This pawn shop operator is very quotable.

Article in New Hampshire’s Union Leader about a boom in pawn lending.  Too bad the good citizens of the granite state no longer have the option of taking out a payday advance instead of goign to a pawn lender.  In this economy, having credit options is a good thing. 

This time in the Houston Chronicle.  Reporter Carolyn Feibel begins her story:

They hide cash in their homes, dodge robbers who lurk about check-cashing stores, and shell out millions in fees to payday lenders and pawnshops. They are the “un-banked” of Houston, and there are tens of thousands of them.

Like many reporters, Ms. Feibel doesn’t understand the distinction between check cashing customers and payday loan customers.  ALL PAYDAY LENDING CUSTOMERS ARE BANKED! 

Sorry for screaming, but it is unteneble that reporters who are supposed to know the rudimentary facts of the subjects they cover keep making this mistake.   It’s not rocket science.  Checking cashing is for the unbanked; payday loans are for people who have checking accounts.

Car repo men and pawnshops booming in Arkansas and expected to grow in the wake of payday lending stores closing.   From the piece:

People pawn golf clubs, CDs, tools, and a big trader is gold jewelry. At nearly $1,000 an ounce, it’s hitting record levels.You know you can’t go to a bank and get a $25 loan to pay your gas bill,” says Pakis. “We are here for people that don’t necessarily have a credit card. We can always help out people.”

Pakis says with the slow economy and Arkansas payday lenders forced to shut down, that he expects business to double by the end of summer.

 

…Or perhaps you are interested in a homemade bear costume complete with “musty scent.”

The Cleveland Plain Dealer has an interesting look at the pawnbroking business. 

People sometimes confuse pawnbroking and other short-term financial services with payday loans.  While they offer another option for people facing and unexpected and unbudgeted expense – pawnbroking and payday loans are very different services.  Here are some FAQs about payday advances.

According to this piece, people are bringing their gold to pawnshops to get enough money to fill their gas tanks before payday.   From the article:

   “We’ve got people from Williamsburg and different places that have never been in a pawn shop, and they are a little bit nervous coming in until they talk to my husband,” said Epstein.

    Mercury Pawn is also seeing more people come in because of gas prices.

Last sentence of the article mentions payday lending as another business that’s seeing a pickup in customers.    The Payday Pundit keeps seeing this assertion in the media, but there’s really been no evidence of it.