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Should You Really Buy Now Pay Later? |
By:
Chris Sussan |
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Many retail stores are offering a payment choice that can be difficult to resist. For a consumer who wants to buy a big ticket item like a vehicle or furniture, having the ability to forgo payments and still use the item is incredibly enticing. That is exactly what is offered with a “buy now pay later” payment plan, where the consumer gets their item and doesn’t have to make even one payment for months or in some cases, years.
You often see these offers on television commercials for items like appliances, electronics and furniture. The advertisement promises that you can go and pick out all the items you want, take them home and not pay for them right now. This buy now pay later scheme seems almost too good to be true and it actually just may be if you’re not completely aware of how it works.
There is always some fine print involved with an arrangement like this. Depending on where you live you may be required to pay taxes on the items that you buy at delivery. There is also often an administration fee in place that has to be paid for before you can take possession of your purchase. So even though it is essentially a buy now pay later arrangement, you are likely going to have to hand over some money right now.
Also be incredibly prudent about the terms and conditions that apply to the interest that will be charged if the items aren’t paid in full once the free payment time period has expired. Quite often with buy now pay later purchases you are agreeing to a very high interest rate that begins the day the contract expires. This is included in the documents that the buyer is required to sign at the time of purchase.
One word of advice is to not enter into this type of agreement unless you already have the funds in place to pay for the debt. This is wise as you not only earn interest on your own money by keeping it in the bank a while longer, but you’ll avoid all the high interest charges because you’ll be paying for the loan before the buy now pay later time period expires.
If you approach the agreement with open eyes and a full understanding of what is expected of you both now and when the contract expires, you’ll avoid having to pay too much. Buy now pay later arrangements work really well for those people who want something yet want to hold onto their own money. Pay the debt before the due date and you’ll come out ahead with this payment plan.
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Article Source: http://www.statssheet.com/articles/article50561.html |
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