“Cost of January” drove one too many Yucatecan to pawnshops across the state

The wave of pawnbrokers is expected to last until March.

Mérida, Yucatán.- Pawnshops in Mérida estimate that the “wave” of pawnbrokers will last until February and the beginning of March, as families require extra income for their needs and to pay debts. The above, in view of January’s hard time and the incapacity to work of hundreds of workers infected with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

These days there are long lines outside some pawnshops or branches of the Nacional Monte de Piedad (NMP), seeking to pawn jewelry, household appliances, tools, and computers, to obtain resources and cushion the crisis.

Javier Méndez Tamayo, secretary-general of the Sindicato de Trabajadores del Nacional Monte de Piedad (Stnmp), said that the busiest days at the 10 branches in Mérida are Mondays and Saturdays, although in recent weeks more people have begun to show up on Tuesdays, a sign that more and more people are resorting to pawning.

He explained that during the whole month of January the pawning of jewelry and other items that have predominated, more so in the Centro Histórico branch, where all types of garments are accepted.

“The ‘peak’ days are Mondays and Saturdays, but we have seen that on Tuesdays it has rebounded a little; the performance has also behaved in a similar way, as there are constant cases, as well as the “Refrendo” (renewal), and re-pawning, which we offer when people cannot pay the loan in full to get their items back,” he commented.

He added that the high number of pawns is presented every year this month, due to the “January slope”, in addition to the fact that many people tend to overspend during the Christmas season, so they look for additional resources to cover their expenses.

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