If you need to borrow money in a hurry, you have a few choices. You could borrow money from your friends or family, but that could hurt your relationship with them. You might be able to get a cash advance on your credit card, if you have one. You might want to get a cash advance loan. These loans, also known as payday loans, are easy to get, as long as you have a stable job and a bank account. There are other alternatives to cash advances, designed for people who have poor credit and need cash in a hurry, that you should probably stay away from.
If you have a paid-for automobile, you can borrow money with an auto title loan! Auto title loans are short-term loans, just like payday loans, but you use your paid-for car as collateral. Like cash advance loans, these loans also have high interest rates. If you can't pay your loan back, your car is repossessed. In some states, once your car is repossessed, the loan company sells the car and keeps the profits, even if you only owed them $50 and your car is worth $2000. In other states, the title loan company is supposed to give you the difference between the amount you owed and the amount they sold it for, but you can be pretty sure that they're not going to try to get the best price for you. This leads to a dilemma: you don't want to borrow a lot with these loans because the interest rates are so high, but if your car is repossessed you are out a lot more money if you borrow less. Your best bet is to stay away from these loans.
A pawn shop can be a great place to get a bargain, but it's not the best place to get a loan. Like a title loan company, you need to put up collateral to take out a loan. There are many things you can pawn, including jewelry, video games, electronics, and other items of value. The problem is, a pawn shop is in the business of making money, and is not about to give you anywhere near what your item is worth in the loan. Like cash advances and title loans, the interest rate can be high. If you don't pay back your loan on time, you lose your stuff. Stay away from these places, unless you're shopping for a good deal.
If payday is only a couple of days away, you may be tempted to write a check, knowing that the check will probably not clear until payday, and the bank will cover it if it does. Unfortunately, bank fees can add up faster than cash advance fees. Save yourself the overdraft fees and get a payday loan. Also, pay your credit card on time. Fees for late credit card payments can also exceed payday loan costs.