consolidation of payday loans

With your stoer fronts and installment loans you will have to call them and try to make some type of arrangements. You can send the internet ones a letter revoking their right to debit your account and revoking an wage assignments they may have on you. You can then also ask them to deal with you by mail or email only. If you have over paid..state your law and what you should have paid...if you still owe on the principle offer arrangements on the balance. Make sure you talk to your bank when you close the account to make sure the debits can not force the account back open causing you multiple nsf charges.

The two consolidation companies I have read about on here are T & C and Langhorne. You can search for them on here and read what others have said about them.

Most of them only call your references when they have no onther ay to get a hold of you. Out of 10 ipdls I defaulted on only 1 called my son 1 time.

Hi Iguanagirl. None of my pdls ever contacted references, either. Just be sure to respond to them. As Morningstar said, the only way they really call your references is if they can't get in contact with you, so prevent that by making sure you don't let things go unanswered. I don't know what stat you live in, but some states make it mandatory for a storefront pdl to offer some type of arrangements. Here is a link to find out what your particular state's laws are:

http://www.paydayloaninfo.org/chelp.cfm

Hopefully your state offers provisions for arrangements.

Unfortunately, in California, repayment plans are not a required situation. I've already asked one of my storefront pdls and they didn't offer repayment. I know at least two of my storefronts do, though, so we'll see how it goes.

I'm really hoping that Langhorne can help me. That would make this situation MUCH easier on me. I'm great about making payments, I just stink at the whole budgeting week to week thing, I guess. :(

iguana, you live in California? And you have both store front and internet loans and installment loans? Can you (if you want to) list out who you have your loans through? If you do this, we might be able to help you here. This is entirely up to you. However, I get concerned regarding not knowing which companies people are dealing with. This is because it's best to know who you're dealing with in order to give any advice. Some pdls are handled differently depending on who they are. Also, some storefronts can be handled differently, as one of our members pointed out that some storefronts are members of CSFA and as a member, they should take payments. Now, if you don't want to list your loans, that's okay. I'm just thinking with a little more information, we can probably better advise you. :D I'm also just going to peek at California law.

California State Information

Legal Status: Legal

Citation:
Cal. Fin. Code ???????? 23000 to 23106

Loan Terms:
Maximum Loan Amount: $300
Loan Term: Max: 31 days
Maximum Finance Rate and Fees: 15% of check
Finance Charge for 14-day $100 loan: $17.65
apr for 14-day $100 loan: 459%

Debt Limits:
Maximum Number of Outstanding Loans at One Time: One
Rollovers Permitted: None (cannot charge fee for extension)
Cooling-off Period: None
Repayment Plan: Voluntary (no fees may be charged in conjunction with payment plan)

Collection Limits:
Collection Fees: $15 NSF fee
Criminal Action: Prohibited

Where to Complain, Get Information:
Regulator: California Department of Corporations
Address: Financial Services Division, 1515 K Street, Suite 200 Sacramento CA 95814
Phone: (866) 275-2677

Online

ThinkCash: Currently owe $326.10, will be $435.78 counting fees, 5 payments remaining
MTE Financial: $390
500FastCash: $390
OneClickCash: $455
LoanShop: $300
UpFrontCash: $455
CashNet: $235

Storefront

Ace Cash Express: $300
Advance Til Payday: $300
California Check Cashing Services: $300
Allied Cash Advance: $300
Money Mart: $300
Cash One: $300
Advance America: $300
EZ Cash: $230

Oh, and I have an installment loan for $950 from First Bank of Delaware which is brand new. :(

iguana,

Think Cash - installment loan
First Bank of Delaware - installment loan

MTE Financial - unlicensed/illegal
500FashCash - unlicensed/illegal
One Click Cash - unlicensed/illegal
Loan Shop - unlicensed/illegal

Upfrontcash - I'm THINKING is unlicensed/illegal
CashNet - may be licensed/legal (?) Not sure on this one either

Cashnet is legal. Give me a minute and I will get the license number.

Your installment loans will be licensed/legal. Your storefronts will be licensed/legal. However, some of your storefronts may be members of the CFSA, and should take repayments. And, according to pyb (above) CashNet is licensed/legal.

Their license (file) number is 100-3271

One of our best members, goudah, found all the information on the CSFA. She's awesome. I can check to see if these storefronts are on there.

I get the impression that Loan Shop is legal. When I checked the California BBB site, I was able to find Loan shop licensed in my state. They also seem to follow the fees like all of my storefronts.

The only difference is that they charge it as an extension, which would make them illegal, right?

