![]() ![]() Texas is widely considered a wild west of payday and auto-title lending. ![]() LoanStar wasn’t satisfied with just taking her car the company mailed her a letter demanding that she pay $891 to cover towing costs and rekeying fees, in addition to the unpaid balance of the loan. “Just imagine the conversation I had to have with my kids, explaining to them why mommy can’t get to work,” Garcia said. One morning, she woke to find that her car had been towed away in the middle of the night. Garcia said she tried to negotiate a payment plan with LoanStar, but the company sent her straight to collections. She couldn’t even come close to paying off the loan on the income from her minimum-wage job at Goodwill Industries in Austin. “Being a single mom and working a minimum-wage job, it’s really hard to come up with that kind of money,” Garcia said.Īs soon as she took out the loan, Garcia said she realized she had made a mistake. The full loan amount plus interest and fees-almost $1,900-was due in 30 days. After appraising her vehicle, LoanStar Title Loans offered to loan Garcia $1,500. A family member suggested that she borrow against her car, a reliable 2003 Chevy Cavalier worth $2,100. After a relationship fell apart, Garcia found herself in a financial hole, unable to pay her bills. Garcia’s experience is typical, advocates say. It’s the first time the state has collected consumer data from the payday loan and auto-title lending industries.ĭuring the first half of 2012, auto-title lenders seized vehicles on about one out of 10 of their loans-more than 17,000 vehicles in all. Naivi Garcia doesn’t think of herself as a statistic, but she’s one of the many Texans-an average of 93 each day-who have their cars repossessed by auto-title lenders, according to reports from the state Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |