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Can I Consolidate My Payday Loans?

Mark Cappel
UpdatedMar 22, 2010

Can I Consolidate My Payday Loans?

I guess it all started about a four months ago, my wife came down with something, it turned out to be cancer. We were overwhelmed and worried due to the fact that she works for a company that does not offer health insurance. She and I make about $20,000 per year a each. So all of a sudden our household income went down 50%. I am trying so hard to hold my family together. This is the first time in my live I have to handle the money and the kids and my fragile wife. During the past four months I made one of the biggest mistakes of my live, I went online and apply for payday loans. I have accumulated over $1,500 in loans since Dec. Until now I have managed to keep them in good standing so that none are in default. The down side of that is that after I pay the fee's to refinance I don't have a paycheck. If I don't figure something out soon. My children and my wife will be homeless. I guess my question is can I consolidate these loans into one monthly payment?

It is possible to consolidate these loans into one payment. However, consolidating payday loans can be much more difficult than traditional personal loans, or credit cards.

There are several different types of consolidation loans, but the one that will best suit your situation depends primarily on whether you own a home and your credit history. Also, the amount of your debt will be a consideration. If you only owe a few hundred dollars in payday loans, a debt consolidation loan may not be available to you, but if you owe several thousand, or more, a consolidation loan may be a good choice.

If you own a home, a secured debt consolidation loan may be right for you. This type of loan is essentially a home equity loan which is used to pay off your other creditors. Secured consolidation loans help many consumers by consolidating all of their debts into a single monthly payment with a lower interest rate and payment amount. However, be careful before you borrow money against your home to pay off credit cards and personal loans; you are converting what was previously unsecured debt into secured debt. This could cause you problems down the road if for some reason you are unable to make your payments, or if life circumstances force you to file bankruptcy, as you may not be able to discharge the secured debt as you would unsecured debt. However, secured debt consolidation loans work for many people, so this is an option to consider carefully.

Bills.com makes it easy to compare mortgage offers and different loan types. Please visit the loan page and find a loan that meets your needs at: Refinance Loan Page

If you do not own a home or other property to offer as collateral for a secured debt consolidation loan, there are several other options you should consider. You may be able to transfer your existing debts to a credit card with a lower APR, or one with a 0% introductory rate. A balance transfer could help you by consolidating all of your unsecured debts into a single account with a lower interest rate and lower monthly payment.

You may want to explore the Bills.com Credit Card Finder. Here you can search for credit cards that meet your needs. A card such as the Discover Platinum, with a 0% APR for 12 months, and 10.99% thereafter, is certainly a good deal as far as credit cards go.

You could also look into an unsecured personal loan to consolidate your debts — check out the loans section of the Bills.com Savings Center for unsecured debt consolidation loans that may improve your situation. However, if your credit history is less than perfect, you may have difficulty finding a lender willing to extend you credit, and if you do find a loan, you should expect to pay a premium in interest. In fact, a conventional unsecured debt consolidation loan, such as those I mention above, may be impractical and cost-prohibitive if you have credit problems.

Editor’s note

Comments on this page are closed. See Payday Loans to learn how to handle payday loan collections. See the Bills.com payday loan resources for California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Texas, and Virginia to learn more about payday loan laws in those states.

A possible alternative loan resource you may want to explore is Debt Help for more information.

Bills.com also offers more information on the Payday Loan Information page. If you do not repay a payday loan, the payday loan company has several legal remedies, including wage garnishment, levy, and lien. See the Bills.com resource Payday Loans Collections Advice to learn more about the rights of creditors and debtors.

I hope this information helps you Find. Learn & Save.

Best,

Bill

Bills.com