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C2a Alternatives to Alternative Financial Services: a Case Study of “Community-Based Loan Programs”
Key Words
Payday loans, Alternative Financial Services, Microloans, Financial Education, Unbanked, Underbanked, Auto Title Loan, Fringe bank products, predatory lending,
financial inclusion
Short Description
This exploratory research uses a case study approach to highlight community-based alternatives to financial services (AFS). Predatory loans (esp. payday loans) can entrap clients into a cycle of debt with their high-interest rates. Current efforts to deal with alternative financial services (esp. payday loans) rest at the federal and state level. Amid regulation prohibiting payday loans, these “community-based loan programs” are providing grassroots solutions. Examples include the Kansas Loan Pool Project (KLPP), Common Wealth Charlotte (CWC), and Common Wealth Athens (CWA). The authors coin the term “community-based loan programs” to describe these three paradigms. They emanate from non-profit organizations (NPOs) recognizing the predatory debt trap. The organizations provide low-interest, small-dollar loans that empower clients to refinance high-interest debt. Relying on the Social Capital Theory, preliminary findings discuss the programs’ inputs, outputs, and outcomes via a logic model. Preliminary findings show similarities (e.g., affordable interest rates, mandatory financial education) and differences in the program. Challenges include securing funding and program evaluation efforts. This paper concludes with implications for consumer affairs professionals, welcoming dialogue for future, sustainable partnership between NPOs and banks.
First & Corresponding Author
Jessica Parks, University of Georgia
Authors in the order to be printed
Jessica Parks, Mary Caplan