Wow, what a shocker! The payday loan industry got a little fair coverage by the New Hampshire Sentinel Post regarding the pros and cons of the payday loan product.

“Excellent arguments can be made for and against so-called payday lending.

Sometimes you might need $100 or so for two weeks just to get over a rough patch, a miscalculation in the family finances, so to speak. You can hardly go to the bank for that, and anyway banks don’t make two-week loans. And maybe your sister-in-law is tapped out. So you borrow the money from a payday lender. You pick it up on a Monday, and you pay it back a week from Friday, plus a $20 fee. Sure, that interest would add up to 500 percent on an annual basis, but you’re not borrowing the money for a year. And nobody’s going to loan you $100 for two weeks and charge a nickel. There’s no business model in that. So you willingly pay the $20. No harm done.”

They go on to say: “In other words, payday lending performs a service, and it poses a threat. Should it be outlawed? How far should the state government go in protecting people from their own potential folly?”

They continue: “Ken Compton is CEO of Advance America, the nation’s biggest payday lender. His company has (or maybe had) stores in 20 New Hampshire communities, including Keene. On January 15, 2008, he made a persuasive case for payday lending, in a column published on this page.

“The measured use of payday advances allows consumers a firm footing to overcome unexpected financial circumstances,” Compton wrote. “Our customers are educated and appreciate why such a product, with a comparatively low one-time fee, makes more sense than accepting the costs and other consequences related to bouncing a check, missing a credit card payment or neglecting an outstanding bill. Payday advances are a valuable tool in our customers’ financial tool belt.”

Finally, The Sentinel Post offers some pretty sound advice: “Actually, Compton’s best option now, if he wants to do business in New Hampshire, is to go back to the Legislature and try to get the interest cap repealed or revised. He has fought the good fight, and lost. In the words of another fellow with some knowledge of personal finance: “You got to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em, know when to walk away and know when to run.”

Read the entire article here: SentinelSource.com

Do you think this fair and balanced media coverage is a portent of the future? Or is it an anomaly? What do YOU THINK? Leave a comment!