Military Payday Loans

In the past few years military payday loans has grown to almost 26%.  That means that at least one fourth of military households are using payday loans to get by when their funds run short.  With the job that our military does for our country, is it fair that the payday loan companies are taking advantage of them?  Of course it isn’t.

Soldiers in general are ideal targets for military payday loans because they have a steady income, and if they are deployed their families often find themselves faced with many extra expenses while the soldier is abroad.  Many of the new recruits in particular only make about $1200.00 a month, and when they are deployed it is often a hardship for the spouse that stays at home taking care of the children and bills.  This makes them more vulnerable to the idea of quick cash with little hassle.   The fees that are charged though are usually more than they can hand.  Often in excess of 300%, these soldiers and families are finding themselves getting into serious debt trying to pay back more than what they initially borrowed.   There are some soldiers that are taking out a military payday loan of $500.00 and paying back as much as $2000.00 by the time they are finished.

Military payday loan companies often use a name that implies a military connection to make the soldier or family member feel that they can be trusted, when in fact they are charging outrageous fees with the expectation of return payment within just a few weeks.  Now, the Navy, Army, Marine Corps, and the Air Force societies are trying to end the use of military payday loans by offering emergency financial assistance to the members of the military, as well as short term loans offered by the military credit unions that give the soldiers a longer period of time to pay them back with lower interest rates.

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