The First Episode Of The Official Mega Pawn Podcast!

Hello all! Join Me and Vinny Padalino on the first episode of the Mega Pawn Podcast! Today we talked about Vinny's various business ventures and his different avenues of success. Join us next month for more insight into the world of small businesses!

Stolen Items

Washington Pawn Shop Caught Buying Shoplifted Items

A few weeks ago, police in Monroe Washington raided NW Gold Buyers, a pawn shop that has been allegedly buying and selling stolen goods for years with the owner's knowledge.  Police found boxes and boxes of clearly shoplifted merchandise including over-the-counter drugs that they were then selling online. NW Gold is believed to have taken in $428,000 in profit for the sale of these goods. For the full story click here.

How did this happen?

Stolen goods. One of the biggest obstacles in the Pawn business, as well as one of the biggest controversies surrounding it. Sometimes people are extremely desperate for money. So desperate, that they consider stealing things in order to sell them. This can range from shoplifting to breaking into someone else's house and robbing them. They then go to a Pawn shop and try to sell those items. 

Now, an ethical and fully legitimate Pawnshop will never, ever buy something they think is stolen. There are ways we figure out if the thing you're trying to sell isn't yours (more on that later). If we believe that you're trying to sell us a stolen item (or even worse-you ask to sell it under the table) we will most likely tell you to leave our store and never come back. 

Why Not?

Buying stolen goods does a number harmful of things both to the shop and to the community as a whole.  A Pawn shop that knowingly buys a stolen item faces several risks:

• Ruined Reputation
• Loss of  Pawn License
• Legal consequences including incredibly high fines and even jail time

If that isn't enough of a deterrent, Pawn Brokers are required to send a full list of every item (and the people that brought them in) that they bought or gave a loan for, to the police at the end of every work day. If an item on that list turns out to be stolen, the police take it and return it to its rightful owner. The identity of the person who sold the stolen good is also handed over to the police, and that person will face legal consequences. The Pawnbroker is not compensated, and whatever they paid for it is now considered a total loss. This is a big incentive for Pawn Brokers to avoid stolen goods like the plague and for that reason less than .1% of merchandise in Pawnshops is claimed as stolen by the police. 

Buying stolen goods is extremely harmful to the community as it leads to more theft overall, as thieves see that they have a place that will buy their loot. It creates resentment towards the Pawn Business as it makes people associate the business with criminal behavior, which it shouldn't be. Pawn shops provide a needed service to the community, and the few that try to sell stolen goods ruin it for the majority of honest citizens that just need some extra cash. 

How Can You Tell if Something is Stolen or Not?

The problem with buying used goods is there is often little hard evidence that the person selling it is the rightful owner. However, while you can never know for sure wether or not someone is lying to you, there are things you can do. There are steps that we must take as Pawnbrokers to ensure that we do not buy stolen goods.  Being able to identify red flags is part of the responsibility of a Pawnbroker.

For example if someone comes in with a brand new item, still in its box and everything, but doesn't have a receipt? Huge red flag. We will not buy it unless they have a receipt.  Without a receipt, it is impossible to know if it was shoplifted or not. 

If someone comes in with a laptop or a smartphone, and they don't know the password or if its full of pictures that indicate it belongs to someone else: Red Flag.

If you come in with an extremely expensive guitar and don't know how to play at all: Red Flag

There are several more specific red flags but the main point is, if someone is trying to sell something, and they don't know anything about it, it most likely isn't theirs.  And if there's a chance its not theirs? DO NOT BUY IT. 

The Point

 The bottom line is, never try to sell stolen goods. It's not worth it. It's never worth it. We will know and we will inform the police. We take this very seriously. And for the fellow Pawnbrokers out there, the Pawn business is already so lucrative on its own, the only reason someone would knowingly buy stolen goods is pure greed. 

Why Pawn?

Not only are Pawn loans extremely convenient, for many people they are the best or even only option at times when they need cash. It's a safer, short term, and cheaper solution than getting other types of loans. It is a deal that is beneficial and safe to both customer and lender. Here's why Pawning may be the best option for you.

