Taking the plunge to take out a loan is scary enough without having to worry about being scammed in the process. Here are some ways you can be alert and aware of potential scams. Advance-fee loans are one type of scam to be incredibly wary of.
With an advance-fee loan, you’ll often be enticed by an advertisement for a type of loan. However, upon contacting the company, they’ll require a fee to be paid beforehand (which can range up to thousands of dollars). Once you pay, they pocket your fee and you never receive your loan or hear from them again.
A general rule of thumb is to not trust anything that asks for some sort of payment ahead of time. This scenario is no different.
Image via The Pew Charitable Trusts.