Times are tough. Many Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. If anything unexpected happens that requires you to have cash available before your next paycheck, then getting a payday loan may be your preferred choice. Many do not want to turn to their families. For them asking for money from a relative, is equivalent to declaring defeat.

Mind you, this is not the type of loan I would recommend to anyone, but sometimes we are just out of options. MyCashNow requires you to have steady employment with deposits of at least $1000 per month. How could you get into a situation of needing fast cash? Here is a fairly common scenario. Imagine you were sharing an apartment and for some reason, you no longer want to remain in that arrangement. Perhaps you broke up with your boyfriend, or your best friend turned out to be an insufferable roommate. In order to rent another apartment, you will need a down payment.

Payday loans are meant to be short-term loans. The fees charged equate to outrageous annual percentage rates, upwards of 400%, but you may just have to go for it. If you have exhausted your credit cards, and family and friends have already lent you all the money they can afford to, this will get you into that apartment quickly. So what do you need in order to qualify?

-       Steady employment

-       At least $1000 per month in deposits

-       A checking account that has been open for at least 90 days

-       You must be at least 18 years old.

-       You must not have any outstanding payday loans.

You will need to provide a telephone number so your employment status can be verified. Your deposits will also be verified. The good thing is, if you are approved before 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time you can find the money in your account the next day. Service is definitely fast. They also have customer service representatives available around the clock and they do not require you to fax them any documents which can be a real hassle.

The fees are listed right on their website. The minimum amount of time you will be charged for is 14 days. It comes out to about 20% for those 14 days. This is certainly not money you want to borrow for some sale purchase. It is not worth it. If you are a new customer, they offer a 50% discount on your first loan. At that point, if you need a $500 deposit for that apartment, getting a new place to live may be worth $50, assuming your next paycheck will cover it within 14 days.

The repayment of the loan and the fees due will be withdrawn automatically from your account on the due date. Make sure you have the money by then. They do offer extensions, but from a financial point of view a loan with that kind of interest rate is not supportable for a long period of time. Especially if you weren’t a first time customer.  If you have a minimum wage full-time job, which barely gets you to the minimum monthly deposit requirement, you would have to surrender your entire pay for a week to get a $200 advance. Do you really want to take on a $500 loan that will take over half a month to pay off? Remember, that $50 fee is charged every two weeks. There is a place and time for these loans, but do not make it a habit.