Most tribal lenders have a bi-weekly interest rate and they offer that particular rate to all their customers, no matter how good or bad their credit score is rated. What sets ELoanBroker apart from the rest of the tribal lending field is their wide spread of interest rates. Although this company does not use the big three credit bureaus (which is just a matter of course for these firms, none of the tribal lenders utilize the services of any major credit rating agency) they do use their internal metrics to determine just how creditworthy their potential customers are by looking at some different factors.
ELoanBroker will definitely take your income into account when making a credit decision. Whether an applicant makes $24,000 a year versus $46,000 a year will have a substantial impact on how much money they will (potentially) allow you to borrow. Another major factor will be how long you have been on the same job. If you just started working for a company and you apply for a loan this will be a warning sign for the lender that you may or may not continue to be employed over the coming months. And the lender has a distinct interest if you remain employed because you will have to maintain the (very expensive) bi-weekly repayment to the lender.
Beyond those direct measures there is a good chance the tribes are using some data metrics when they consider a loan. Just like the major political parties, who have sliced and diced the country down into individual zip codes for specific analysis, so to can a financial firm look at the probability of repayment based solely on the zip code where the borrower resides. If this sounds too farfetched remember that tribal lenders are not accountable or beholden to any state regulatory agency. Also, the U.S. Government has no say into which financial products a tribe decides to offer. This means the tribal organizations can create their own rules, strategies and formats for issuing loans, and they don't need to "clear" their decision with any regulatory body, at any point in the process.
Now let's get back to ELoanBroker (or E-Loan Broker, as the company is sometimes found) to see how the variable APR's play out. The company doesn't hide the fact that their rates can vary widely as they advise us that they offer rates that range from 36% to 690% APR. This is a huge divergence and I find it hard to believe that many customers are getting approved for the 36% rate. This rate must be for the top five customers or some highly exclusive customer that has a titanium credit status.
Here is where E-Loan Broker is interesting. The fact that they admit they have such a wide range of rates that they apply to loans leaves open the possibility of negotiating with the company for a better interest rate. And this is especially true for brand new customers who have no history with the firm. All tribal lenders want to sign-up as many new customers as possible because once they get a customer in their books, meaning this is the moment when they (the lenders) often get repeat business via a certain percentage of those newly established customers. But it all comes down to getting a potential customer to sign on the line and actually take the steps to get that initial loan. It's at this moment, when you (the borrower) have the most power to negotiate for better loan terms.
Many Native American lenders have no leeway in the rates they can offer. A company like 500 Fast Cash offers their 30% bi-weekly rate and that is all they offer, there is no negotiating or deal-making that can take place. In the case of ELoanBroker they admit they offer these varied rates and that means they are making judgment calls on their customers. If you apply to ELoanBroker and they respond with an offer that carries a 550% APR then why not ask for a better rate? You can reference that you read at their site they provide rates as low as 36% and could you get your rate down to 250% APR for your initial loan? If they say 'no' to that request you could follow-up with a question that basically asks if you, as their newest customer, should be considered that much inferior to their best customers that get the 36% rate?
Although there is no guarantee that you can negotiate better terms with E-Loan Broker there is a good opening in this case. They might say no but what do you have to lose if they do? Just let them know you will keep shopping for a new loan with the hundreds of other tribal lenders out there. Since ELoanBroker tells us they have such dynamically different rates it is not a bad idea to try to qualify for a lower rate than the (nearly certain) high rate they will offer once the application is completed. Either way, this company gets our attention if for nothing else having some variance in those normally static interest rates.
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