Credit can be a great Band-Aid for unexpected money troubles such as medical care or car repair. But as a long-term solution, payday loans simply will not stick. If you fall under one of the following situations, consider an alternative to payday loans.

Don’t Use Payday Loans To:

– Boost your wages. It’s important to understand that while they may seem like extra cash in your pocket now, you will have to pay it back later. You are borrowing your own money ahead of time.

– Pay off separate debts. It’s the same as the “rob Peter to pay Paul” idea: you will still owe money to the payday lender. The small window of time it buys you is just not worth it when you’re in a debt cycle.

– Pay for dining, shopping and other entertainment. Having cash to burn may be nice, but the thrill of these impulse buys fades when you’re left with an ugly bill. These items are neither emergencies nor necessities for day-to-day living. You have to decide if a spending spree is worth the cost of a loan that carries interest.

– Make monthly ends meet. Only use payday loans as needed. Chasing these loans month to month will only make you dependent on them. Instead, use your energy on building up savings, a budget and responsible payment practices.

Weigh your options carefully—will the cash advance loan add to your money problems or will it help you out of a critical situation (think health, income, transportation). Only borrow what you absolutely need. Then in the future, you’re more likely to have the funds to settle debts or splurge on shopping.

Should you find yourself in a money emergency, or you have no other financial alternative, MoneyNowUSA’s loan process may be able to guide you through your next step.…

finds that many people in a committed relationship have lied about purchases or their spending habits. While most of the responses focused on small shopping purchases and other more minor issues, there were some more significant concerns as well.

Here’s a quick list of some of the survey’s findings.

• 46 percent of people have lied about money to a partner
• 32 percent of women and 17 percent of men have hidden purchases from a partner
• Just 8 percent of men would pretend a new purchase was old (more than 25 percent of women admitted it)
• Women were 25 percent more likely to lie about purchases, and 50 percent more likely to hide receipts.

Honesty Remains the Best Policy

Despite the issues that some couples face, 70 percent of women and 63 percent of men felt that being honest about money issues was critical, saying it was just as important as remaining faithful.

Other experts told the source that money is a frequent source of relationship stress, and stressed that if debt is an issue they should be open to it. Taking out cash loans to cover secret purchases isn’t a productive step.

The poll concluded by saying that 13 percent of respondents had broken up or divorced over secret spending habits or other money issues, making honesty as a major relationship issue.…