I got messed up with these payday loan places, and now I am $3000 in debt.What do I do?

Get to a government-run or non-profit (no fee) credit counselor and ask for their assistance in renegotiating the debt. There are many for-profit counseling services, I’m speaking of the kind that will not charge you (gov), or will cost extremely little (non-profit). You go prepared with copies of your loan documentation, any other debt, and a list of what it costs you to maintain your household (what you pay for rent, for food, the kids’ health care, etc., etc. They’ll take a look at your whole financial picture, contact the creditors and try to reduce the interest rate as well as set up a payment structure. Then, you pay the Credit Counselor service and they pay the creditor. What this does is lower the cost (because your interest is not compounding) amd remove the stress & threats. Just be careful which Credit Counselor you choose: it should be no-cost or extremely low cost.

This link is an example, but you must investigate yourself to choose wisely. You could also try searching for “Credit Counselors” on your state or city website

National Foundation for Credit Counseling

Then, if you’re smart, you don’t repeat the problematic behavior. What can really help is while you’re paying down this debt, you take advantage of the financial management classes usually offered, at least by the government credit counselors; they can be very helpful for changing how one views money, help you identify how this situation got so screwy, and how to choose between financial products and better evaluate loan products so you don’t get stuck in a usurous situation (where you’re charged exorbitantly high, compounding rates) again – you can learn this, you can plan and build and bring your family out of this and into a more constructive financial picture. . Good luck to you.

You are absolutely right that they mislead and take advantage of people. I would suggest trying one of the following:

I’ve found some good sources here…

Good Luck.