They're currently charging me extension fees every payday (which is weekly for me, ugh!)

Also, I agree. I believe CashNet to be legal, as they require me to pay off the entire balance before getting a new loan.

What do I do with the storefront ones? I can't pay them all this Friday, I don't have the money to pay them off and get new ones. :( And I'm sure that not all of them will offer me the ability to do a repayment plan. :(

Did you get the Loan Shop off the internet? If so, it's probably the one I am thinking of. But I can't be totally positive unless you have maybe an address or contact information for them? Also, if they are charging you extension/rollover fees, those are prohibited. So I'm thinking they are not acting legally.

Thanks, pyb, for that information! :D
iguana - can you do this for me? Can you list how much you borrowed from each of your internet pdls and how much you have paid them so far? This will tell us a lot.

I have dealt with three of your storefronts (Cal Check Cashing, Advance America and Cash One), and can tell you from personal experience that Cal Check Cashing is the only one that offers the extended repayment plan. Advance America is a pain to deal with, but if you get a good store manager, will take payments. I am currently fighting with Cash One, who says I still owe money that I don't think I owe.
I would call Cal Check and get on the extended plan, which allows 4 equal payments over 4 months.

Yes, Loan Shop is one of my internet ones and they are doing the extension thing, just at the rate my state allows, so I would believe them to be illegal based on that they are extending the loan.

What do I do about the installment loans? I owe $200 every two weeks to First Bank of Delaware and $87 to ThinkCash. :(

I see ks has experience with some of your storefronts! Great! :D Now Loan Shop is probably the one that is not legal. They are charging you illegal fees. Your installment loans - they make you pay every two weeks? Not once a month?

Well, I seem to have a good relationship with my Advance America people (they all recognize me and are super friendly to me when I come in), so I suppose I can talk to the manager and see how it goes.

Cash One is a brand new one to me, so I don't know how that would go. :(

As for amounts paid, that might take me a little time. I had many pdls, got a loan from a friend that wasn't quite enough to cover everything and paid off what I could, but then ended up in the same rut I was prior to getting the loan from my friend, so I've probably paid my loans three to four times over at this point. :(

Yes, my installments are twice monthly.

ThinkCash is $87.10 every two weeks, I have 5 remaining payments.

First Bank of Delaware is $199.98 every two weeks, I haven't started paying on this one yet. :(

Oh my good Lord. These installment loans are awful! So you're paying $174.20 each month to Think Cash and $399.96 each month to First Bank of Delaware? Oh my God! That's $574.16 just on two loans per month. Lord have mercy. I'm not sure of the whole "installment loan" process, but can you (if you're able) try contacting them and seeing if they can do something regarding your payments? They may not if they are following all the laws correctly. But, my goodness, that's an awful lot of money every month. Plus the fact that you're playing the "pay the storefront and renew" game every two weeks. Then the internet ones on top of all that. Lordy, Lordy. When you get a chance, try to list out what you've paid your internets. We can probably do something there. With your storefronts, see if you can work out an arrangement with them to get out of this vicious cycle. And, try calling your installments loan companies. It never hurts to see what they say. The worst that can happen is they can say "no". Okay. But it's worth a shot if you tell them you're having financial difficulty. Maybe (hopefully) they can work with you? Try to do this & let us know where you stand. We can try to help you out. :wink:

Got some bad news today...

Spoke with a Bank of America rep on the phone on my way home from work... turns out that if I have pending ACH transactions out there and close my account, they will re-open the account.

I don't know what to do. :( Langhorne hasn't called me back yet and Friday is doomsday. :(

Can they not put a hard debit block on them???

They said that they can stop payment on them if they know at least 3 days ahead of time, but that is it.

I'm going to go into a branch and speak with someone instead of a trained monkey on the phone.

I figured out my totals on some of my loans...

UpFrontCash: $525.00 paid ($350 loan)
MTE Financial: $360.00 paid ($300 loan)
500FastCash: $360.00 paid ($300 loan)

The rest are loans that I haven't overpaid on yet or I got them, paid them off, and then got them again, so I don't think my overpayment would count...

