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FinalCall.com News
Business & Money
Pay in 90 days same as cash
By Damon Carr
Updated Jan 26, 2004 - 11:15:00 AM
(FinalCall.com) - At some point in time, you have heard one of these advertisements: Pay in 90 days, same as cash, zero interest financing, Buy now, PAY LATER, no finance charges until January, etc.
I recently had a close friend email this question to me: "Damon, what do you think about those programs that offer, if you pay in 90 days it is the same as cash? I have used several of those programs before with no problem. My concern now is that I am currently 90 days late on one of my bills. How would they view my 90-day late payment?"
First and foremost, the question you may want to ask yourself is, "If I am 90 days behind on one of my bills, do I really need to be considering accumulating more debt?" In reference to your account being 90 days behind, most lenders value the payment history on the accounts that are similar to the account that you are applying for with them.
For example, for a mortgage company, the biggest concern is how well do you pay your mortgage/rent on time. Let’s assume that you have a clean mortgage payment history and a poor payment history on one or two car loans. How do you think that car lender will evaluate your credit? If you said that they would have some concern, you guessed right. The car lender may approve you with a bump in the rate, or they may turn you down altogether.
In your case, if the 90-day late payment is an isolated incident and it is out of character with the rest of your payment habits, more than likely they will approve you, with a bump in the rate, of course. It will be better for you if you bring the account current prior to applying.
About "pay in 90 days, same as cash" and similar programs: Think about it. In this money driven society, do you really think anybody, more specifically any company, is going to give you or I anything for free? What are the tangible benefits for the companies offering such a product?
Mid-size and large companies spend millions of dollars researching buying habits, payment habits, average height of a male/female, current trends, etc. These companies strategically place items that appeal to women on shelves that are five feet high. Why? Because the average woman is 5’ 5" tall.
Ever wonder why, in the check out aisles, you see candy, magazines, gum etc? Because these are items that people buy on impulse. Ching, ching—more money for them. I wonder what do they know about people who purchase items under the arrangement "pay in 90 days, same as cash?"
For starters, the concept of pay in 90 days, same as cash is nothing new. Credit card companies have been offering a similar program for years. If you pay your credit card balance in full in 30 days, you avoid finance charges. Remember that outfit you bought and you promised you would pay it off as soon as you got paid yet, 10 years later, you are still making payments?
The goal with this "pay in 90 days, same as cash" program is to create a flow of traffic in the store. Once they get you in the store, they know that you will more than likely be interested in more than one product. To offset cost, they cushion the prices on the merchandise. More importantly, they know that 70 percent of the people who purchase these items will not pay it off in full in 90 days. They have a clause on these agreements that states, if not paid in full in 90 days, the interest starts accruing from the day of purchase. The rate on this product is roughly around 24 percent. They will also try to sell you overpriced insurance to pay off the 24 percent loan if something was to happen to you.
So, if you are going to take out a loan, the best loans are those which have a deductible tax incentive, such as a mortgage or a student loan or those with a very attractive interest rate. It would be great if you could get both the tax incentive, and the low rate. Zero interest would be great, just make sure you pay it off in 90 days.
(Damon Carr is the owner of ACE Financial. He can be reached at 412-856-1183 or visit his website at www.debteliminator.com.)
