practices are no more predatory than some by banks, credit unions and credit card companies.”
- YES!! Sometimes it seems so far and few between that we receive truthful press which presents the facts about the Payday Lending Industry clearly! Needless to say, this article had me sold early on. Let’s read on.
“In fact, avoiding big fees on small overdrafts is one of the reasons that people turn to payday lenders.”
- Great (and obvious to us in the Industry!) point. Wow, this article is not only off to a great start, but staying right on track. Let’s read on.
“Payday loans, also known as deferred deposit loans, would be capped at 36 percent interest under House Bill 38….”
- Ok, since the rest of the article has been clear, honest and concise I am certain they will follow this up with some facts about what a 36% APR cap would do to Payday Loan operators (close their doors!) and also show some numbers to educate readers on how APR’s calculated on short-term loans differ greatly from those on a 30 year mortgage, for example. After all, this information is available to anyone, and any decent reporter would do his homework before slandering an entire industry, right?
No, I was wrong. It started off so well, and dwindled down into yet another under-researched filler piece which showed no real interest in truthful reporting. The article then went on to speak about how Kentucky Rep. Jeff Greer had refused to hear a bill to cap the APR for Payday Lending in Kentucky at 36% and has taken $1,750 from miscellaneous Payday Loan lobbyists as well.
Perhaps he did his homework and actually LEARNED how to properly calculate APR percentages, and knows that a 36% cap would make it nearly impossible to meet your operating costs, let alone make enough money to survive!
The article also failed to mention the sums of money that legislators receive from the BANKING industry in order to ensure that legislation AGAINST the Payday Loan industry will pass so that they can hopefully bring in another 38 billion next year in overdrafts? So much for un-biased reporting.
Alas, let’s end this on a positive note. I feel strongly that we in the Payday Loan Industry are in in the “right” and that we will stay strong and we will educate others about the product we have to offer. And that product will not simply “disappear” because the public need for the service we offer will not simply “disappear”. The slander, mis-truths and backlash from the banking industry is only due to our SUCCESS in providing a viable product for our customers, the vast majority of which whom report being satisfied with our product. There are VERY FEW official complaints on record from our customers, and any of the objections to “preditory” practices can be curbed with slight regulation, not only by regulating us out of business (36% cap on APR!).
So let us rejoice in our past success, stay strong and informed, and band together and march forth into an exciting future of Payday Lending!!
November 13th, 2008 by Mo Cheng
Its been a while since the last post so I figured I would chime you guys in on the latest news of our internet lending technology. For the longest time, our vision at Synaptic Database was focused on recreating the look and feel of the payday lending industry. I’ve actually written a short blog about “cleaning up” the industry, and I feel like this is the first step into approaching this vision. Now when I say recreating the look and feel, this example is exactly what I mean.
Its a drastic change from some of the sites I’ve seen like Magnum Payday Advance. See the world of difference? I think the mistake a lot of payday loan marketers are making is they’re putting too much emphasis on communicating the fact that “we loan money to anyone”. The industry has gotten older, and the concept of payday loan and finance is now widely understood. Putting giant dollar signs onto your website will not help you get new customers because you’re communicating a old and worn out message.
So what are payday borrowers looking for these days? How do we cultivate a larger consumer base for our services? These are the questions we need to start answering as an industry. The demand is no longer “instant short term loans to bad credit customers”, but instead better customer service, reliability, good financing rates, and a safe and comfortable atmosphere to commit the transaction. How does YOUR COMPANY stand against communicating these new customer perks to this new generation of borrowers?
I’d like to see how everyone’s projects are lining up to approach this new type of marketing effort. I’ll update this post when the website goes live. If you’re impatient, you can check out this link: http://www.temporalcadence.org/clients_2008/moroni/