With the country's financial crisis staying firmly in place, pawn shops across the nation are becoming more popular.

Wausau's newly opened Pawn America says business is great.

Shoppers are losing their material posessions to gain quick cash.

DVD's, sporting equipment, and jewelry line the shelves at Pawn America.....and customers wait in line to sell what they've got.

"People are needing money especially with the financial crisis right now. It's just a place where you can get rid of some of your old stuff and get cash for it," said Bob Hartman, Head Coach at Wausau's store.

Hartman says about a year and a half ago, people came to the pawn and loan store for the good deals on merchandise.

Now they're coming in for cash and selling as much as they can.

"I think for the most part, people sell what they don't need so they can get the money to buy what they need," said Joshua Gilbert, a Pawn America regular, and all-around bargain shopper.

People are taking their electronics, jewelry and musical instruments and turning them into quick cash for groceries, gas and rent.

Hartman says various people use pawn shops, because the economic downturn affects us all.

Dereck Coursen, of Rothschild, says he uses pawn shops often.

"i got a lot of family that uses pawn shops too, because the economy being the way it is."

Though it doesn't matter what your credit score is, pawn shop loans charge up to 20 percent interest a month.

Nonetheless, many regulars at Pawn America continue to pawn the same item over and over again.

"If they need cash again before their next paycheck, they're loaning the same item a lot of times," said Hartman.

Pawn America has seen double the amount of profits from items bought from customers within the last year.

Wausau Gun and Pawn also says they're seeing more customers trying to sell merchandise.

So as we continue to watch the precarious economy, we may want to look for new pawn shops popping up all over the country.