Research

Georgia has long been a national leader in the fight against predatory lending, imposing strict usury limits on small loans. In 2004, Georgia legislators closed loopholes used by payday lenders to charge triple-digit interest rates; they reaffirmed their commitment to keeping payday lending out by increasing fines and criminal penalties for making small loans at illegal interest rates. These laws...

In South Carolina, payday and car-title lenders charge working families 395% interest, creating a debt trap that can keep South Carolina families in a cycle of debt for years. In fact, these lenders drain more than $245 million from South Carolinians, primarily from low-income families and communities of color. South Carolinians want reform that has been proven to stop the...

For most of Michigan’s history, state laws prevented payday lenders from operating, most recently by limiting interest on consumer loans at 25%. However, in 2005, Michigan became the last state to authorize payday lending when payday lenders pushed for a carve out allowing them to charge rates of 340% APR or higher. Payday lenders drain over $103 million in fees...

Morning Consult conducted a survey, commissioned by Center for Responsible Lending, of approximately 10,000 registered voters. The poll is presented as a short Powerpoint-style slide deck with key takeaways, charts, and maps. Key findings include: Two-thirds of voters (66%) are concerned about the ability of high-cost lenders to arrange loans through banks at rates higher than the state laws allow...

Morning Consult conducted a survey, commissioned by Center for Responsible Lending, of approximately 10,000 registered voters. The poll is presented as a short Powerpoint-style slide deck with key takeaways, charts, and maps. This poll presentation is linked to above and here. Key findings include: Seventy percent (70%) of voters support a 36% annual interest rate cap on payday and consumer...

What is a “Rent-a-Bank” scheme? In the 1990s-mid 2000s, predatory lenders partnered with banks to evade state interest rate caps. In response, federal regulators, the FDIC and OCC, cracked down on this practice. Now, under the Trump Administration, this scheme is reemerging and going unchecked. In fact, the FDIC and OCC have issued proposed rules that could bless this practice...

For more than a decade, payday loans, car-title loans, and high-cost installment loans in South Dakota have carried charges exceeding 300% annual percentage rate (APR). In 2016, South Dakotans approved lowering the cost of payday loans, car-title loans, and installment loans to an annual interest rate cap of 36%, inclusive of all fees and charges. The vote in favor of...

A few high-cost lenders are evading state consumer protections through rent-a-bank schemes. Through these sham arrangements, these companies are exploding right through the interest rate limits that most states have put in place for good reason, to protect people from high-cost debt traps that drain them of their hard-earned income. In the following states, payday lenders are using banks, which...

Download a table of state student loan servicing laws from the report. (Updated September 2022) Today, 44 million Americans are saddled with student loan debt. They currently owe over $1.5 trillion—an amount which has more than doubled over the last decade. The causes of this exploding debt burden are many: increasing tuition, stagnant wages, the shifting role of federal government...

Democratic primary voters in the states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina strongly support a tough approach to oversight of Wall Street, according to a new poll conducted by Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consulting. Democrats and independents, and even many Republicans share the views of this crucial set of voters. Americans see the need for strong...