Letter and Chart Reveal Payday Loan Reform Problems, Statistics

Historical archive, first published 2006 — payday-lending laws and rates have changed since. Preserved for the record.

As previousy reported, The Bend Bulletin doesn't hide its feelings in stating the need for payday loan reform in Oregon. A recent letter to the editor follows up on recent cash advance news:

On June 21, officials in Bend and Oregon City cast unanimous votes in favor of the payday advance reform ordinance. The local ordinance offers consumers immediate protection by establishing the right to a payment plan and ending interest-only payments on back-to-back rollovers …

However, lawmakers delayed the new law for 15 months. Payday loan lenders only took a few weeks to adjust. They have developed a new type of loan that allows them to get around the 36 percent annual cap. They will continue to profit by charging people short on money triple-digit interest. Communities around Oregon need to fight this greed.

More payday loan reform is still needed.

Elsewhere in the paper, the following chart is listed. It shows - in detail - how a supposedly cheap payday loan can add up: