Payday Loans Offer Air Academy FCU Members ‘Smart Solution’

COLORADO SPRINGS – Air Academy FCU is billing its new payday loan product as a smart solution to the short-term cash problems of its members, many of them Air Force cadets. The $320 million credit union is offering loans up to 60-days, dubbed Smart Solution loans, at 18% APR, a fraction of the average rates charged by payday lenders. To be eligible a members must earn at least $1,200 a month–$1,000 after taxes. The Smart Solution loan is limited to $300 for the first three loans, and up to $500 after that. Members who take out six loans in a year must enroll in the credit union’s financial education program to get another loan. Other area credit unions that serve military personnel, including Ent FCU and Security Service FCU, also offer payday loan products.