1. Timeliness

One of the best aspects of Pawn Loans is that they are fast. There is no waiting period for a pawn loan, there are no credit checks or anything of that sort. There is simply the appraisal of the collateral, registering of a new customer, and the signing of the pawn contract (all of which takes just a few minutes).  The loan is for a very short period of time and can be payed back all at once.  Usually people seek out Pawn loans when they need money sooner than their payday. 

 Perhaps you need to pay a bill by Wednesday, but you don't get paid until next week. Maybe your car suddenly needs repairs, and you don't have the money on hand to get it fixed, or maybe you just need a little extra cash for groceries. Whatever the reason, Pawnbrokers are here to help. In my experience, many customers pay off their loans way before the deadline. 

Some even reclaim their Pawns the very same day!

2. Credit 

Many people who need loans do not have adequate credit to borrow from a bank or credit union. Some may not want to get a loan because they fear that a missed payment or default will harm their credit score. 

Pawn loans do not work on credit, they work on collateral. Loans are given based on the value of the item being pawned. There is no need for credit because if the loan is not payed, the lender has something of equal value.  This is also beneficial to the customer, as it prevents them from spending money they can't pay back and bankrupting themselves. If you default on a pawn loan, the only repercussion is that you lose your stuff-no legal or financial consequences after that.

3.  Low Interest

Pawn shops provide some of the lowest interest rates than any other lending institution. At just 3% per month, Pawns are definitely the cheaper option.

4. Safety

Pawn Loans are incredibly secure.  Every transaction within a Pawnshop is saved and on paper. A report of every item that comes in is sent to local law enforcement on a daily basis, so that any stolen items that have been pawned can be rightfully returned to their rightful owners. All items are stored safely and securely. Everything from a physical description of the item to its serial number are recorded and items are labeled and sorted so that no item is ever lost. 

If you're worried about losing your possessions just remember that:

The overwhelming majority of people (70%-80%) that obtain Pawn Loans end up paying them off and reclaiming their property. 

Pawn Loans are easy to pay back. Low interest, small loan amounts, and the immediate consequence of losing your item (as opposed to the long term consequence of ruining your credit) make for a very easily repaid loan. Pawns are the option for someone who needs a quick, safe, short-term, low interest loan.  We at Morrisville Gold/Mega Pawn are here to help with those needs. 

Pawn 101

While Pawn loans are incredibly popular, and every town has its fair share of Pawn shops, many people do not understand the basic fundamentals of how these businesses operate, and what they do. We're here to fix that. In the following posts we're going to talk about what Pawn Shops do, how they operate, and their impact and benefit to the community.

How does "pawning" work?

Pawnbrokers offer low interest, short-term, cash loans based on collateral rather than credit score. This collateral, or pledge is the personal property of the customer. This is generally anything of value such as:

• Jewelry & Watches
• Electronics
• Computers
• Smart Phones
• Audio Equiptment
• Video Game Systems
• TVs
• Musical Instruments
• Collectables  (coins, comic books, action figures)
• Antiques
• Power Tools
• Lawn Equipment
• Vehicles

Basically anything with high resale value.  The pawnbroker inspects the item, determines its re-sale value, and then gives a loan amount based on that number. With precious metals such as gold and silver, the item is tested for purity, and weighed.

The customer then has a period of time to pay the loan back plus interest. At Morrisville Gold & Pawn/Mega Pawn, our standard rate is 6% interest for a loan period of two months. Once the loan is payed off, the pledged item is returned to the owner.

What happens if I don't pay back my loan in time?

The customer always has the option to just pay their interest and extend the loan for an additional period of time. However, if a customer defaults on their loan, the Pawnbroker simply keeps the collateral. There is no effect on the customer's credit score and the only repercussion is that they lose whatever item they pledged in exchange for the Loan.  

What happens to collateral pledges that the Pawnbroker Keeps?

The whole point of putting up collateral in the first place is so that the Pawnbroker can reclaim money lost if the loan is not repaid. If a customer defaults, and the Pawnbroker keeps the item, it will then be sold by the Pawnbroker at a discount price. Items are sold either in store or online.  If a customer lost their item, they can buy it back from the store (albeit at a slightly higher price than they were given a loan for).

Pawn Loans are a great option for people who need cash loans, don't want to pay much interest, and don't have the credit to get a bank loan. In the next post we'll discuss more benefits to the the Pawning, as well as the impact of Pawnbrokers on the community.