What Exactly Is A Pawn?

According to the dictionary it’s a verb that means “To deposit in pledge or as security especially in exchange for money.” Essentially, a pawn is a collateral based loan; you provide something of value such as gold & diamond jewelry, electronics, musical instruments, tools, designer handbags or anything with a secondhand value and a pawnbroker lends you money based on the value of the item.

Pawn Rules & Rates Vary From State To State

Rules can vary from state to state and even city to city since most pawn regulations are determined
locally. In Massachusetts the loans are for a 4 month period while in Rhode Island they are for 3 months.

This means you have that amount of time to return to the pawn shop, pay back the money that was borrowed, along with any interest or fees that have accrued, to take your items back. The Pawnbroker is required to hold the item for you during that period of time and cannot do anything with item since it still belongs to you.

How A Pawn Works

Here’s an example of how it works: Let’s say you bring in a gold ring that the pawn shop is going to lend you $100.00 on. The pawnbroker will hold onto your ring and give you a ticket. That ticket includes a description of the item, along with the terms of the loan and a schedule of the payment terms. In most of Empire Loan’s Massachusetts stores the interest rate is 3% per month with an appraisal fee in the first month. That means if you come back to redeem your ring anytime during the first 30 days, you would pay $111.00 to get it back. But you actually have 4 month’s before you have to do anything. If you wait the full 4 months you would end up paying $120.00 to get the ring back or you could just pay $20.00 to renew the loan for another 4 months.

Some of the advantages to a pawn include:

A) No monthly payments.

Simply pay back the loan plus interest and fees at the end of the loan period and take your item(s) back or pay what is due and renew the loan for another 4 month period.

B) No credit checks, no forms to fill out or waiting for the money.

Bring in your valuables and walk out with cash in minutes.

C) No Stings Attached:

With a pawn, if you can’t pay it back, no problem. The pawnbroker forecloses on the item(s) and you are free and clear. No bad credit reports or collection calls. As a matter of fact, you can come back and do another loan anytime as long as you have an item to provide as collateral to secure the loan.

It’s quick and easy to get the cash you need with a pawn.

For questions on items that we do or don’t accept please visit our “Accepted Items Page” for more information or contact us today via our convenient contact form or by calling in directly at 1-800-375-PAWN