What's New
New Mexico is one of only a handful of states that does not currently regulate payday loans and other short-term predatory lending practices like car title loans. During the 2006 legislative session the legislature tried to address the issue but could not come to a consensus. The Governor has recently announced that the state will impose regulations on payday loan companies through the Financial Institutions Division.
How You Can Help
Please take a moment to tell the FDIC not to support the bank request to roll back important new protections against predatory lending for our military families.
Overview
Only Mississippi has more stores per capita, and the highest concentration of payday stores is in the poorest part of the state, Gallup and Grants.
Although advertised as short term loans, the average borrower in New Mexico has to roll over their loan 6 times, so a two week loan soon becomes a 3 month loan. And with interest rates at 500%, the borrower is quickly paying more in interest than the original amount of the loan. Thousands of New Mexicans are getting caught in a debt treadmill.
