After applying online at a local loan company my husband and I decided not to go with them. A week went by and he received a phone call from "Barbara Merlin" saying she wanted to work with him and offered him a loan for $15,000 (we originally only wanted $12,000 but she insisted). She offered 9% interest and a decent monthly payment of $270. He agreed to the $15,000 and she emailed him a contract to print out, sign, date, and provide his ID, SSN, pay stub, and our checking account (she was going to direct deposit). After receiving the info via fax she said we needed to wire her $810 to cover the first three month payments. Upon receiving the money she would deposit our loan. 3 days passed and she wouldn't answer the phone. On day 3 someone else answered and informed us the account was "red flagged" and we needed to send an additional $1200.00. Unfortunately my husband did. 3 more days passed with no answer. He called today (day 3) and oops another "red flag" on the account. She needs ANOTHER $800 for some fees. At that point I stepped in and said NO. I called her myself and she got very upset when I asked if it was a scam. She said "maybe you shoulda did your research" "maybe you should hire a lawyer since you can't understand what you read on a contract", flat out disrespectful. I hung up and immediately took action to secure our accounts and report this. Happened to google "Paula Parker, concord Financial Investments" and this site came up. It directed me to another report. Same lady, similar situation, same address, but different company name. I'm determined to get this person shut down and prosecuted! This is sick and very upsetting!