Since they should refrain from over borrowing to buy overpriced pigeonholes!
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Borrow only what you can afford: Case
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By By Gabriel Chen
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->LENDERS and the credit bureau have a role to play in responsible credit.
But consumers must also be more circumspect in their borrowing practices, the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) cautioned yesterday.
Case executive director Seah Seng Choon, who was speaking at a seminar organised by DP Credit Bureau, urged consumers to determine how much they can afford when they take out a loan and to shop around before they jump in, for instance, to sign up for a mortgage with a bank.
'Bargain for the best offer and read all terms and conditions, paying particular attention to lock-in periods and penalties,' said Mr Seah.
His advice comes amid consumer anger over the alleged 'mis-selling' of financial products like Lehman Minibonds.
Mr Seah was speaking to consumers, small businesses as well as bank representatives and moneylenders.
And while he warned consumers to be more careful when they borrowed, he also laid out several pointers for financial institutions to observe when they lend money to customers.
For example, moneylenders have to truly verify the borrower's ability to pay the loan, as well as improve their assessment of the creditworthiness of the customer, he said.
'Unfortunately, in the United States, as we have seen, these financial institutions were more interested in making money. These firms that provide the lending opportunity introduced collateralised debt obligations, and they could eventually pass on the risks to investors,' Mr Seah said.
He also expressed caution about churning policies practised by firms. 'Once every two weeks, I receive calls from banks asking me whether I want to refinance my mortgage,' he said.
He said that when a customer is asked to refinance his loan, he must end up being in a better position than before. 'If you don't do that and if it results in a dispute, then you probably have to handle his complaints. So put the borrowers first, before you ask them to go about refinancing,' he said.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Borrow only what you can afford: Case
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By By Gabriel Chen
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->LENDERS and the credit bureau have a role to play in responsible credit.
But consumers must also be more circumspect in their borrowing practices, the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) cautioned yesterday.
Case executive director Seah Seng Choon, who was speaking at a seminar organised by DP Credit Bureau, urged consumers to determine how much they can afford when they take out a loan and to shop around before they jump in, for instance, to sign up for a mortgage with a bank.
'Bargain for the best offer and read all terms and conditions, paying particular attention to lock-in periods and penalties,' said Mr Seah.
His advice comes amid consumer anger over the alleged 'mis-selling' of financial products like Lehman Minibonds.
Mr Seah was speaking to consumers, small businesses as well as bank representatives and moneylenders.
And while he warned consumers to be more careful when they borrowed, he also laid out several pointers for financial institutions to observe when they lend money to customers.
For example, moneylenders have to truly verify the borrower's ability to pay the loan, as well as improve their assessment of the creditworthiness of the customer, he said.
'Unfortunately, in the United States, as we have seen, these financial institutions were more interested in making money. These firms that provide the lending opportunity introduced collateralised debt obligations, and they could eventually pass on the risks to investors,' Mr Seah said.
He also expressed caution about churning policies practised by firms. 'Once every two weeks, I receive calls from banks asking me whether I want to refinance my mortgage,' he said.
He said that when a customer is asked to refinance his loan, he must end up being in a better position than before. 'If you don't do that and if it results in a dispute, then you probably have to handle his complaints. So put the borrowers first, before you ask them to go about refinancing,' he said.
