The NPA’s Team GRC has been tracking Governors, State, county, mayoral determinations, and State Association guidance relating to declaring pawnbrokers “financial Institutions.” Please see the list of States below and click to reveal detailed information.
A Message from NPA President Kerry Rainey
The spread of the coronavirus has created a complete disruption of service in our country and the rest of the world. Many of our members have expressed concern about the future of their businesses and their customers. As your industry association, please know the NPA is here to help you get through these difficult times. The health and safety of …
Kerry Rainey Elected President of National Pawnbrokers Association and Awarded National Pawnbrokers Association Charles R. Jones Lifetime Achievement Award
CONTACT: Media@NationalPawnbrokers.org July 9, 2019 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: National Pawnbrokers Association announces the election of 2019 president and Charles R. Jones Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree at NPA’s annual convention and trade show, Pawn Expo Southlake, TX – The National Pawnbrokers Association (NPA) is proud to announce the results of the 2019 annual election to select a new NPA president. The association …
NPA Board of Directors Meeting
NPA MEMBERS ONLY Join us at our upcoming Board of Directors meeting scheduled to be held on Monday and Tuesday, September 27-28 just outside Nashville, TN. At this meeting, each of our committees will share what their goals and plans are for the upcoming year. We will hear from our GRC team, review annual budgets and hear directly from our …
People of Pawn: Ben Levinson
BEN IS A NATIVE OF GEORGIA and graduated from the University of Georgia with a BBA in Marketing. He is a former President and Vice President of the Pawnbrokers Association of Georgia and former President, Vice President, and Secretary of the National Pawnbrokers Association. He has had an active role as a pawnbroker for over thirty-five years and serves as …
State Bill Tracking
Some state legislatures are in session year-round, others for specific periods of time, special sessions are called which are usually supposed to be to take up one specific topic, and the list goes on. The NPA subscribes to a state bill tracking service that I monitor on your behalf. In the last few weeks or so the list is growing of pre-filed bills for the …
Texas Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner Report
Thanks to our fellow pawnbrokers in Texas for sharing a report from their regulator, the Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner, that reflects pawn industry statistics from 2008 through 2019. Although pawnbrokers are licensed, regulated, examined, etc. in most all states, just a very few of them publish the statistical information we are required to provide. You can download the report here.
PR Tips for TV
AT SOME POINT IN YOUR BUSINESS LIFE, you will be called upon to talk to the press. Maybe you are doing a community project or charity event. Perhaps some big news about the pawn industry has come out and your local reporter wants your comments. Whatever the occasion, read these tips to be prepared for all types of reporter questions. …
Value Selling
How to sell VALUE over PRICE BY BOB PHIBBS, THE RETAIL DOCTOR VALUE SELLING IS, AT ITS HEART, the moving of more merchandise. No matter how many facts you know about a product, if the consumer doesn’t see the value in owning it, they’ll pass on it. That’s why selling on value over price is a common theme in all …
NPA Wins Injunction Against 36% Rate Cap
NPA, IPA and Other Plaintiffs Won a Preliminary Injunction against the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation’s Attempt to Apply a 36% Rate Cap on Illinois Pawnbrokers! September 7, 2021As many of you know, the NPA joined the Illinois Pawnbrokers Association, Cash America, Inc. of Illinois, and EZPawn Illinois, Inc. as named plaintiffs in seeking a preliminary injunction against the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation’s attempts to add pawn …
Protecting Americans from Debt Traps
The Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee held a hearing on July 29, “Protecting Americans from Debt Traps by Extending the Military’s 36% Interest Rate Cap to Everyone”. This hearing immediately followed the filing of another Senate rate cap bill on July 28th to extend the provisions of the Military Lending Act to all consumers. This bill is S. 2508 and the official text is not …
People of Pawn: Jeremy Powell
How did you get started in pawn? I am a third-generation broker. I took an interest in the firearms side of the business at a really young age. I love WWII guns and early 1900s boys’ rifles. What is the number one pawn skill you have? The ability to read and adapt to the customer’s personality in order to make the customer happy and feel welcomed even …
Senator Durbin Files S. 2349 Establishes a 36% Cap on Fees and Interest
July 15, 2021Cliff Andrews obtained a copy of S. 2349, which was filed yesterday, July 14th, by Senators Durbin (Illinois), Merkley (Oregon), Blumenthal (Connecticut), and Whitehouse (Rhode Island). The bill amends TILA and imposes a cap on “fee and interest” of 36 per cent on closed-end transactions covered by TILA. It contains limited tolerances that do not appear to be …
Ten practical lessons pawnbrokers can learn from our devastating fire
The destruction of your business can teach you a lot. Here are a few of the most practical of those tips. On June 11, 2020, just before midnight, Beth and Adam Anundi received a call from the alarm company for their Salem, Oregon, pawnshop, Capital Pawn. Within minutes, seven engines and two ladder trucks responded to the two-alarm fire. By …
July 2021 is “Military Consumer Month” at the CFPB
It’s Time to Review Your Military Lending Act (“MLA”) and Service Members’ Civil Relief Act (“SCRA”) Compliance Programs July 22, 2021: So, right now – in July — is a good time to review your MLA and SCRA compliance programs. The DoD’s amended MLA regulation became effective for pawn transactions on October 3, 2016. The SCRA has been in place …
PAWN EXPO LETTER FROM OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Hello Pawnbrokers, Vendors, Pawn Friends and Pawn Family, It is with a great deal of both gratitude and excitement I share with you today how much I am looking forward to meeting with you in Fort Worth in just a few short weeks. It has been a solid ten months of planning here at NPA to prepare for your Annual …