Predatory Payday Loans?
At one point it appeared that the entire payday loan business was made up of a small group of loan sharks out only to make a buck off the backs of anyone who would take out a loan. This perception has changed in recent years with new regulations. Payday loans are even able to help some people save money!
At first look the interest rate appears to be pretty high, but it is often much less expensive than some of the alternatives.
Now we will look at some common misconceptions about these loans. First, payday loans are overly expensive, well probably. Of course being expensive is only relative to what the alternatives are. Taking out a payday loan instead of bouncing a cheque in most cases is a cheaper alternative. Fees for bouncing a cheque are quite often much higher than the interest paid for these loans. This is not just marketing hype by the short term loan companies, it is a fact.
If you calculate the costs it is easy to see the benefits of the payday loan over the bounced cheque. Next it is claimed that payday loans prey on the poor and under employed. However, this is not the demographic that these loans are targeted to. Industry numbers prove that the loans are not targeted to people who cannot afford to repay the loan. It would be foolish to loan money to people who can’t repay. In fact, the people who use the payday loan services are generally lower to upper middle class and have incomes in a range of thirty six thousand dollars per year. If this is the case why do they turn to short term loans then? Because it is fast! Payday loans can be deposited into a person’s account in minutes or hours and not the potential several day a bank may take. A main point is credit rating. Most people the avail these loans have less than perfect credit for whatever reason.
When something happens unexpectedly these people have few alternatives to get the cash they need to make it through the situation. Now, it has been said that payday loans cause people to get into a cycle of debt that harms them further. Well, no one forced the person to take out a loan and if they did so knowing they couldn’t repay, it is not the responsibility of the loan provider. What it amounts to is the borrower not exercising good judgment and perhaps not being honest about his finances. When these people avail a loan knowing they money will not be available to repay it, it is the individuals fault, not the loan companies. The loan was not made without the borrower’s consent. The borrower had to apply and sign an agreement stating they have the ability to repay on time.
No one was forced into the contract. The perception of a loan shark is not deserved and is actually far from the truth. Most of the people whom are hurt by payday loans are the people who knowingly enter into an agreement they can’t honor. There are some exceptions though, and the loan companies gladly work with these people to get their money back. If the loans were predatory as has been claimed, fewer people would actually be able to repay the loans and the companies would go out of business quickly, but this is not the case.
Instant Approval Credit Cards: The Advantage of Applying Online
Getting instant approval for a credit card and sometimes getting immediate access to use it can now be done in less than 60 seconds. No muss, no fuss like the old days when getting a credit card took a month or more. If you werent aware of how instant your approval could be, now is the time to find out.
Internet Technology and Security Behind the Scenes of Instant Approval
How did the instant approval credit card come about? The answer is that the Internet has completely changed the way card-issuing banks can research consumer information and make a decision about an applicants credit worthiness. Nearly every major financial institution that issues credit cards including Chase, CitiBank, American Express, HSBC, and others now allows you to use the Internet to fill out their application online with complete security, submit it with the click of a button, and then count the seconds while they make their decision. And in most cases, if your credit is good to excellent, you will be approved instantly and a credit card will be on its way to you within days.
Behind the scenes, instant approval credit cards use the speed of the Internet and the sophisticated communication networks created for the banking industry. When you submit your application, banks can now easily verify your identity and check with one or more of the three national credit bureaus Experian, Equifax, and Trans Union to ensure that your FICO score meets their application criteria. (Your FICO score is a mathematical calculation performed by each of the credit bureaus that rates your credit history on a scale of 0 to 800.)
The Benefits of Instant Approval
If youre wondering why you might want to take advantage of this instant approval service to get your next credit card, there are several good reasons:
1. Many banks periodically offer special promotions on their credit cards, such as 0% APR on purchases and/or balance transfers for a specified period of time or bonus travel miles on airlines. These are offers you may not hear about if you dont browse the Internet looking for instant approval credit cards.
2. There can be a value in knowing quickly if you will be approved for a credit card if you find yourself needing additional credit for your business or personal needs. Using paper applications and the US mail will usually take 4 to 6 weeks before you know if you are approved.
3. You can sometimes get immediate access to a portion of the credit line for which a bank approves you. For example, some banks will offer you $300 to $500 that you can tap into immediately using a code they give you.
4. Applying for a credit card using a secure Internet site can actually be safer than filling out a paper application with your personal information and mailing it. Secure Internet sites use 128-bit encryption which is considered unbreakable in the computer security field. (You can tell when you are at a secure Internet site because your web browser contains a small icon that looks like a lock down at the bottom of the page.)
A Sensible Advantage
So the next time you are pondering your credit card needs and feel that you can benefit from a new credit card, consider looking into an instant approval card. In todays fast-paced world, you may agree that this new form of getting a credit card makes a great deal of sense for consumers.