Consumer Law

Rent to Own in the News

By Jeff Sovern

From time to time, articles appear in the media bemoaning the high cost of rent to own transactions.  Here is another, from yesterday's Times.  This one is a bit unusual in that it contains a suggestion that placing rent-to-own stores in neighborhoods largely poplulated by people of color may violate the ECOA.  Some excerpts from the article about the prices:

* * *  40-inch Bravia [TV], with payments of $47.51 a week. In 117 weeks, the customer would own the set outright, for $5,558. * * *

* * *

* * * They wanted $4,000 for a Sony laptop,? Ms. Navarro said. ?I could pay $1,500 honest cash and get it.?

Full post as published by CL&P Blog on February 03, 2008 (boomark / email).