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ALTERNATIVE FINANCIAL SERVICE PROVIDERS ASSOCIATION
May 26, 2020
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Pandemic increases business for area pawn shops in unexpected ways
AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - The pandemic has brought more business for area pawn shops, but in ways that no owner would have expected.
"Yeah, it's been kind of wild. I've never seen it, and I've been doing this a long time," said Scott Reynolds, manager of Damron's Pawns.
Reynolds has been in the pawn shop business for nearly two decades and says the fact that people are not pawning items right now is unheard of.
"It kind of surprised us, because our sales have really gone up. We really thought the loan business would go up but actually the sale. Especially March, our sales were 50 percent up," said Eddie Morton, owner of Golden Nugget Pawn Shop.
Read more at KFDA Amarillo
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As Consumer Debt Rises, Collection Lawsuits Flood State Civil Court Systems
New report details the growth, impact, and consequences of debt claims
According to a new report from The Pew Charitable Trusts, long before court buildings closed and unemployment surged in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, court dockets had increasingly become dominated by debt collection lawsuits. As Americans confront the economic consequences of the outbreak, including a potential surge in debt, bankruptcies, and defaults, modernizing our court systems is now more important than ever.
Even before the pandemic began, Americans' debt was on the rise, increasing by $1.5 trillion between 2008 and 2019. And as household debt grew, creditors and third-party firms adopted an increasingly aggressive approach to defaults, using state civil courts to pursue collections via lawsuits known as debt claims. Pew's report found that debt claims rose from just 1 in 9 state civil cases in 1993 to 1 in 4 by 2013, and this growth has significant implications for courts and consumers.
Read more at Pew Charitable Trusts
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NEVADA: Industry watchers predict surge in payday lending
Economically Southern Nevada has become one of the hardest hit metros in the entire country due to the state's dependency on the leisure and hospitality industry, depleting finances for countless families.
It's difficult to predict how financial behavior will change as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but some financial advocates fear an increase in the use of short-term, high-interest payday loans by vulnerable Nevadans.
"A lot of people right now are somewhat protected because of the moratorium on evictions, but once that lifts and people owe three months rent, there's going to be a lot of people scrambling to figure out where to get that money," said Barbara Paulsen, an organizer for Nevadans for the Common Good, which lobbies for legislation in the state to regulate the payday loan industry.
Nevada regulators lack data that would indicate whether the pandemic and accompanying economic upheaval have pushed people to increase reliance on payday lenders but at least one payday lender, Advance America, said the company has not had an increase in loan applications in Nevada, according to Jamie Fulmer a spokesperson for the company.
Read more at Nevada Current
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5 ways the CFPB has eased industry's coronavirus burden
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's response to the coronavirus pandemic has included relaxing or eliminating rules so financial institutions can focus on aiding consumers.
Continuing a regulatory relief focus for the agency that preceded the crisis, CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger said in March that the agency planned to deliver "temporary and targeted regulatory flexibility" to financial firms.
"We recognize that many institutions are facing operational challenges due to COVID-19, and the priority must be responding to consumers facing nearer-term issues," Kraninger said March 22 at a Financial Stability Oversight Council meeting. "We will continue to provide further relief as needed to ensure that resources can be focused on consumers."
Read more at AMERICAN BANKER
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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Issues Consumer Complaint Bulletin
MAY 21, 2020
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) today issued a report analyzing the complaints received during the COVID-19 pandemic. The bulletin shows that mortgage and credit card complaints top the list of complaints the Bureau has received that mention coronavirus or related terms. In April and May, the Bureau received historically higher complaints, however, complaints mentioning COVID-related terms amounted to a total of 4,500 complaints during those two months.
Mortgage and credit card complaints top the list for complaints that mention coronavirus terms, with 22 percent and 19 percent of complaints, respectively. Among mortgage complaints that mention coronavirus keywords, 59 percent of consumers identified struggling to pay the mortgage as the issue. For credit card complaints, 19 percent of consumers identified a problem with purchase shown or statement as the issue.
