Previous £25,000 maximum no longer enough to fund some home improvements, says building society
Nationwide building society has doubled the maximum personal loan it will offer borrowers to £50,000, citing the continued increase in building costs as the reason for the change.
The society previously offered up to £25,000 for qualifying customers but said this was no longer enough to fund some home improvement projects.
Committee chair says UK government has known for years about flaws in benefit system and needs to ‘get a grip’
A cross-party committee of MPs has urged the government to overhaul the weekly benefit for unpaid carers and fix “without delay” the issues causing thousands to rack up enormous debts.
Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, was told that the government had failed for five years to tackle the IT problems that have left tens of thousands of unpaid carers owing sums that had plunged many into debt and left some facing criminal prosecution.
When you're in a financial bind and need to borrow money quickly, two common options are payday loans and installment loans. Both provide fast access to cash, but they work very differently in terms of how you repay the borrowed amount. Here's a look at the key distinctions and some guidance on which type of loan may be preferable depending on your circumstances.
What is a payday loan?
A payday loan is a short-term, high-cost loan that typically needs to be repaid in full by your next payday, usually within two to four weeks. The maximum loan amounts are relatively small, usually $500 or less.
To get a payday loan, you provide the lender with a post-dated check for the full loan amount plus fees and interest. On your next payday, the lender cashes that check to recover what you owe. If you can't repay, you may be able to roll the loan over by paying only the fees and interest, but this will result in additional high charges being added.
Payday loans have extremely high annual percentage rates (APRs) that can exceed 400%. The combination of short repayment periods and exorbitant interest rates makes these loans very difficult to pay off, which is why many borrowers end up trapped in cycles of debt.
What is an installment loan?
Installment loans, as their name suggests, allow you to repay what you borrowed in a series of scheduled payments or installments over a period of months or years. Typical repayment terms range anywhere from a few months to a few decades.
The funds from an installment loan can often be used for a variety of purposes like debt consolidation, major purchases, home improvements, and more. You'll usually repay the loan on a fixed monthly schedule, making equal payments that go toward both principal and interest.
Installment loans can be secured by collateral like a home or car title, or they can be unsecured. Interest rates tend to be lower than payday loans, but will vary based on factors like your credit score, income, and whether the loan is secured or not.
Which should you choose?
In almost every situation, an installment loan is the better choice compared to a high-risk payday loan. Installment loans:
Are far less expensive overall due to lower fees and interest rates
Give you longer to repay in reasonably affordable installments
Are available in higher amounts suitable for bigger expenses
Are less likely to trap you in never-ending cycles of debt
The only instance when a payday loan could potentially make sense is if you need a very small amount of money to cover an emergency and you're certain you can repay it quickly to avoid interest charges piling up. But in general, the high costs and short repayment terms of payday loans make them exceedingly risky.
Whenever possible, explore installment loan options from personal loan providers, credit unions, banks, or online lenders. With better terms and more affordable repayment plans, they are almost always the smarter choice over predatory payday loans. For more, here are some tips for paying off loans early.
The decision covers people who were enrolled at any Art Institute campus from Jan. 1, 2004, to Oct. 16, 2017, a period in which Education Management Corp. (EDMC) owned the chain of schools. Today, the Education Department will begin notifying eligible borrowers, who are not required to take action. The agency said it also will refund payments that former students have made on loans that are earmarked for forgiveness. (CNBC)
"The Art Institutes launched in 1970 when the Education Management Corporation purchased the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. The system continued to grow in the ensuing years, largely through additional acquisitions. In 2001, the Art Institutes owned 20 campuses; by 2012, there were 50." (Artnet) After much legal wrangling, the eight remaining schools permanently closed on September 30, 2023. Some 1,700 students were given a week's notice of the closures.
"Over the last three years, my Administration has approved nearly $29 billion in debt relief for 1.6 million borrowers whose colleges took advantage of them, closed abruptly, or were covered by related court settlements, compared to just 53,500 borrowers who had ever gotten their debt cancelled through these types of actions before I took office. And in total, we have approved debt cancellation for nearly 4.6 million Americans through various actions." - Whitehouse.gov statement.
2015: EDMC to Pay $95.5 Million to Settle Claims of Illegal Recruiting, Consumer Fraud and Other Violations
2011: U.S. Files Complaint Against Education Management Corp. Alleging False Claims Act Violations
2010: A whistleblower alleged EDMC paid recruiters illegal bonuses to lure students to its schools through fraudulent means, and paid recruiters to falsify job placement data to entice students to choose EDMC colleges. Jason Sobek, the former recruiter for EDMC's South University who filed the lawsuit, also alleged that EDMC deliberately targeted students who were vulnerable and unlikely to succeed in college, including students who were mentally ill or homeless. Sobek claimed that EDMC trained and encouraged its recruiters to prey on these vulnerable students.
2007: The initial qui tamFalse Claims Act lawsuit against EMDC was filedbywhistleblower Lynntoya Washington (formerly an assistant director of admissions at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division) — who later filed an amended complaint, jointly with Michael T. Mahoney (formerly director of training for director of training for Education Management's online higher education division).
Last week, the DOJ announced a new whistleblower initiative, the Criminal Division's Voluntary Self-Disclosures Pilot Program for Individuals, to combat corporate crime:
Sometimes, the best evidence of corporate wrongdoing involves a company insider. Our experience shows that individuals who are involved in criminal conduct and are willing to accept responsibility and cooperate with us are critical sources of information. [...] Under this pilot program, individuals with criminal exposure—not including CEOs, CFOs, high-level foreign officials, domestic officials at any level, or individuals who organized or led the criminal scheme—who come forward and report misconduct that was otherwise unknown to the department will be eligible to receive a non-prosecution agreement (NPA) if they meet certain criteria.
NPAs have been a part of the federal criminal system for decades, and prosecutors have long exercised discretion to offer NPAs as an essential tool to get culpable individuals in the door. Our new individual self-disclosure pilot program, which provides clear guidelines and threshold criteria, builds on the department's longstanding practice to advance our fight against complex corporate crime. At bottom, making NPAs available to individuals who come forward to report corporate crime and cooperate allows us to prosecute more culpable individuals and to hold companies to account.
Under the new program, culpable individuals will receive an NPA if they (1) voluntarily, (2) truthfully, and (3) completely self-disclose original information regarding misconduct that was unknown to the department in certain high-priority enforcement areas, (4) fully cooperate and are able to provide substantial assistance against those equally or more culpable, and (5) forfeit any ill-gotten gains and compensate victims. The pilot program is designed to provide predictability and certainty by offering a pathway for culpable individuals to receive an NPA for truthful and complete self-disclosure to the department.
A nonprofit group called R.I.P. Medical Debt has relieved Americans of $11 billion in hospital bills. But that did not improve their mental health or their credit scores, a study found.
Login