iguana, okay, you shouldn't have called the customer service number. Nope. You need to go to the branch where you opened your account. You need to speak with the branch manager only, not a teller. You need to tell them the situation. However, let me tell you right now. Do not state "payday loans". No. Tell the branch manager illegal companies are taking unauthorized transactions out of your account. This is the truth. You have fraudulent activity on your account. They need to put a HARD DEBIT BLOCK on it now. Now. I understand that it can be "forced open" if they close it. It happened to me. But they can put a HARD DEBIT BLOCK on it. Do not use the words "payday loans". Use the words illegal companies, unauthorized transactions, etc. Tell them you are "working with an attorney". Hell, tell them whatever it takes to get this blocked now. Going by your user name, I'm going to assume you are a female. CRY! Beg! Do whatever it takes. And, if you think I'm kidding, I am not. It has worked. You need to get this account blocked. You have overpaid your internet pdls already. They are going to take more out. Tell your branch manager these are ILLEGAL. Hell, I don't care what you tell them (as long as you don't say pay day loans), just make sure they do it! Do not leave that bank until there is some kind of hold on it so nothing goes through. I personally told my bank that I had an attorney. Just me though. Although advice given about crying, begging, pleading has worked for some. Do not call customer service. Worthless. You need the one with "the power". Which is the branch manager. You need to go in person. You need to STRESS the illegal factors. Please do this.

Ok, I spoke with Langhorne today and got all of the appropriate paperwork. They are sure they can help with the internet loans, but not sure if they can help with the installment or storefront loans. I guess we'll see...

I'm going to see if I can scrape together the money to get my paperwork notarized and faxed over to Langhorne tonight so that I'll have a better idea what I'm up against at some point tomorrow.

I have been instructed by Langhorne that yes, I still need to close my checking account ASAP. I unfortunately have one item still pending and an ACH transaction pending from the Nugget Market that hasn't gone through (but is covered by the money left in the account).

Are there any letters in the site's arsenal that are for banks revoking ACH? It would be helpful to go in with a piece of paper in hand stating that I need the hard debit closure done.

iguana, let me ask you this. Langhorne stated they can help you with the internet loans. You have already overpaid all your internet loans listed. They are overpaid. What are they going to do? Pay them again? And they did not specify if they could actually help you with the storefronts and the installment loans? I'm just confused here. From what I'm understanding, they're saying they will help you pay overpaid internet loans, but aren't sure they can help you with unpaid storefront loans and installment loans. Am I understanding this correctly?

I have three internet loans that I have overpaid on and another three that have not been overpaid. The man I spoke with at Langhorne was not sure as to whether they could consolidate any of my other loans, but that was because he was a front-line representative, not my actual counselor.

He said that on the ones I have overpaid on, they will likely be able to get a paid in full statement very quickly from them and focus on the others for repayment.

In any case, I would much rather Langhorne go through the process of dealing with people like MTE Financial than have to do so myself. :P

---

I just returned from the bank... it went much better than I could have possibly hoped for. :)

I spoke with the nicest representative I have ever dealt with at Bank of America and she helped me not only get my account closed as of tonight (once my $33 grocery store check clears and the account goes to $0.00), but she set me up with a brand new checking account, confirmed that none of the loan people will have any ability to access the new account, and even gave me the $25 to start up the new account by refunding me part of an NSF fee.

Also, if by ANY stretch of the imagination the account re-opens from the ACHs, she instructed me to come right back to her and she will help me resolve it.

------
To do list:
Get power of attorney notarized
Fax list of all accounts and power of attorney to Langhorne
Find out if Langhorne can assist with any storefronts and if not, go to storefronts (preferably prior to Friday) and make payment arrangements
--------

The load on my back seems to be losing a few pounds each day... :)

iguana, awesome! :D You go, girl! You're rockin' now! If you feel better letting Langhorne battle with the "evil ones", go for it! But find out from your actual "person" if they can do anything about the storefronts. If not, then take a deep breath and call every one of them and talk to the manager about payment arrangements. Your bank experience went so well! I am so happy to read that! It just made me smile! They were good to you. I read so many horror stories regarding banks. I'm so happy for you, Iguana. You're going in the right direction and I know it's going to work out for you.

Thanks. :) Having the support from this site really helps me have confidence that eventually, everything will be ok. :)

I did some research on the CFSA last night and determined that all but three of my storefront payday loan providers are part of it, so other than those three (which are honestly the easiest people for me to talk to anyway), every other storefront should offer me some sort of repayment plan.

It's also really nice that after my first "payment" to Langhorne, I can add to my next month's "payment" little by little. $50 per paycheck is a much easier amount to tackle than $200 within one paycheck. :)

I genuinely feel like there's a light at the end of the tunnel now, and between my actions, your assistance and Langhorne's help with the onlines, I will get there sooner, rather than later. :)

iguana, you are soooo on the road to recovery! You're doing great! There is light! I promise you! And I'm glad we could at least be here to support you! And, remember, we are always here! If you need anything or have any questions or run into any problems, you know where to come! :wink:

Spoke with my Langhorne representative and was happily informed that my ThinkCash and First Bank of Delaware accounts can be included right along with the online loans in my settlement, which is WONDERFUL news. It will raise my monthly amount with Langhorne, but I can thankfully still afford it. :)

I will have to go to the storefronts and deal with them directly, so I have my work cut out for me over the next couple evenings. I'll continue to pay on two of them for now, as they aren't part of the CFSA, but I will pay them down as quickly as possible.

