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Margaret Coker

Georgia Touts Its Medicaid Experiment as a Success. The Numbers Tell a Different Story.

Only 6,500 participants have enrolled in a program that has cost taxpayers more than $86 million — a warning for other states looking to impose restrictions on Medicaid in a second Trump presidency.

by Margaret Coker, The Current,

Local Reporting Network

The Title Pawn Trap

TitleMax Demands High-Interest Payments From Borrowers in Bankruptcy

In Georgia, borrowers looking to alleviate debt through Chapter 13 bankruptcy can’t escape their high-interest title pawns thanks to a legal loophole that TitleMax helped secure.

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Joel Jacobs and Mollie Simon, ProPublica, illustrations by Laila Milevski, special to ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

The Title Pawn Trap

How We Measured the Title Lending Industry in Georgia

No statewide agency monitors Georgia’s high-interest title lenders, so we used a variety of data sources to reveal the scope of the industry and its impact on customers who file for bankruptcy.

by Joel Jacobs, ProPublica, and Margaret Coker, The Current,

Local Reporting Network

The Title Pawn Trap

The Powerful Forces Keeping High Interest Title Lending Alive in Georgia

TMX Finance and Select Management Resources, the owners of two major title lending brands, have been cozying up to Georgia lawmakers in a position to bottleneck industry reform.

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Mollie Simon, ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

The Title Pawn Trap

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Fines TitleMax $15 Million for Predatory Lending

The federal consumer watchdog group says the Georgia-based company intentionally evaded laws meant to protect military families from predatory lenders.

by Margaret Coker, The Current,

Local Reporting Network

The Title Pawn Trap

Inside the Controversial Sales Practices of the Nation’s Biggest Title Lender

Former TitleMax store managers told ProPublica and The Current about how they were trained to keep customers unaware of the true costs of their title pawns. When they were more transparent, they faced repercussions.

by Margaret Coker, The Current,

Local Reporting Network

The Title Pawn Trap

How Title Lending Works

Title lenders in the U.S. often use predatory practices to trap customers in high-interest loans, ProPublica recently reported. This guide will help you understand how title lending works and what your options are if you’re stuck in a contract.

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Mollie Simon and Joel Jacobs, ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

The Title Pawn Trap

How Title Lenders Trap Poor Americans in Debt With Triple-Digit Interest Rates

For some Georgia residents, title pawn contracts offer a quick way to obtain desperately needed cash. But poor regulation of a confusing system traps many borrowers in high-interest debt they can’t pay off.

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Joel Jacobs, ProPublica, with research by Mollie Simon, ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network