OK, so here’s my sad tale of woe: my gas got cut off and my old microwave is dead.  Makes it kinda hard to cook a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.  But here’s where I’m a creative problem solver: I recently discovered that your a car is good for collateral on a loan.

2008 started out badly.  I lost my job in March and was unemployed until last month.  During those months without work the bills piled up, went unpaid and I got bad credit.  Then then a brake shoe replacement on my car set me back another $400, which I had to borrow from a friend in Falls Church.

I hit a low point when my gas was shut off in September. They asked for a $240 security deposit to get it restored.  That simply wasn’t possible.  So with no money, I went shopping. I found a combo microwave/convection oven at the WalMart on New York Avenue in DC for about $200. This solved two problems – no gas and no working microwave – because it’s possible to cook most foods in them.  You can even roast (more or less) a turkey in one.

But I couldn’t figure out where I’d get the $200 for the new microwave in time for the holidays.  I went on Yahoo and searched for “Christmas loans” and “fast cash” when I stumbled on Car Title Loans in Arlington. They said my Buick (paid off about 14 months ago) could get me a loan for the $200 plus the $400 I owe my friend.  The online application was easier than applying for a library card. It took about ten minutes to complete. The $600 was in my checking account in 24 hours and I bought the oven the next afternoon. The first night I made a delicious canned salmon-garbanzo torte that I invented – healthier and cheaper than the Taco Bell burritos I had been eating.

Loans on car title work when you think you have no options (and probably don’t).  Now I can have friends over for holiday meals.  Despite everything this year, I feel like it’s going to be a merry Christmas.

- Landers M.