The pending check for the grocery store went through last night, so my old, tainted checking account is now closed and no longer showing up in my online banking list at all. :) My new checking account is up and healthy. :)

-----------
To do list:
Get power of attorney notarized
Fax and mail power of attorney to Langhorne
Go to storefronts and make payment arrangements

God, I love you, iguana! When you're on a mission, you go straight for it! I'm so happy to hear that Langhorne is going to work with you on your installments loans! I was worried about that! You are awesome! :D

Well, the way I look at it is that I don't have much time to spare. I don't want these vultures contacting my references (I don't need my mother hearing from some payday loan vulture that her daughter is a deadbeat or anything like that) and I want to get out from under this as fast as I can. I have most of my storefront loans due on Friday and I want to get to them before they try to deposit the checks and find that my account has been closed.

It'll be tough financially, but it can't be any worse than what I was already going through.

iguana, you're right. It'll be "tight", but in the long run, you'll see how much better you are! No more sucking your paycheck out every payday! You're going to do it. I know you are. And then you'll look back one day and say "Damn, I came a long way!" :D

You're a great cheerleader. :)

I read your messages and picture your little dachshund talking to me and telling me that everything will be ok. :P


I also just remembered something that I keep forgetting! Starting with this paycheck or next, my yearly 50 cent raise kicks in, so that's an extra $80/month! :)

I love being your cheerleader! And, listen to my dog! LOL! :lol: Congratulations on your raise! Now you'll actually get to see that $80 a month! Yes!

T&C is working with my store front pdl's. I have three of them, but the only one who has been calling is ACE Cash Express.

Hmm... well, if I come across any hassle from them, I'll certainly have to have a chat with T&C then, I suppose. :)

If you have a company working for you regarding your pdls and the pdls are calling you, just refer them on to the company that is working for you. If you're paying for someone to deal with these pdls, they should deal with them. Not you.

Going after the storefronts today, at least as many as I can hit...

Typed up a letter for them, please give me your thoughts!


------------
Dear Manager,

Due to dire financial circumstances, I am requesting your assistance and understanding in setting up an extended payment plan for my loan. Currently, I owe your company $300; $255 in loan principal and $45 in fees. I understand and confirm this as being a debt owed and would like to make every effort to pay you in the most timely manner that I am financially able to provide.

I have separated my payments into 5 monthly payments, beginning in November 2007 and ceasing once the loan is fully paid in March 2008.

11/16/2007 - $50
12/14/2007 - $50
1/11/2008 - $50
2/8/2008 - $70
3/7/2008 - $80

I believe these to be mutually agreeable terms and will make my payments per the above deadlines.

I appreciate your understanding and cooperation in this matter and thank you for assisting me to get back on my feet financially.

Thank you,
-----------



Naturally, the amounts and dates change for each place, but under this plan, all would be paid off within 5 months.

iguana, I like your letter. You're stating that you acknowledge the debt, that you are very willing to pay in full, and you are offering a repayment plan. However, do not be surprised if they don't like your payment plan. I'm not saying this to scare you or anything, but most places will want more than one payment a month. Now, I can't say that they won't go for it. If they do, wonderful! However, just don't be surprised if they say they want payment every two weeks or whatever. Most storefronts don't want to drag it out for months. A lot will ask for more "up front" and then payments. It just depends on the storefront and on the manager. I say give it a shot and see what their response is. If they want more, don't be surprised. It's just typical. Let me know how they respond to it.

Oh, I know. I went in there with the assumption that I would get turned down left and right, which is exactly what happened.

I was calm and courteous with every single one and they were calm and courteous back, offering their advice on the situation. The best part is that I was able to sneak my letter into my file at all of the places but one, so there is written record that I made the attempt to set up payment.

So, in order...

Advance Til Payday - Manager was not on duty and I was informed by the employee that they typically require half down and then I could make arrangements on the rest. I told her I could not do that and asked if there was any other way. She didn't know, so she had me write a small note for the manager and put my check, letter and file together so that the manager will call me tomorrow. Will likely have to default, but we'll see... the manager is REALLY nice there.

