When the Handy Husband had LASIK last month, we were offered 0% financing for 24 months. Take it, I said! In perusing the fine print on the paperwork, I noted the fact that if you took longer than 24 months to pay, the interest went up to a WHOPPING 26.99% Scary. I made sure to read all the fine print when we got the first bill.
If you pay only the minimum payment ($143.00) you will pay off the balance in 15 years and will pay an estimated total of $10,411.00. If you pay $157 you will pay off the balance in 3 years for a total of $5,655.00. (The interest rate is not actually 0%, the 26.99% is deferred for 24 months keps on adding up.)
We only financed $3800. That requires a payment of $158.34 for 24 months. I'm going to pay it off as soon as I can.
When you think something's too good to be true, you're probably right.
4 comments:
This happened to us at the dentist office when my husband had major dental work done a few years ago. Kudos to you for getting the word out!
that's one of my Dad's favorite sayings, but I hate to believe it's true. I hate how they can get you like that!
Yay for you, figuring this out the easy way. If only more people understood this concept when it comes to house mortgages (long term payments makes the overall price skyrocket). Amortization calculators are everywhere on the web now.. And yes, with these "interest free for __ months" deals, ouch, they can really hurt if you don't pay it off. They obviously make their money because the newspaper ads are full of these offers.
Hooray for being good at math (and fine print)!
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