ProPublica reports that online lenders tied to Native American tribes claim that they aren’t subject to state lending laws, but then have backed away from operating in six states where attorneys have acted forcefully to protect consumers. The story is here.
Category Archives: Predatory Lending
Read “The Tribal Lending Industry Offers Quick Cash Online at Outrageous Interest Rates. Here’s How It’s Survived,” from ProPublica this week.
Earlier this month, the Department of Treasury’s Office of Inspector General issued a report on refund advance and refund transfer products sold to taxpayers, finding that nearly 16% of taxpayers used such products for the 2023 tax year– with nearly 80% of those taxpayers having worked with just 7 tax return preparation companies. The report […]
The future, they say, is the hardest thing to predict. With that caveat, what can we expect from a second Trump administration for consumer prediction? Some quick thoughts: President-elect Trump will surely ask CFPB Director Rohit Chopra to resign so that he can replace Chopra with someone he prefers. Despite the fact that Vice President-elect […]
ProPublia reports that, “[f]acing financial ruin, the Lac du Flambeau tribe began offering short-term loans online with annual rates often over 600%. But as the tribe rose in an industry derided for predatory practices, it put its reputation at risk and drew costly lawsuits.” The article is here.
A home equity line of credit, or “HELOC,” is a loan product that allows a consumer to borrow money, using their equity in their home as collateral. William Lyons had taken out a HELOC from a predecessor to PNC Bank. Years later, PNC withdrew money from Lyons’ deposit account to offset outstanding payments on the […]
Today, the CFPB released a report about a form of home seller financing called “contract-for-deed” financing, under which the seller agrees to turn over a home’s deed only after the buyer completes a series of payments. The report found that such deals often involve inflated home prices, high interest rates, and balloon payments — and […]
Today, ProPublica published a story about the lending activity of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, a Wisconsin tribe whose various companies generated than 2,200 consumer complaints to the FTC since 2019 — more than any other tribe in recent years. The Tribe’s affiliated entities regularly issued online loans with annual […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is ready to take on predatory lending again. After the payday lenders association delayed a rule for years with a lawsuit challenging the regulation as well as the bureau’s constitutionality – a challenge the payday loan industry recently lost before the Supreme Court – the CFPB is bringing payday protections […]
Some years back, I had major surgery. When I woke up after the surgery, I was on fentanyl for pain relief. The following day, I was stepped down to morphine. Morphine was less effective at blocking the pain, but the staff explained that it was too risky to keep me on fentanyl. And in the […]