People who borrow payday loans have a few characteristics in common. These people are more than just the average Joe who has hit a tight cash squeeze. A payday loan borrower's situation is extreme. Thinking about a payday loan for yourself? First see if you fit into the profile of a payday loan borrower. Most payday loan borrowers have the following in common:

They frequently have many characteristics that show they have a credit problem.

Studies show that often payday loan borrowers are not really in a temporary crunch. They've actually been experiencing credit problems for quite some time. And a payday loan usually is a new thing the borrower has found out about that they believe will help them along in their long-term financial hardship.

They've usually borrowed from a pawnshop in the past five years.

This is a sign of the credit problems payday loan borrowers usually have. Pawnshops used to be one of the main places where payday loans were applied for before payday loans started becoming more commonplace. Pawnshop visitors are usually people who have been dealing with long-term financial hardship. And a pawnshop just might have the answer for some of these people.

They've often made payments 60 or more days late on a mortgage or other debt in the past year. People who seek out payday loans have already been late on their other debts. Because payday loans don't have a lot of criteria for approving people for the loans, people who have a poor payment history on other debts are still able to take out payday loans. However, because payday loan borrowers have often been late on other debts, there's a good chance they'll also be late repaying a payday loan. Or they'll end up just taking out another payday loan when the first due date arrives.

Payday loan borrowers are frequent borrowers rather than one-time borrowers

While most people think that the one time they get a payday loan will be the last time, studies show that most people who use payday loans use them often over a period of twelve months. Since the interest on a payday loan is very high, it may come as a surprise that people turn to this type of credit often, but it's true.

They typically believe they'll be using a payday loan for a one-time emergency and that's it. After considering the APR on a payday loan, most people get a little scared about applying for one. But after they rationalize and tell themselves they'll only be using it for one time, they're on they're on their way to the application office. But as mentioned above, studies show many people end up having to extend the borrowing period for their payday loans.

So after reading all of that, you have to consider if the above payday loan borrower profile fits your situation. Are you in long-term financial hardship? If not, you may want to consider other methods of making ends meet. Until then, just remember to research everything before making your borrowing decision.