Loans Information

Industry Regulation and Recent Legislation


A number of states from coast to coast are attempting to impose further regulations on the payday loan industry, but without much success in many cases. Consumers of payday loans have generally argued against more stringent measures and limitations, that would limit their access to payday loans. And, in the meantime, the payday loan industry continues to grow, both in the numbers of loans issued and the dollar amounts of loans issued.

In Washington State, there were no less than 14 bills introduced during the 2004-2005 legislative session, with the specific intent of more tightly regulating the payday loan industry. Nine of the most aggressive proposals stalled in committee. If passed, these bills would have lowered payday loan interest rates and decreased the maximum amounts that a borrower could access.

Even more heavily opposed was a proposal to establish a statewide database of payday loans, giving both the industry and the state a way of looking at how many payday loans a borrower already had when he or she applied for another. This measure was designed to prevent borrowers from seeking loans from multiple lenders. Some analysts viewed the proposal as a potentially dangerous intrusion into people's personal finances. The payday loan industry contended that cutting interest rates and putting a lower cap on loan amounts would significantly damage their business.

Most of the regulations proposed in Washington were stalled in legislative committees and never reached the floor of the legislature.

A bill passed two years ago in Washington already provided a number of consumer protections. The state requires, for example, that borrowers have the right to cancel a loan within one business day. A borrower 'payment plan' was also made mandatory, requiring that once a borrower has received four loans from the same lender, he or she is allowed to work out a repayment plan over at least 60 days.

The State of Oregon has also been embroiled in a payday loan controversy including attempts to restrict an industry that is largely unregulated in that state. A bill proposed during the 2004-2005 legislative session would have imposed mandatory 31 day loan periods, effectively eliminating the practice of rollovers.

More than 1500 clients of just one payday lender wrote urging the Oregon legislature not to pass the proposed restrictions. In general, those individuals said they valued being able to access short term loans quickly and easily, without having to depend on the good will of family or friends when they ran into an emergency cash flow situation. They also indicated that they did not consider the interest rates unfair.

At the same time, the dollar amount of payday loans granted in Oregon has grown by 285 percent in the past five years, and the number of loans issued has grown 138 percent in the same time period.

In New Mexico, the State House of Representatives introduced a bill that would limit payday loans to $1,000 each and imposed restrictions on some fees and charges. While the legislation did not prevent rollovers, it specified that a loan was forgiven once the customer had paid twice the amount that was originally borrowed. Consumer groups and the state's Attorney General pushed for a payday loan interest cap. Arizona's governor has stated that he will not sign the measure because it fails to provide adequate protection for borrowers.

On the other side of the U.S., in the State of Maine, lawmakers have been asked to approve changes to existing laws that would allow significant expansion of the payday loan industry. Under current state law, fees are capped at $15 for loans up to $250, and at $25 for loans exceeding $250. One of the proposed changes in that state would allow lenders to charge as much as 17.5% per week, which would amount to $17.50 per $100.

In addition, payday lenders in Maine would be exempted from the state's existing consumer credit code. They would be allowed to use advertising methods that are currently prohibited and to have greater leeway in collection methods in the event of default.

The U.S. Military contends that military personnel are disproportionately targeted by payday loan companies and that lenders adjacent to military bases charge higher rates of interest. A recent study lends some validity to that point of view.

Most of the recent legislation aimed at regulating payday loans across the country, however, is aimed at in-state, storefront businesses, rather than Internet based lenders. It may be that Internet payday lenders have not been targeted as aggressively because they tend to be much more competitive, offering lower interest rates and lengthier repayment terms.

Ethan Hunter is the author of many credit related articles. If you are looking for help with Payday Loans or any type of credit issue please visit us at http://www.PaydayLoanChoice.com


MORE RESOURCES:

Wall Street Journal Blogs

December 22 Is Deadline to Apply for SBA Economic Injury Disaster ...
MarketWatch - 18 hours ago
The deadline to file applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) is December 22, 2008. Small businesses and small agricultural cooperatives that ...
Small business loans dwindle The Tennessean
Loans available for September storm damage Columbia Missourian
Wells Fargo named top small-business lender in Texas Bizjournals.com
Marshall County Journal - Salt Lake Tribune
all 264 news articles


