If you happen to be in a financial situation where you feel like your only way out is to get your hands on some quick cash through a payday or cash advance lender, then you should be educating yourself on the world of payday loans as soon as possible. This article will give you a great overview of how a payday cash advance works, how you can be sure that the lender you choose is trustworthy (so that you don't get taken advantage of) and that you can get your hands on the money that you need as fast as possible. I'll tackle each of these sections seprately so that you can get to the section that you need quickly and hopefully by the time that you're done reading it you'll be armed with enough cash advance knowledge that you can make a solid decision when it comes time for you to do so.

Depending on whether or not you're looking to get your cash advance online of from a one of the payday lending stores that you see on street corners and in strip malls will make a little bit of a difference when you're searching for lenders, but there are a few basic things that you will need to have taken care of before applying for either of them. There are guidelines (aka 'restrictions') that most lenders make you follow before you can even get a sniff of the cash that you want from them. A few of these basic guidelines are as follows:

1. Must be of a certain age: Most require that you're at least 18 years of age and I've seen a few others that require you to be 21.
   
2. Must have a solid work history: To qualify for most in-store cash advances and online payday loans you must show that you have a solid work history and have been employed at your current job for at least 90 days.
   
3. Must generate a certain level of monthly income: This can vary from lender to lender, but from what I have seen most require that you have at least $1,000 deposited into your account on a monthly basis.
4. Must have a checking account: This is almost always a requirement for cash advances because either the lender will need access to your account or you will need to post-date a check so that they can get your loan payment.
5. Must follow your state's payday loan laws: Depending on what state you live in, there are specific laws that regulate payday loans. This will affect the amount of money that you can be advanced and might even prohibit you from getting a cash advance altogether.
6. Must have a checking account that accepts electronic deposits and deductions (online cash advance only): Unlike the in-store payday loan stores who will give you a physical check advance, getting an online cash advance requires that you not only have a checking account, but you also need to be able to accept electronic payments and deductions.

These are the basic payday loan requirements that you will need to be prepared for and if the payday lender accepts your online application directly (which is called a no fax cash advance in payday lending terms) then you're good to go. But, if they need to see more documentation from you then you should also be prepared to fax in the documentation that they need. This documentation usually consists of past pay stubs, copy of your drivers license and other official documents that help prove that you can be trusted with a cash advance. If you need to send these in, don't worry, it happens to a good percentage of online applicants.

Now that you understand exactly what a cash advance is and the basic requirements that you need to fulfill to get one, the next logical step is deciding which lender to work with. Obviously you need to find yourself a lender that has a good history of providing good service and that can be trusted with treating you well and being honest and upfront will all fees and details that are involved in the process. The entire payday loan industry hasn't exactly earned a great reputation, but there's no reason that you can't find a cash advance lender that you feel comfortable with.

Whether you're planning on getting an online cash advance or plan on going to a payday loan store to get the money you need, the first piece of advice that I would give is that you should first check out the more mainstream and time-tested lenders that are available to you. Many of these lenders have been around for a good amount of time and can provide you with great service online and inside of one of their physical locations, which can sometimes make the process much easier to deal with. A few examples of these trusted lenders would be Check N Go, Advance America Cash Advance and Loan Mart. With the rise in popularity for getting online cash advances, each of these lenders are also capable of lending online cash advances as well.

But, these are just the first lenders that you should check out and there are several others that are more than qualified to get you the money you need. For example, if you're wanting to go online for your lending needs you should definitely look into getting a Magnum cash loan, which is slightly different from that of a regular payday loan. First of all they allow you to extend the payment schedule beyond the standard 14-day period and they only charge you fees for the amount of time that you have the loan and there's also no prepayment charges.

Just be aware of the the fees, rates, lending periods and penalty charges that are associated with the cash advance lender that you're working with and always be sure to get your money, take care of whatever you need to take care of and get the loan paid of as soon as possible. Also, keep in mind that these types of loans are only for emergency situations only and should not be something that you begin to rely on regularly.

Although there are many different types of lenders, loans and other options when it comes to getting a cash advance, there are actually only a couple things that determine how fast you can get cash in your hands. If you're turning to a cash advance lender to get some quick cash, odds are that you are on a tight time frame and that the faster that you can get the money you need into your bank account, the better. This is why it's very important to know the details when it comes to how quickly you can get to your money. Below I list out the ways that you can get money through a cash advance in order of the speed that you can get a hold of the money:

• Fastest: Even with all of the online loan options and claims that you can get money in an hour, the fastest way to get your cash advance is by going to an actual payday lender store. This is the fastest way because you can get approved on the spot and literally walk out with a check/cash in your hands because the people who work there are trained and have the authority to approve or reject you before you leave. There's no quicker way than this, believe me.
  
• Faster: Getting approved instantly online is the second fastest way to get a cash advance. As long as you have a checking account that accepts electronic payments you can have the money that you need transferred directly to your account as quickly as the morning of the next business day. This can even be an overnight cash advance, which can be helpful for overnight emergencies.
  
• Fast: If you can't get approved online for some reason, you'll be required to fax in a few additional documents so that they can verify some of your information. This is a longer process than getting directly approved online, but if you have quick access to a fax machine you can still have the money that you need in less than 48 hours.
  

Now that you know practically everything that there is to know about payday loans and cash advances and how to get them as fast as possible, I guess that it's now time for you to go out there and get your hands on the money that you're needing. Just remember, don't ever make a habit out of applying for cash advances. I know that they're easy and that they sometimes seem like a good, quick solution to your financial problems, but don't get used to them because they can end up putting you in a worse financial situation than ever. So, good luck getting your cash advance and please be sure to make it one of your last!