Lending money against an object of value is the mission of Crédit Municipal de Montauban. A place where customers don’t go happily. We have met a few of them. They entrust us with their financial difficulties, temporary ones they hope.
The office door closes. With a trembling hand and an embarrassed air, Sylvie, a customer, expresses it from the outset: “It’s the first time I’ve come and I hope the last”.
Living in Montauban, she turned to the services of Crédit Municipal de Montauban after being laid off. A fairly banal story and similar to that of Madame tout-le-monde except for the administrative slowness that has prevented her from receiving her allowances for 8 months.
“Fortunately, in the Tarn-et-Garonne, life is cheaper than in other departments, there I would have had serious problems”, launches this mother of a student in Toulouse.
His goal was to deposit two necklaces that had belonged to his grandmother for a tidy sum in return.
A public service mission
This is the mission of Crédit Municipal explained by its manager Karim Galland. “We have a public service mission to help people in difficulty,” he explains. The customer leaves an object of value and he has an amount equivalent to 70% of its value.
This help service makes it possible to provide a quick and concrete solution to a very diverse audience. From customers in great precariousness to clumsy financial managers and from seniors to young students, everyone enters the Crédit Municipal, located on boulevard Garrisson.
The loan contract between the customer and the Credit lasts six months renewable but if the loan is not repaid, the object is not returned and goes to auction. “We have an interest rate of 0.9% and we are self-financing. This low rate is even suitable for some customers who prefer to come here than to the bank. But if we have customers in too great financial difficulty, we redirect them to the Red Cross.”
I can’t borrow from the bank anymore and I can’t sell the house. The temporary separation of these jewels is very difficult but I have no choice
A certain humanity found behind these walls that Sylvie did not expect. “I was very well received without having the impression of being another customer,” she says. Nevertheless, crossing the doors of the institution is a complicated choice for her. “I can’t borrow from the bank anymore and I can’t sell the house. The temporary separation of these jewels is very difficult but I have no choice. I hope to repay them and find them, ”she says, her voice trembling.
Sylvie also thinks of others and still considers herself lucky. “I am lucky to have valuable possessions. If I hadn’t had them, like some, I don’t know what I would have done,” she finished humbly.
Installed on Boulevard Garrisson since 2018, the Crédit Municipal de Montauban, which is an antenna of that of Toulouse, has a continuous increase in its attendance.
Mr. Galland specifies, however, that “Credit de Montauban opened because there was a large proportion of Tarn-et-Garonne customers in that of Toulouse”. If today there are 500 customers who pass through the door each month, this number increases on average by 5 to 10% every month according to its manager. A place where doors are not always crossed with good grace.
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