Aljazeera.net

IMF, Nordics pledge $4.6 billion loans to Iceland
The Associated Press - 1 hour ago
HELSINKI, Finland (AP) — Four Nordic countries and the International Monetary Fund on Thursday pledged a combined $4.6 billion (euro3.64 billion) in loans ...
IMF, Nordic Neighbors Agree Billion-Euro Loans for Iceland Deutsche Welle
IMF loans Iceland $2.1bn Shropshire Star
led Iceland package to total $10.2 bln guardian.co.uk
MarketWatch - SmartBrief
all 658 news articles


Money-Market Rates Fall on Bets Rate Reductions to Accelerate
Bloomberg - 2 hours ago
The euro interbank offered rate, or Euribor, that banks say they charge each other for three-month loans fell four basis points to under 4.08 percent today, ...
Swiss National Bank cuts interest rate to 1 pct The Associated Press
Asian Money Costs Fall as Banks Pump In Cash to Spur Lending Bloomberg
Japan, Australia Money Rates Advance Amid Recession Concerns Bloomberg
all 83 news articles


News 10 Now

Loans to Detroit
Salt Lake Tribune, United States - 12 hours ago
The debate in Congress over a bailout of GM, Ford and Chrysler comes down to this: Should the taxpayers throw $25 billion in bridge loans to Detroit, ...
Give Big Three the federal loans they need The Bay City Times - MLive.com
Is Bailout Possible Without UAW Concessions? ABC News
Capitol Hill Watch | Automaker Bankruptcies Would Require ... Kaiser network.org
New York Times - DetNews.com
all 847 news articles


Los Angeles Times

Hiccups appear in bank loans
Burnet Bulletin, TX - Nov 19, 2008
7, depositors have not seen a change in their banking, but loan customers are confronting, in some cases, major problems. Those hurting, in particular, ...
CORRECT: Modified mortgages often re-default MarketWatch
Loan Modifications For Banks Could Mask Future Losses CNNMoney.com
OUR VIEW: Mortgage relief grows Bristol Press
New York Times - The Associated Press
all 976 news articles


New York Times

Breakingviews.com Commercial Loans Are Looking Risky
New York Times, United States - 12 hours ago
The acceleration of this collapse over the past couple of days is partly due to the widely publicized potential default of two loans that are held in many ...


FHA-Backed Loans: The New Subprime
BusinessWeek - 8 hours ago
Washington, meanwhile, has vastly expanded the availability of such taxpayer-backed loans as part of the emergency campaign to rescue the country's swooning ...
FHA lowers limits on loans Arizona Republic
FHA Relaxes Program Rules for Homeowners Washington Post
all 4 news articles


Boston Globe (registration)

Ailing automakers plead for $25b in loans
Boston Globe (registration), United States - Nov 18, 2008
The chief executives of Chrysler and Ford also pleaded for the loans, which would come on top of a $25 billion package approved in September to help the ...
Auto Execs Reset Bailout Pitch; Republicans to Rewrite CAFE for Loans Ward's Auto (subscription)
Big 3 fail to close deal on bailout Los Angeles Times
Republican Leader Presses Compromise as Auto Chiefs Renew Plea Bloomberg
MarketWatch - New York Times
all 1,667 news articles


Tampabay.com

Loans to automakers make the only good deal for US
Detroit Free Press, United States - 23 hours ago
So consider this deal: For a loan of $25 billion, you could create an industry that would directly and indirectly create 13 million jobs, one out of every ...
Ford says could wait on US loans until 2009 Reuters
Big Three in need of loans Clarksville Leaf Chronicle
google news commentComment by Gary Chaison Prof. of Industrial Relations, Clark University
Trading Markets (press release)
all 824 news articles


Boston Globe (registration)

Housing agency loosens foreclosure aid rules
Reuters - 19 hours ago
The Hope for Homeowners program will now insure home loans that have had as little as 3.5 percent of their value erased by the original lender. ...
HUD Said to Entice Banks to Enter Foreclosure Program (Update1) Bloomberg
US broadens rules for mortgage-aid plan Philadelphia Inquirer
Government To Let More Homeowners Swap For More Affordable Loans KWTX
BusinessWeek - New York Times
all 73 news articles

Loans - Google News

home | site map
© 2008 RMB.ORG.UK