A payday loan should be your last resort when considering a short-term loan or emergency cash. A payday loan is easy to get but it can be costly. It would be a good idea to check around for alternatives first before you dive into the dangerous cycle of debt that can be caused by a payday loan.

Look for options before deciding to get a payday loan. Do you have a family member or friend who might be willing and in a comfortable financial position to loan you the cash that you need? Before going to a payday loan store, check with your credit union. You could try asking your employer for an advance that would be taken back out of your payroll checks in amounts that you and your employer can handle comfortably.

Your community or your church may have not-for-profit credit counselors that can give you advice on how to find ways to improve your family’s financial health and get you on the road to financial recovery. They can even help you find ways to cut costs and put money away in a savings account to be used for future emergencies so that you won’t have to resort to a payday loan. The credit counselors can teach you how to keep track of your expenditures and to create a budget and follow it.

If you haven’t already maxed out your major credit cards, you could get a cash advance on one of them through your bank. If you pay it off from your next paycheck, you will save money on interest, late fees, and fees you would have incurred had you gone through a payday loan store.

Do you have overdraft protection on your bank checking account? You could use that feature. If you do not have overdraft protection, you may want to apply for it in case an emergency comes up in the future. Bank overdraft fees and bounced check fees are very costly, and can quickly add up to hundreds of dollars. It is an expensive fee for something that was probably an honest mistake. This is something that could force you to go to a payday loan store for help.

Talk to your current lenders and credit card companies. Ask for extra time to pay your debts. They are more willing to work with you if you communicate with them than if you ignore the problems. They want to be paid so they might be willing to work out something. If you can work these problems out with your lenders it might eliminate the need for you to go to a payday loan store.

Do you have any assets you would be willing to sell in order to prevent having to pay out a lot of money for a payday loan? If you sell your big screen television or that set of fancy golf clubs you never use, or have a yard sale, or sell some items on an online auction site, you could come up with enough money to avoid going to the payday loan store. You might also be able to use some of your earnings to start a nest egg for future emergencies or pay extra on other debts.

If none of these alternatives work for you or if your credit is too poor to use your credit card or other lenders, then the payday loan might be the only alternative for you. If it is, then be sure to pay off the payday loan amount on your very next paycheck. If you cannot, then be sure to pay more than the minimum payments so that you can pay down on the principal of your payday loan. This will help you to pay the payday loan off more quickly.

Anything you can do to protect your family’s financial health is worth the extra effort of looking for alternatives to payday loans.