Ohio Alternative To Payday Loans
Date: Wed, 10/11/2006 - 07:45
Submitted by Cow & Chicken
on
Wed, 10/11/2006 - 07:45
Total Replies: 12
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Credit Unions Reach Out, Offer Consumers Alternative to Payday Loans Board of Managers Ohio’s Credit Union Outreach Solutions, Inc., CUSO Bill Burke, CEO, Day Air CU Doug Fecher, CEO, Wright-Patt CU Catherine Herring, CEO, Communicating Arts CU Dick Maslyk, CEO, MidState Educators CU Paul Mercer, President, Ohio Credit Union League (ex officio member) Dublin, OH (June 15, 2006) – A group of Ohio credit unions and the Ohio Credit Union League have unveiled a new low-cost loan alternative to help consumers who are caught up in the payday lending treadmill and paying as much as 400 percent apr (annual percentage rate) for a short-term loan. StretchPay is a new short-term salary advance loan program being offered by a number of credit unions. A member pays a modest annual fee ($35 for a $250 loan, $70 for a $500 loan) and is charged an interest rate of 18 percent. The entire balance must be repaid by the borrower within 30 days before taking a new advance. A credit union member who takes 12 advances of $250 each in a year incurs a total cost of approximately $78. In contrast, the borrower would pay more than four times that amount -- up to $360 -- for 12 similar loans from a payday lender. In addition to getting an affordable and reasonable rate for their loan, consumers receive an unprecedented service from their credit union – the opportunity to receive financial counseling and education to break free of the payday loan debt treadmill. Financial education has long been a core plank of the credit union philosophy. The StretchPay program was first piloted by two credit unions in the Dayton-area market – Wright-Patt Credit Union and Day Air Credit Union. “The fees saved by members are incredible,†said Bill Burke, CEO of Day Air Credit Union. “And if people are in a repeat pattern of borrowing, we make every effort to get them into financial education counseling so that they can break free of the payday lending merry-go-round.†Doug Fecher, CEO of Wright-Patt Credit Union and chairman of the Ohio Credit Union League, said predatory lending continues to be a real and pressing problem in society. “It’s an evil practice,†he said. “Credit unions are working collaboratively to be part of the solution. It’s incumbent upon us to come to the aid of the consumer. If credit unions can’t solve this problem, no one can.†Ten credit unions from across Ohio and the Ohio Credit Union League have formed Credit Union Outreach Solutions, Inc., a cooperative organization to fuel outreach and community commitment initiatives. StretchPay is one of those initiatives. Participating credit unions include: Affinia Credit Union, Dayton; Atomic Employees Credit Union, Waverly; Communicating Arts Credit Union, Cincinnati; Day Air Credit Union, Kettering; FirstDay Financial Federal Credit Union, Dayton; Incenta Federal Credit Union, Dayton; MidState Educators Credit Union, Columbus; Parish Federal Credit Union, Toledo; Toledo Area Community Credit Union, Toledo; and Wright-Patt Credit Union, Fairborn. Other credit unions across Ohio and around the nation will be invited to participate in Credit Union Outreach Solutions. Credit unions and leagues in a number of other states have already expressed interest. “Our mission as credit unions is to be of service, and our goal is to make financial services accessible and affordable for everyone,†said Paul Mercer, president of the Ohio Credit Union League. “Credit unions have done this with great success for many decades, in Ohio and across the country. The Credit Union Outreach Solutions collaboration and the StretchPay program are terrific examples of credit unions’ cooperative spirit and commitment to purpose.†-30- The Ohio Credit Union League represents more than 400 Ohio credit unions and advocates on behalf of nearly 3 million Ohioans who have selected credit unions as their financial institutions of choice. Credit unions are member-owned financial cooperatives which are democratically controlled by the members. Credit unions consistently rank the highest in customer satisfaction of any financial institutions, and have been Number 1 in every American Banker/Gallup poll conducted since 1989. For more information on Ohio’s credit unions, visit www.OhioCreditUnions.org Top of Page 5815 Wall St., Dublin, Ohio 43017 Phone: (614) 336-2894, (800) 486-2917 Fax: (614) 336-289 We are the state trade association for Ohio credit unions. We help credit unions help their members. Read More |
http://www.ohiocul.org/article/2198.htm
That is good news. My credit union had told me that this was goi
That is good news. My credit union had told me that this was going to happen but they aren't participating in it as of yet, but more than likely will in the near future. That is good news.
My old credit union isn't doing it yet either. I saw something
My old credit union isn't doing it yet either. I saw something on TV the other night and found this article when I did a search this morning. It's a better alternative to payday loans. Also, I like the fact that they help educate people on managing their money better to get out of the borrowing cycle.
This is like DDA
This is similar to Direct Deposit Advance offered by Wells Fargo. You could get an advance on your next paycheck - up to $500. You can get in a rut with this too. Everytime I got paid, after paying back the $500 that I would "borrow" every payday and the $40 in fees, I would have to do it all over again to pay my bills. DON'T DO THIS! After doing this for 1 year, they cut you off for a couple of months and then you are short $500. DONT DO THIS! Work OT, cancel the cable, cell phone, etc to cut back on bills. It works great! You'll survive it too!
I just got a call from a telemarketer congratulating me on my ne
I just got a call from a telemarketer congratulating me on my new debit card and offerred me a $1500 cash advance. I'm so tired of this. Really really really tired of it. I told her that I didn't have anytype of bank account and she hung up on me. How sad that made me.
Who was the company? I got one of these last week and started l
Who was the company? I got one of these last week and started laughing really loud. I don't understand why they hung up on me either :lol:
It's Freedom Financial. That's what my caller id said and that's
It's Freedom Financial. That's what my caller id said and that's who she said she was with. They have been calling all week and I was never around to answer, I figured it was some dba of a pdl going to harass me and I was ready. I have a feeling that I am always going to be reminded of my mistake with these pdl telemarketing calls for a very long time. I'm even getting text messages for them and calls on my cell phone to get more pdls. I've just stopped answering calls on my cell if I don't recognize the number.
I got a text message the other day from a pdl company saying tha
I got a text message the other day from a pdl company saying that I was approved for a $7500 gold card and for me to reply to it. I just deleted it. I think I had read somewhere in the past that Freedom Financial is a dba for Arrowhead Investments.
I think you're right, I read that somewhere also. I thought thes
I think you're right, I read that somewhere also. I thought these pdls reported you to teletrak or something when you default, so I am amused at how many pdl solicitation calls I get daily trying to get me trapped in the cycle again.
I think this new program in Ohio while obviously much better tha
I think this new program in Ohio while obviously much better than a PDL, would still have its drawbacks. Although not nearly as bad, you could still get in a cycle with them. I would be interested in learning what education is planned to go along with it.
I don't remember who called me, it may have been the same compan
I don't remember who called me, it may have been the same company. I get these types of e-mails all the time but they get deleted and reported as spam. kscornell, I have to agree with you. If it would have been available to me a year ago, I probably would have abused it. I liked the fact that they did educate the consumers though. I'm pdl free now and we are struggling a little bit financially. I know a year from now I will be debt free when I'm done with my debt settlement program. We are still saving so much out of our paychecks that we refuse to touch and we are working with creditors who aren't in our programs. I just find that it's better to be up front and honest these days.
Mishele, That's great that you are free of the PDL monster--an
Mishele,
That's great that you are free of the PDL monster--and hopefully I can say the same thing next year! Keep it up!
I have been getting calls for the last 2 weeks from Freedom Fina
I have been getting calls for the last 2 weeks from Freedom Financial. They have stopped. I wondered what they wanted.