>>>>Marshal and I were interviewed and photographed earlier this week for an article that appears in today's Phliadelphia Inquirer about Hebrew Free Loan societies:
>>>>
>>>>http://www.philly.com/inquirer/world_us/20090312_Interest-free__steeped_in_tradition.html
>>>>
>>>>Tamar
>>>
>>>Hi Tamar
>>>
>>>Is this akin to the muslim ban on usury?
>>>
>>
>>I think it's from the same source. The difference is that Judaism interprets it as applying only to people in need, not across the board.
>>
>>>At the moment interest rates are at an historically record low over here (0.5%) so to lend interest-free when that's in force wouldn't be too bad. But I've often wondered how financial institutions can afford to lend int.-free. I mean, if rates were, say, 15% pa, and you lent $1,000 for one year, who'd make up the $150 you'd lost on the principle?
>>
>>We're a non-profit. We're not supposed to make money. The difference is that we use the money that's contributed over and over, since once a loan is repaid (or actually any part of it), we can lend the same money out again.
>>
>>Tamar
>
>Yes, but that money, when you get it back, has been devalued by inflation.
>
>I don't get it.

It's not a business, it's a charity. But rather than just give money away, we recycle it. That has the advantage of letting us do much less fundraising, and offers a certain dignity to our borrowers. They're not taking a handout, they're getting a hand up. You know "teach a man to fish" and so on.

Besides, microlending is the hot trend. <g> We've just been doing it for decades.

Tamar