Alternative financial services in the United States

Alternative financial services in the United States refers to a particular type of financial service, namely subprime or near-prime lending (that is, lending to people with relatively poor credit) by non-bank financial institutions. This branch of the financial services industry is more extensive in the United States than in some other countries, because the major banks in the U.S. are less willing to lend to people with marginal credit ratings than their counterparts in many other countries. Examples of these companies include Springleaf Financial, Duvera Financial, Inc., Lendmark Financial Services, Inc., HSBC Finance, CIT, CitiFinancial, Wells Fargo Financial, and Monterey Financial Services, Inc. The more generic name "consumer finance" is also used, although more properly this term applies to financing for any type of consumer.

The consumer finance industry (meaning branch-based subprime lenders) mainly came to fruition in the middle of the twentieth century. At that time, these companies were all stand-alone companies not owned by banks and an alternative to banks. However, at that time, the companies were not focused on subprime lending. Instead, they attempted to lend to everyone who would accept their high rates of interest. There were many reasons why certain people would:

Besides charging a higher interest rate to compensate for their risk, consumer finance companies are usually able to operate successfully because their employees are given more flexibility than banks in structuring loans and in collections. Consumer finance companies may also require far less contingent liabilities than banks.

Americans that use non-traditional lenders to meet short-term financial needs include almost ten million households that are unbanked or underbanked, according to a 2004 study prepared for The Fannie Mae Foundation by the Urban Institute Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center, "Alternative Financial Service Providers." The study states that a vast majority of borrowers who utilize small-dollar online loans like payday loans tend to use them for regular, recurring expenses as opposed to unexpected financial emergencies. Many borrowers who take advantage of such subprime lending options tend to have low credit scores or limited credit backgrounds, and a vast majority of those who utilize alternative loans online like payday loans tend earn an annual income of $40,000 or less.

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