May 24th, 2007
Auto financing after bankruptcy can be a nasty proposition and the founders of this site have invested alot of time, money and energy researching the options left for people in this situation. The normal channels used for getting an automobile are not going to work. When it comes to auto finance after you go bankrupt your best bet is to find a good online financial broker. Someone who will get finance companies bidding on your business. This will ensure you get the lowest interest rate possible.
Without a qualified outfit hunting down the best interest rate possible you will be seeing some very ugly numbers thrown your way. Luckily in the last few years there has been a large . Bankruptcy statistics have proven most people pay back their loans and don’t default if they have gone bankrupt. The financing companies really win because they have an excuse to crank up the interest rate and at the same time get loyal and solid borrowers. For the few clients that fail to make payments the vast majority make up for it.
As long as these new trends continue for borrowers who have been through a bankruptcy, the automobile dealerships will be busy moving vehicles off their lots. Great for the economy. Great the bank, the borrower and the dealerships. My only advice to the visitors looking for auto loans is to keep the payments low by any means necessary. Use this new opportunity to built your credit back AND drive your new car. A true win win situation if you play your cards right. I know from personal experience how difficult it can be to rebuild good credit. When you get a new chance to start over it’s worth making every move to secure it.
May 24th, 2007
Short video from Mark Huffman at ConsumerAffairs.com – “Payday loans
are a bad idea for consumers”
Payday lenders can charge up to 800 percent interest, and their business model is designed to keep you in debt.
May 24th, 2007
It’s really getting stupid now with all the “information sharing” going between lending istitutions, and credit bureaus. Read this interesting piece about becoming a “trigger lead”.
Looks like America needs to clean up it’s lending and loans industry. Looks like the legislation is coming every month now, from Student loans, to Payday loans, to subprime loans, there’s new laws being made every few months.
It’s a surprise for many would-be home buyers: On Monday you sign a loan application with the mortgage broker of your choice and by Tuesday your phone is ringing off the hook with calls from other lenders offering you deals. Congratulations! You’ve become a “trigger lead.”
When you, as a potential borrower, sign a loan application, the lender or broker pulls your credit report, often getting a report that includes information from all three major credit bureaus.
The lender’s request for your credit report “triggers” an alert informing the credit bureaus that you are a “hot lead” looking to purchase a home or refinance your loan.
The credit bureaus sell these trigger leads to lenders and brokers, presenting these industry subscribers with a list of candidates who are looking for a loan and meet their ideal criteria for loan products.
Experian, for example, has a monitoring service that lenders and brokers can subscribe to called Prospect Triggers. Experian spokeswoman Susan Henson says the company can pull out all of the consumers that fit a lender’s credit criteria from the consumer database.
“They could say they want consumers who have never claimed bankruptcy. They could say they want consumers that have two open credit cards and an auto loan,” says Henson.
Henson says federal law limits the type of information provided to clients. Therefore, no specific information is delivered, only aggregated information such as the total number of bank cards a consumer has.
Credit bureaus also provide contact information, such as the applicant’s name, address and telephone number, to their clients, says Stuart Pratt, president of the Consumer Data Industry Association, or CDIA, which lobbies for credit bureaus.
Questionable tactics
Trigger lead products have been around for more than a year and a half and are facing scrutiny in the home lending industry.
Many consumers complain it’s a violation of their privacy. Some bankers and mortgage brokers also oppose the practice, claiming borrowers are blaming them for the flood of calls. In some states, lawmakers are calling for legislation to prohibit or regulate trigger leads.
Mathew Street, deputy general counsel at the American Bankers Association, says that since Jan. 1, 2007, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island and Alabama have bills that “limit or prohibit the use of information about a specific loan by someone trying to compete with that loan or sell a product without acknowledging they are not affiliated with the bank that made the original loan.”
New Mexico recently enacted a bill that bars solicitors from using certain loan information.
In Congress, House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank reportedly plans to restrict the credit bureaus’ ability to sell lists of prospective home buyers.
[Source Bankrate.com]