California Check Cashing - Manager was busy, but I was able to speak to an assistant manager. Their CFSA plan only allows for 4 payments, but was malleable enough for me to put the first 4 of my 5 dates in and make the payments out as $50,$50,$50, and $150. We will see how things go and if I end up eventually having to default at the final payment, I will at least have given them the majority ($220 with the 4th payment set at my $70) of what I owe them.

Advance America - Manager was not on duty and employee, while very nice and helpful, was unable to do any sort of payment arrangements outside of $75 every two weeks for four payments. She asked me to write a note to attach to my letter, she placed my check with it and the manager should be calling me tomorrow. Will likely have to default on this one.

Cash 1 - Spoke with the district manager and she was unable to help me beyond the same $75 every 2 weeks for 4 payments. She put a note in my file that I came in with the letter, accepted the letter to place with my check, and said she would try her hardest to keep my account situation within the branch, rather than corporate. Defaulting this one...

Ace Cash Express - This one isn't due until next Friday, but I figured I would get as many as possible at once. They follow the same $75 every 2 weeks for 4 payments deal, so I will eventually have to default on this one as well. They placed my letter with my file and gave me the collections phone number.

Money Mart - Spoke with Manager, but again, same $75 every 2 weeks for 4 payments routine. They accepted my letter and gave me the collections phone number, but I will have to default.

Allied Cash Advance - Probably the nicest place I went to and the last for today. I called and spoke with the branch manager while stuck in traffic on my way over to the branch. She called and asked the branch manager what we could do, but she was limited to the same $75 every 2 weeks for 4 payments. She did, however, say that she would try her best to keep my check in the branch for as long as possible and would then keep my collection at the branch as long as possible and instructed me to come back on 11/16 with my first payment. She denied the letter, stating that if she took it, it would denote acceptance of my terms, which she can't do. She said, though, that she will put a big huge note in my file and will work with me as much as she can!

-------

I was unable to get to my last storefront, but I'm not due until Sunday and it's a small, hole in the wall, run by a single owner/operator.

I feel exhausted, but my mind is at ease. Tomorrow is D-Day... I default on virtually everything tomorrow.

Off to enjoy a dinner made by my boyfriend (he knew I was having a rough day!)

iguana, good job, honey! :D You made every effort that you could. You went to each store and communicated your efforts. I kind of figured they would want more, but you gave it a shot. And you did a damn good job going to all those places and speaking with everyone. You just do what you can do. If you can pay them, then pay them. If you can't, I guess you'll just have to default. I mean, if you can't pay, you can't pay. Sorry. But they can not claim that you did not make an effort. And they can not claim you did not contact them. You actually did great. Now just one more to deal with. Maybe this one will be more willing to work with you. I'm actually very proud of you. It takes guts to go to these storefronts and confront the managers. You did great. You did your part. Now we'll just see what happens. You can only do so much. You're doing wonderful though, iguana. I do hope you enjoy your dinner your wonderful boyfriend made. You just hang in there and try to do what you can. You've done as much as you can for now. And that's great! :D

Yay! The doggie says that everything will be ok!

Damn straight! Listen to the dachshund! :wink:

Happy D-Day! (Default day)

After hearing all of the horror stories from people about Bank of America re-opening accounts when they receive ACH requests, I am very happy to say that this was not the case for me. I logged into my online banking again this morning and saw only one account, my brand new, untainted one with a whopping 43 cents, just how I left it before going to bed last night.

I get my live payroll check this morning (hopefully it will be the only live one I receive, or one of two) and for the first time in many moons, my entire check is MINE.

I expect that my phone will start ringing at some point today with the managers of a couple storefronts, but I suppose it may take a few days for the online creditors to realize that their payment was denied. We'll see how long it takes for those calls to start.

When they do start, though, do I just refer them to Langhorne even though I haven't made my first Langhorne payment?


To do list (considerably smaller!)
----------------------------------
Get power of attorney notarized and faxed/mail to Langhorne on lunch today
Speak with final storefront manager

iguana, great news about the bank! And your paycheck will be yours! It's a good day! You might actually want to consider calling the storefronts before they call you. I know you've done this already, so maybe it would be best to just let them contact you. They may not since you've already been there. The managers will probably call. Just talk to them. See what they can offer you. Remember to call the one store you haven't called yet. The on line pdls will take awhile before they realize what's going on. Give them a few days, then they'll hit!

I'm not worried about the storefronts, since I physically visited them and spoke with all of the managers I could speak with.

I'm concerned about the online PDLs, since they won't be contacted until after Langhorne receives my 10/29 payment (though I'm going to try to make payment on 10/26 if I can.)

Should I just refer them to Langhorne if they call at all next week?