New Jersey Usury Limits

from the New Jersey Permanent Statutes Database
2C:21-19 Wrongful credit practices and related

"For the purposes of this section and notwithstanding any law of this State which permits as a maximum interest rate a rate or rates agreed to by the parties of the transaction, any loan or forbearance with an interest rate which exceeds 30 %per annum shall not be a rate authorized or permitted by law, except if the loan or forbearance is made to a corporation, limited liability company or limited liability partnership any rate not in excess of 50% per annum shall be a rate authorized or permitted by law."

My thanks to Wikipedia. From what I have gathered, not all states have usury limits. If I'm not mistaken, late fees and overlimit fees are also counted toward the total allowed interest, however, the searches I have done have yielded sketchy results. Though the above paragraph seems clear enough, apparently there are many exceptions to the rule.

My initial conviction remains; 30% interest is outrageous at best. Further, no one chooses a credit card that charges 30% interest unless they are desperate or daft. Late payments boost the interest rates from reasonable to unreasonable. We need a more equitable cap that will enable consumers to reduce their debt.

I'm not wasting time by leaving this on the back burner. The kids here in NJ are going to need the relief once the state introduces tolls to our remaining free highways.