Which Type of Mortgage is Right for
You?
Personal Loan Scams
Personal loans are a great way to generate the revenue you
need for a variety of needs. Such loans can be secured by
banks, loan companies, private investors, and online lenders.
It is important that you are aware of personal loan scams and
how to avoid them. This type of scam was ranked #5 in the
United States for the year 2000. On average, each person
scammed lost $464. As a result, the Federal government has been
working hard to educate the public about such scams.
The advanced fee personal loan scam is the most common
method of taking your money and running. Most victims of such a
scam never report it to the authorities because they are
embarrassed that they feel for such a ruse. Victims also feel
angry. They obviously needed money or they wouldn’t have
applied for a loan in the first place. They now have less money
than they did to begin with. Those who do report the scam are
often frustrated because the perpetrators are very seldom
caught and brought to justice. It is very important that you do
report any such instant of advanced fee personal loan scam. If
you don’t, you are further enabling the predator to do it to
others.
Advanced fee personal loan scams work on those who are
desperate for a loan, over trusting, uneducated, and who have
bad credit. More than half of advanced fee personal loan
victims are under the age of 30. The lender tells the applicant
that they guarantee they can work with their situation, but
that there is a loan processing fee involved. This can be a fee
hundred dollars or more. With the technology available now, it
is not uncommon for the operators of these scams to have
websites and even 800 numbers for you to call. They will send
you letters that look so official, you won’t give them a second
thought.
The stories of those victimized by such advanced fee
personal loan scams will break your heart. One woman had been
laid off and was about to be evicted. She found another job and
applied for a personal loan to get caught up on the rent. She
paid the lender almost her entire first paycheck for so called
processing fees on this loan they guaranteed she was eligible
for. She was understandably upset when she was evicted as well
as found out the lender had taken off with her hard earned
money.
To protect yourself from falling victim to advanced personal
fee loan scams, be careful who you attempt to borrow from. Make
sure they are a reputable company. If they are an online
business, check them with the Better Business Bureau. Make sure
you enter there business name exactly as they list it. A well
known practice of this scam is to use a name very similar to an
actual reputable lending institution that applicants may be
familiar with the name of.
For those of you with bad credit or no credit, don’t believe
something that sounds too good to be true, it likely is as the
saying goes. You may have to pay a higher interest rate if you
have bad credit or no credit, but you should never have to pay
any fees up front to apply for a loan or to have it processed.
Some personal loan scams will call the fees you pay the first
month payment or a high risk deposit. Applicants need to be
aware that no such things exist. As a matter of fact, any
lender must allow you to have access to the funds for minimum
of seven days before they can collect a first payment. You can
check the legitimacy of any fees charged by a financial
institution with the Federal Trade Commission. If you are
facing financial difficulties, look for advice from a reputable
non-profit credit counseling service rather than a lender.
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