Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA):
A federal regulation which requires lenders to promote the
availability of credit to all creditworthy applicants without
regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital
status, or age (provided the applicant has the capacity to
contract); to whether all or part of the applicant’s income
derives from a public assistance program; or to whether
the applicant has in good faith exercised any right under
the Consumer Credit Protection Act. The regulation
prohibits creditor practices that discriminate on the basis
of any of these factors.

Contract:
A written binding document, describing terms of an
agreement between two or more persons. (Keep all
paperwork. Later, if there are any questions, you will
have your agreement in writing.)

Annual Percentage Rate (APR):
The cost of your credit as a yearly rate. APR is a
combination of the interest rate plus the fees charged on
your loan. APR is higher than the interest rate because
it includes both fees and interest as finance charges. It
is intended to provide a single value for a consumer
to compare the cost of credit between one lender and
another. Under New Mexico law, the APR for a loan in
an amount of $5,000 or less made pursuant to the Small
Loan Act of 1955 or the Bank Installment Loan Act of
1959 cannot exceed one hundred seventy-five percent,
effective January 1, 2018.

Finance Charge:
The dollar amount the credit will cost you. Finance
charges include interest, and may also include transaction
fees and service fees.

Principal:
The amount of money owed on a debt, on which interest
is calculated.

Interest:
The cost of borrowing money, generally a percentage of
the amount owed.

Balance:
The total amount of money owed to a lender.

Default:
Failure to pay a debt as agreed to on a contract. When a
loan is in default, the lender may demand full payment of
the remaining debt.

Collateral:
Security pledged by a borrower to protect the interests
of the lender; in case of default, the lender may take
ownership of the security, if any, pledged by the borrower.

Credit Bureau:
A private company that keeps a record of your credit
history for distribution upon request by authorized parties.
When you apply for credit, a lender may request a credit
report to review when considering your application.

Credit History:
A record containing information about you, including
your payment history on previous debts.

Credit Report:
A report of the credit history and other information about
you that is kept by credit bureaus, which may include:
your name, address, social security number, payment
history (good and bad), current and previous debts,
employers, income, etc. Accurate information on a credit
report may not be legally removed. Incorrect information
may be removed by disputing the information to the
credit bureau involved.

This lender is licensed and regulated by the
New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department,
Financial Institutions Division,
P.O. Box 25101, 2550 Cerrillos Road,
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87504.