MEW, 401k, plastic... We still forgot one option:

A low, low interest rate of 396 percent

_{Struggling Cleveland homeowners are taking out payday loans when they fall short. Is it a quick source of cash or legalized loan sharking?}

At the East Side Organizing Project in Cleveland, six home owners recently went in for group foreclosure counseling. When asked if any had taken out payday loans, four hands shot up.

A payday loan is a small-dollar, short-term loan with fees that can add up to interest rates of almost 400 percent. They're generally taken out when the borrower is caught short on cash and promises to pay the balance back next payday.

If it sounds like legal loan-sharking, it's not. "Loan sharks are actually cheaper," said Bill Faith, a leader of the Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending.

The industry portrays it as emergency cash, but critics say the business model depends on repeat borrowing where the original loans are rolled over again and again.