Read more at CFPB
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About National Debt Holdings
National Debt Holdings is a receivables management firm that assists creditors with improving cash flow performance from their accounts receivables. Our team understands the precise balance needed to successfully recover accounts receivable while protecting the brands and reputations of our creditor partners.
Headquartered in Miami, FL, our team of receivables management experts has developed deep relationships with creditors and service providers, giving us a unique blend of knowledge and expertise with which to drive business and create success for our clients. Within our local community, National Debt Holdings embraces social responsibility and is committed to helping our community as well as supporting various charities.
Understanding the Landscape
We strive to stay on the cutting-edge of the receivables management industry. By actively participating in conferences, webinars, and other live events, we keep pace with changes, trends, and innovations within the receivables management industry. We use our broad knowledge to implement proactive measures that protect our clients, partners, and service providers.
National Debt Holdings
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More than 1 in 4 Americans are raiding their retirement accounts after a coronavirus-related job loss
More than 38 million people have filed for jobless claims since the coronavirus pandemic started.
The unexpected loss in income is causing many Americans to tap their retirement savings just to make ends meet. And many people who lost a job - or have a spouse or partner whose income has declined - didn't have much money saved in the first place.
Half of Americans who were recently furloughed or let go have saved less than $500 for retirement in the past year - and 70% have saved less than $1,000, according to a report by fintech firm SimplyWise. Of those who have an individual retirement account, 401(k) plan or retirement savings account, 1 in 5 now plan to tap those funds.
Read more at CNBC
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About Dreher Tomkies LLP.
Our attorneys routinely advise clients on consumer lending, home equity lending, first and second mortgage lending, private label and general purpose credit card lending, student lending, retail sales financing, payday lending, title lending, RAL lending, agricultural lending, wholesale financing, inventory financing, business revolving credit and charge programs, factoring, health care and medical financing, deposit taking, home banking, annuity and insurance sales, GAP programs, reinsurance, debt cancellation and suspension, debt collection compliance, money transmitting, state and federal regulatory compliance, and the licensing and chartering of institutions. Such counseling can include the rendering of advisory opinions, state law outlines and summaries, product design and development and the identification of appropriate product delivery vehicles, as well as program planning, implementation and maintenance.
We also provide advice regarding all aspects of the purchase and sale of receivables, the negotiation of credit programs among financial institutions, retailers and others, securitizations and participations of receivables, litigation and amicus briefs in connection with credit issues, creditor representation in bankruptcy, and legislative and regulatory solutions.
Dreher Tomkies LLP
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Tech firms sweeten deals for U.S. banks cutting costs in crisis
BENGALURU (Reuters) - Top technology services firms are offering payment deferrals, discounts of up to 20% and other sweeteners to some U.S. banks to keep their business as the pandemic forces Wall Street to cut tech budgets, according to executives involved in the talks.
Large Wall Street banks are widely expected to reduce overall budgets and discretionary tech spending, which includes areas such as technology consulting services, business analytics, research and design and process management projects.
Accenture, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and Cognizant Technology Solutions - among the world's largest tech services vendors - have offered to do more for them at lower rates, three executives who have taken part in the discussions told Reuters.
Read more at REUTERS
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Over 4 million Americans are now skipping their mortgage payments
The pace of homeowners requesting mortgage relief because of the coronavirus pandemic has slowed considerably
Fewer Americans are calling their mortgage servicers to ask for relief from mortgage payments, but the housing industry isn't out of the woods yet.
More than 4.1 million homeowners are in forbearance plans now, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.
While mortgage servicers are still facing stress because of the record deluge of requests for payment relief, signs suggest that homeowners' prospects have improved as parts of the country have begun to emerge from coronavirus stay-at-home orders.
Read more at MARKETWATCH
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ALTERNATIVE FINANCIAL SERVICE PROVIDERS ASSOCIATION
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Alternative Financial Service Providers Association
757.737.4088 315 Tuscarora St., Lewiston, NY 14092
[email protected]
www.afspassociation.com |
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