When Robert Ball turned 63, he was looking forward to retirement in his wife's hometown of Savannah, Georgia. The couple had a comfortable house with a lush garden, the certainty of his pension and the hope of spending more time with their grandchildren.
That dream shattered when Ball's wife, Gloria Ball, developed severe health problems. They faced huge medical bills, yet their bank refused to refinance their mortgage. Left with few options for raising cash, Robert Ball drove to TitleMax, a business that prospers in Georgia's banking deserts and lends money at terms that would be illegal for other financial institutions. "I was desperate" for quick cash, Ball said. "They welcome folk like me."
