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Dollars and Cents

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Why You Should Avoid PayDay Cash Loans

by Jeff Rose on March 18, 2010

in Dollars and Cents

I’ve always heard how evil PayDay cash loans are. They have been called “scams” and “ripoffs”. I, personally, never had a run in with them until recently.  I met with a 60+ year old woman that was having a hard time making it work financially.  She was still employed and trying to take care of her elderly son who had his fair share of hard times.  Thinking she had on other options, she turned to one of those Quick Cash PayDay loan services.

When she showed me her statement my jaw almost hit the desk.  She had taken out a 9 month loan of $400 (or so) and her interest rate was 521%! I really thought it was a typo at first.  The loan accrued a $5.35 interest charge per day.  $5.35 PER DAY! I don’t remember the exact pay off amount, but I remember it being somewhere in the neighborhood of $1400 for a 9 month loan. If that doesn’t convince you to stay away for PayDay cash loans, then what will?  To shed more light on the topic, Miranda Marquit offers her take on why you should avoid these quick cash loans (better know as PayDay nightmares).

The lure of easy money is alive and well, even after the financial crisis and recession he have had. Indeed, with credit standards tighter than ever, it is little surprise that many are looking for ways to get their hands on money without having to go through with an onerous credit check. Payday loans seem perfect, allowing borrowers access to money, usually without a credit check. In many cases, all you need to get a payday loan is a bank account and proof that you have a job. You head into the payday loan place with this information, fill out a form, and write a check for the amount of money you want, plus the fee that payday loan places charge.
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How to Save Money When Moving Your House

March 8, 2010 Dollars and Cents
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With the completion of our new home, the realization of how much “stuff” we had to move to our new house sent chills down our spine. We’ve been in our first home for just under five years and I’m amazed on how much junk we accumulated over the years. My wife and I [...]

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How to Keep Your Computer Files Safe and Sound

February 11, 2010 Dollars and Cents
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This is a guest post by Paul from the Fiscal Geek.
It’s a story you’ve heard a million times before. You’re sitting in Economics 101 and you look out across campus to see thousands of invading forces parachuting onto the football field. You grab your laptop and jump into your buddies pickup truck to head to [...]

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How to Save Money on the Web: 3 Types of Subscription Tools

January 27, 2010 Dollars and Cents
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There’s only one reason why we hate holidays: huge spending they entail.That’s the time when we are forced to shop a lot and one good way to save on holiday shopping is by tracking deals and special offers.

photo credit: eldarbee
Luckily, the Internet brings us a lot of handy tools that make shopping smarter and [...]

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10 Tips for Budgeting in the New Year

January 26, 2010 Dollars and Cents
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You know you should do it and you know why, but making a budget and sticking to it has not been easy right? Well if you’ve tried and failed in the past to stick to your budget, that is no reason to stop trying, it is simply a information you need to take with you [...]

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FDIC Coverage Limit Expiration Extended Through 2013

January 21, 2010 Dollars and Cents
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The temporary increase in Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) coverage limit from $100,000 to $250,000 per deposit, per bank, is extended through December 31, 2013. The increase was enacted in October 2008 and was set to expire December 31, 2009.

photo credit: RichieC

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7 Safety Tips For Online Shopping

January 15, 2010 Dollars and Cents
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Whether you shop online routinely or infrequently, it will help to follow some precautions this holiday season as you hunt for bargains. The risk of identity theft rises as you offer more and more information about yourself online, so any shopping season is a time to be careful as well as resourceful. Here are some [...]

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5 Tips to Help You Beat Post Holiday Debt

December 23, 2009 Credit Cards
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For millions of Americans, the real holiday hangover hits when the credit card bill arrives. After springing for airline tickets, gifts for everyone from parents to friends to coworkers, a new outfit and some bottles of bubbly to ring in the New Year, few people can afford to pay off their full balance in January. [...]

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What Should You Look For in a Good Bank?

December 4, 2009 Dollars and Cents
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Looking For the Right Bank sean.flynn
It is surprising how many people will put their money in just any bank. All banks are not created equal, and let’s just say that some have proven more solvent than others. Besides FDIC insurance, what other characteristics should you seek – and what questions should you consider?
How close [...]

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7 Things that Make Good Financial Cents for Managing Your Finances

December 3, 2009 Dollars and Cents
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Managing Your Finances Wisely
If you look at a list of things that man is obsessed with, you’ll see that money features way at the top. It is what moves the world, it is what drives us to succeed, and it is what we sometimes give more importance to than even the air we breathe. [...]

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3 Ways to Save Money During a Recession

November 18, 2009 Dollars and Cents
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It’s no secret that we are still in the middle of one of the leanest times in living memory. This far-reaching financial crisis is now a global issue with banks right at the heart of the problem. Whether it’s over-lending, over-paying or unfair bank charges they’ve caused a lot of havoc across the world. But [...]

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How to Break Bad Money Habits

October 19, 2009 Dollars and Cents
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Many of us plan thoughtfully for all kinds of life goals. Yet many of us spend impulsively, using our money on the moment rather than saving or investing it for the future.
This last recession caused us to take a second look at where our dollars go. If you seem to be making adequate money and [...]

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How To Survive a Stock Market Crash

August 18, 2009 Dollars and Cents
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Does anybody feel like the 2008 stock market crash has been one of the worst ever?  Unfortunately, the crash in 2008 was the first collision and 2009 started with another  rear ending when you thought the wreck was over.  Luckily, we’re seeing the beginning of a recovery, but whiplash is not easy to overcome.  Especially, [...]

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