Editorial policy

Independence from partners

Lenders and loan brokers pay LendCedar for loan requests (see How we make money). They have no say in what we publish. No partner reviews, edits or signs off on a page before publication, and none can buy a mention, a link or a softer description of a fee. We do not rank lenders, name a favorite or tell you which company to choose. When a page describes a practice that some lenders use, such as an origination fee or a credit insurance add-on, it describes the practice and what it costs, not a brand.

Where facts come from

We use sources in this order:

1. The law itself. Federal and state statutes and regulations, such as Regulation Z for loan disclosures or a state’s consumer lending act for its rate cap.
2. The agencies that apply it. State financial regulators, the CFPB, the Federal Reserve, the FTC, the NCUA and the IRS.
3. Other named sources, marked as such. When a page uses a comparison from an advocacy group or data from a private company, the text says who published it, and the link is marked as an outside, non-official source.

Every figure on a page comes from a source we opened or from our own calculation, shown with its inputs. If we cannot confirm a number, we describe the rule without it. We do not invent people, quotes, studies, reviews or statistics.

Review before publishing

Each page is drafted and then checked by the LendCedar Editorial Team against its listed sources: every number, date, statute citation and link. Worked examples are recomputed with the formulas on the methodology page. Every guide shows a Sources box and the date its facts were last checked.

Corrections

Found an error? Write to contact@lendcedar.com or use the contact form. Name the page and the fact, and include a source if you have one. We check the report against the primary source. Once an error is confirmed, the page is corrected and its date changes. If the correction changes a rate cap, a fee limit or another rule, we also note it on Rule changes.

How often pages are updated

• State pages are rechecked at least once a year, and sooner when we learn that a state has changed its law or its regulator has issued new guidance.
• Guides on federal rules are rechecked when the rule or the agency’s guidance changes.
• Market figures, such as average rates published by the Federal Reserve, carry the release date and are refreshed when a newer release is out.

Dated law and rate changes are collected on Rule changes.

Byline

Pages are signed “LendCedar Editorial Team.” We do not attach personal names, photos or titles to pages, and we do not claim credentials. The byline means the team is responsible for the page as published.

Language and tone

We write in plain American English, in short sentences, with real numbers. We avoid words that promise results, such as “guaranteed” or “approved,” because no page on this site can promise what a lender will do.