Loan Spotlight: Mary Johnson, owner of Vitiman Kandie
Vitiman Kandie, LLC is the brainchild of Clevelander, Mary Johnson. She is a personal trainer and healthy lifestyle guru.
HFLA of NEO's Letter to Senator Portman
HFLA of NEO Board president, Lisa Arlyn Lowe recently sent the following letter to Ohio Senator Rob Portman in support of his opposition to the health care bill currently before the Ohio Senate.
Dear Senator Portman:
Thank you for opposing the health care bill that is currently before the Senate. In its present form, the Senate Bill is detrimental to all Americans—not just your Ohio constituents. In addition to slashing Medicaid and Medicare, as well as denying millions of Americans access to affordable health care, it limits (or prevents) access to care for opioid addiction - an issue about which I know you are personally passionate.
Michal Marcus on NPR
Yesterday, our Executive Director Michal Marcus was on NPR's Sound of Ideas to discuss payday lending. She was on a panel with State Representative Kyle Koehler and Keith Davis, a Financial Capabilities Counselor with Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland. They discussed payday lending and its implications on borrowers, as well as a new bill proposed to close a loophole in current legislation that allows payday lenders to get around 2008's legislation, which capped interest rates at 28%. Through this loophole, payday lenders have continued to lend with interest rates sometimes reaching as high at 700% APR. Listen to the podcast here to learn more!
Build, Improve, or Monitor Your Credit for FREE with NerdWallet!
Exciting news: HFLA partnered with NerdWallet to bring their credit tracking tools to our borrowers, applicants, and friends. This is an online platform that allows you to create an account and view your credit report whenever you choose!
NerdWallet's credit tracking platform allows
you to set goals pertaining to your credit (ex: increase my score), and will then give you tips on how to reach that goal. It also shows you how much your credit score would be affected by different decisions regarding your personal credit (opening a new credit card, paying off a balance in full, etc...) so that you know exactly how your credit score will be impacted.
You can create an account with NerdWallet through this link: https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/hflaclev/
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Interest Free Loans for Lorain County Residents
Underbanked and underserved in Lorain County have a new option for financial help. HFLA of Northeast Ohio, a nonprofit organization, has been lending interest free since 1904 to the people of Northeast Ohio without access to conventional funds and with the ability to repay.
With the generous support of the Community Foundation Lorain County a pilot program has been started with HFLA of Northeast Ohio. “We are happy to provide this grant to HFLA, no one is doing anything like this in Lorain County. Our residents need access to funds other than predatory lenders when it comes to everyday emergencies as well as pursuing their education or starting a business.” Brian Frederick, CEO and President Community Foundation of Lorain County.
These funds are accessible to help people with needs such as car repair, home repair, escaping predatory lending situations, workforce development, education, starting businesses and more. HFLA will be partnering and receiving referrals via Lorain County nonprofits such as, Oberlin Community Services, Urban League and El Centro.
Interest free loans allow people to help themselves with dignity. These interest free loans can often mean the difference between someone keeping the gas on, or being able to get to work when they repair their car, they can prevent a downward spiral towards bankruptcy because of predatory lenders.
For more information, visit our website, www.interestfree.org or call us at 216-378-9042.
For information on becoming a donor, click here to visit our donor platform.
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