Crazy article of the day
April 23, 2009 | Utah, industry, media coverage, regulation | Comments (1)And it’s from the Salt Lake City Tribune:
Not much separates 1960s Mafia heavies and today’s payday lenders: La Cosa Nostra charged its debtors 250 percent interest. Fifty years later, the check-cashing industry is even more ambitious. They charge up to 500 percent.
But while loan sharks are reviled, modern-day business-suited predatory lenders are treated like legitimate corporate citizens in Utah. This week, the Salt Lake City Council feebly — and much too late — attempted to curb the clustering of usury shops along city blocks. They say that’s all they can do.
I’m almost speechless. Does this reporter have any perspective? Mob loan sharks will be back in business if payday lending is banned. I’d love to introduce this reporter to a real loan shark and a payday lender and then ask who she’d rather borrow money from.
They did it
April 22, 2009 | Uncategorized, Utah, industry, regulation | Comments (0)The Salt Lake City Council passed an ordinance that keeps payday lenders a 1/2 mile apart.
Drama building in SLC
April 20, 2009 | Utah, industry, local issues, regulation, states | Comments (0)The Council will vote tonight on whether to restrict payday lending stores. Can you feel the excitement?
Salt Lake City Tribune gives up
April 16, 2009 | Utah, federal legislation, industry, local issues, regulation | Comments (0)At least they’ve given up on browbeating the city council to regulate local payday lenders. From today’s editoral:
Some members of the City Council say they can’t do more to protect people from predatory lenders because they don’t have the necessary legal authority. Only the Legislature does. They’re right about that.
But the Legislature is reluctant to create usury laws that would limit financial institutions, including banks, from charging predatory interest. Utah could impose a maximum interest rate, tied to the prime or federal funds rate, but that would limit banks in this state who compete in a national market.
So the real solution lies in Congress. Given the current outrage over subprime mortgages, federal bailouts and lax regulation, now might be the time.
What the heck do payday loans have to do with subprime mortgages and federal bailouts of banks? If anything, the fact that there’s greater need for short-term credit ought to lead to the conclusion that this is not a good time to tighten a $70+ billion credit market. The Tribune editorial board is misguided.
“Our customers really appreciate the service.”
April 15, 2009 | Utah, industry, local issues, regulation | Comments (0)Payday lenders defend themselves to the Salt Lake City Council. Great job!
Salt Lake City action next week
April 14, 2009 | Utah, industry, local issues | Comments (0)This is about the proposed 1/2 mile separation rule.
Salt Lake City again
April 13, 2009 | Utah, industry, local issues, regulation | Comments (0)The Salt Lake City council is moving toward a half mile limit between payday lending/check cashing stores. Why does this seem necessary in the middle of a recession?
We like Utah again
March 3, 2009 | Deseret News, Utah, industry, regulation | Comments (0)We’ve been questioning Utah’s commitment to free markets based on the editorials we’ve read. Apparently, the newspapers are out of touch with the people’s representatives. From the story:
On Tuesday, {The House Business & Labor Committee} killed by a straight party-line vote of 8-4 a bill that would have limited payday lenders to charging no more than 100 percent annual interest. A Deseret News survey in 2005 showed they charge a median 521 percent in Utah, or $20 for every $100 they loan for two weeks.
That”ll teach us to let newspapers get us excited.
My whole impression of Utah is changing
February 23, 2009 | Utah, best practices, industry, regulation | Comments (1)Who would write such an ugly editorial? I mean calling payday lenders “creepy”? Utah is not the polite, free-market, sensible state the Payday Pundit thought it was. Or maybe the reporters and editorial writers are a distinct breed from the rest of society.
And what’s with Utah?
February 20, 2009 | Deseret News, Utah, industry, research | Comments (1)Isn’t this a conservative, free-market state? Maybe the newspapers don’t represent the people. This Deseret News editorial might as well have been written by the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
