CashNetUSA Review

CashNetUSA Overview

CashNetUSA is a Chicago based online loan provider that’s been in business since 2003. They built their business helping borrowers face the unexpected and getting them through their trying time with timely, affordable loans. One of their founding principles is transparency as well. There are never any hidden fees or confusing paperwork. They clearly lay out all of your terms and payments before you sign any documents so you know exactly what to expect from one of their loans.

SERVICES PROVIDED

CashNetUSA is an online lender that provides payday loans, installment loans, and line of credit lending services to nearly 30 states in the USA. They’ve helped over 3 millions customers during their 10+ years in business.

INSTALLMENT LOANS

Installment loans are one of the most common types of loans on the market today. These unsecured loans have their total amount calculated and then divided up into equal payments across the life of the loan so you make the same payment month in and month out until it’s paid off in full. They’re also some of the easier loans to qualify for since the main approval criteria is (typically) based on your ability to repay the loan instead of your credit score / history or putting something up as collateral.

PAYDAY LOANS

Payday loans are secured loans where the borrower must sign a post dated check or schedule an automatic payment from their bank account in order to qualify. These loans are good for people that have no credit or bad credit since your paycheck (or payment) acts as collateral for the loan. However, because the average borrower of a payday loan is a high risk borrower, there are normally a good number of fees attached to the loan which pushes its interest rate into 300% range or higher.

LINE OF CREDIT

A line of credit is a happy medium between an installment loan and a credit card. You really get the best of both worlds. You’re approved for a certain amount, you can draw against that amount, and you only have to pay interest on what you’ve used. And as you’re paying off your balance, that money becomes available to use again just like a credit card. So if you’re approved for a $3,000 line of credit, you can actually end up using over that amount if you’re diligent in paying your balance in a timely manner.

LOAN PROCESS

CashNetUSA’s loan application process is the industry standard. You apply for one of their lending services on their website, you enter your personal and financial information on a form, and you’ll receive an approval decision instantly*. If you’re approved and you agree with the offered loan and their terms & conditions, your money will be deposited within 24 hours or the next business day if you apply over the weekend. It’s a fairly painless process that takes very little time to go through from beginning to end.

LOAN REQUIREMENTS

• Government Issued ID
• Social Security Card
• Proof of Residence
• Proof of Income (Most recent pay stubs)

LOAN DETAILS

• Loan Amount: $300 - $2,400
• Loan Duration: 8 days - 180 days
• Collateral Needed: No
• Interest Rates: 400% - 664%
• Minimum Credit Score: Not Listed
• Approval Time: ~1 Business Day
• Loan Deposit Time: 1-2 Business Days
• Late Fees: Yes
• Insufficient Funds Fees: Yes

CASHNETUSA REVIEW

Unlike other lenders, CashNetUSA keeps their services sparse. They don’t offer a dozen different types of loans and do all of them poorly. They offer payday loans, installment loans, and lines of credit. That’s it. Three bases to cover and they’re all very simple and straightforward lending services (except for payday loans because of the fees).

We will say that we’re disappointed with their low ceiling on installment loans. Yes, $2,400 is a lot of money when you don’t have it, but if you need more than that, you’ll have to look elsewhere. This low amount is also a bit of an archaic number as well since many installment loan providers are offering loans up to $30,000 these days. It would be nice to see that ceiling get raised just a smidge to $5,000.

CashNetUSA is licensed to operate in just under 30 states so there’s a high likelihood that you’re able to apply for a loan. They’re also one of the few lenders we’ve come across that take online security seriously. Not only do they have SSL encryption for their website, they also have Norton & MacAfee verifying their security on a daily basis. Other websites stop at SSL encryption and that if they can even bother to do that. Your information is certainly safe with CashNetUSA.

They’re even fairly well liked among their customers since they have a 4.5 out of 5 star rating on ConsumerAffairs.com as well as a 9.3 out of 10 TrustPilot rating. Both of these are very high for the short term lending industry as it’s one of those industries where you find the most disgruntled individuals that are more than happy to write a negative review when things start going South.

However, you should keep in mind that they have a C+ BBB rating as well as a 2 out of 5 star review on the BBB website. We’re not saying that one rating is more correct than the other, but this definitely feels like a “truth is somewhere in the middle” sort of situation. You should definitely recognize that you’re either going to have a great experience with CashNetUSA based on the former ratings or a very bad experience based on the latter. That may depend upon your own personal expectation as well as how closely you read the terms, conditions, and fine print so there aren’t any surprises down the line. (Most people don’t. They just sign and go.)

CASHNETUSA BBB REVIEWS

CashNetUSA has a C+ BBB rating, which is one of the lower ones we've seen. It's fairly rare for businesses to be lower than an A rating. CashNetUSA has had 206 BBB complaints over the last 3 years and 65 complaints over the last 12 months. They also have a 1.8 star rating from 47 customer reviews. There's even a government action against the company listed on their BBB review page.

IS CASHNETUSA GOOD FOR YOU?

We don’t recommend pursuing a payday loan with CashNetUSA, but we don’t recommend that to anyone at any lender for any reason whatsoever. Payday loans are horrible and you should avoid them like the plague. However, their personal loans and lines of credit are fairly competitive. If you’re having trouble qualifying with other lenders, you should give CashNetUSA a look. You may qualify and be able to get the money you need. We don’t recommend them as the first place to start your search, but they’re worth a look if you’re having trouble elsewhere.