The Sarcasm Report v.12

Peer-to-Peer Lending Offers Solution for Strapped Consumers
A YEAR AGO, Nicole Newberry was in a financial hole so deep that she had trouble making the minimum payments on her credit cards. Worse, the then 22-year-old had gotten tangled up in the predatory cycle of payday loans. Every two weeks, when she repaid the two loans she owed, she borrowed the money right back to pay for groceries and diapers for her two toddlers. Her predicament was cruelly simple: "Each month, I was making all these minimum payments and getting nowhere," she says.

This person really needs to think about buying a house. The sooner the better. I'm thinking California. I've been told there has never been a better time to buy real estate.

Within 10 days of posting on Prosper, Newberry received a $9,000 loan at 19%: Enough to pay off the pesky payday loans and all her credit cards, which at that time carried 25% to 27% interest rates. As a result, her monthly payment dropped significantly, to $330 from $800 before consolidation. Her credit score, once a subprime 580, is now 680 and steadily rising. And then there's the 1,800-square-foot icing on the cake: Three months ago, Newberry purchased her first home, a four-bedroom house in Sacramento, Calif.

Woohoo!!

Side Note: Prosper.com appears to be my site's arch-nemesis. It is time to ponder the significance of this from the safety of the batcave.