Buying an iphone without credit.

[iforget123]

Alright so here's my issue... I have no credit. None at all. It's not that my credit is bad, in fact I've never applied or thought about getting a credit card, I find it useless to get a card so I can spend borrowed money that I already have have so that I then have to pay that money at the end of the month with an extra fee. I would rather just use my debit card and pay for whatever I want without borrowed cash.

About a year ago I tried opening up an account with T-mobile but they said that I wasn't able to open an account due to credit. I looked around online about credit and they said that you have to deposit like 500 dollars in order to open a contract account with ATT if you have no credit. Is this true?

I also looked around here on the forums and saw that a person was able to buy an iphone through apple.com with a debit card. If I do try and buy the iphone with my debit card, would I pay from then on with my debit card? Or is it just not possible to buy the iphone and make the account with a debit card?

 

[ltldrummerboy]

Basically, you need credit to buy the phone. Once you get it though you can use debit for your monthly bill. Can you borrow someone else's card (with credit history) for the phone purchase and just transfer the money to their bank account to pay them back?

 

[iforget123]

Basically, you need credit to buy the phone. Once you get it though you can use debit for your monthly bill. Can you borrow someone else's card (with credit history) for the phone purchase and just transfer the money to their bank account to pay them back?

Wouldn't the account be created with that person's credit card account? And if so, wouldn't the monthly bill be charged to their account? Would I have to send them money monthly or could I just change the account number to my debit card rather than the person's credit card? And wouldn't ATT find out that my account has a debit account, rather than a credit account?

Also, could I do this with someone who already has an account with ATT through a credit card?

 

[AbSoluTc]

You only have 2 options..

1 - Pay the $500 or whatever the security deposit is and BUILD your OWN credit with them. This is much better in the long term.

Or

2 - Go on someone else's account and pay them back.


Option 2 does nothing for you in the long run. You also can NOT open an account using someone else's card. Any mobile carrier is going to do a CREDIT CHECK on the person OPENING the account. You could have 10 credit cards, makes no difference.

 

[Acronym]

When I first bought my iPhone 3G I didn't have any sort of credit, I had a money mart credit card but it doesn't effect your credit rating. But it allowed me to get the iPhone

 

[AiralynRose]

I find it useless to get a card so I can spend borrowed money that I already have have so that I then have to pay that money at the end of the month with an extra fee.

First of all, this is NOT true. If you pay your credit card bill every month, you WILL NOT be charged any fees. You should definitely look into getting a credit card NOW. You will need one to have phone service, buy a house, rent an apartment, get car insurance, pretty much everything. Everyone checks your credit. Therefore, you need to have some. Also, if you make your purchase on your credit card you will get REWARDS! I make all of my purchases on my Discover card, which I then pay in full every month (you can even pay multiple times throughout the month). It is all done online - easily. AND I get 1% cash back on everything (5-20% on some things) which I can then turn in for giftcards or have the money directly applied to my account. I never have any fees and they give me free money for using the card!

Anyways, back to your question. AT&T checks your credit to start an account with them regardless of the phone you are buying. They will use your SSN and set the account up under your name. The iPhone itself has nothing to do with this.

You can pay your monthly bill with any credit/debit card or bank account you'd like. You can set it up online and even choose to have it automatically paid so that you never have a late fee.

The only way to get around this is to have the account set up in someone else's name. However, they will be considered the account holder and will have complete control over the account. You might not even be able to upgrade your phone without them there.

You do need to pay for the iPhone with some type of a card. This could be a credit card or a debit card. Also, if you bring cash into the store they will often allow you to purchase a giftcard with it to use to pay for the iPhone. They just have the system set up to not accept physical cash for iPhone purchases.

 

[theLimit]

They do require a $500 security deposit for no/bad credit customers. I was told that the deposit will be returned after one year of on-time payments. Maybe I'll upgrade next year.

 

[ski2moro]

I advocate building good credit rather than cash deposits

If you are of legal age to obtain credit, I think you should consider it.

As AiralynRose said, an iphone is a perfect example of why you need to build your own good credit. Whether you want to rent a car, buy a house, sign up for electric service or get an iphone, people see that credit score as important.

Not all credit cards charge a fee - provided you pay it off as agreed.

I think it's stupid to give $500 to a cell phone company or a utility as a deposit. That $500 could be invested and put to work for you. Just look at Apple Stock over the last 3 years. With some prudent buying and selling, you could have more than tripled your money.

While I think you should build your credit, I am not advocating running up a huge debt at ridiculous interest rates. Thousands of idiots are still paying interest on the pizza they bought ten years ago because they don't pay it off each month.

An additional benefit of credit cards - having a credit card protects you against unscrupulous merchants, you can file a billing dispute.

I'm no expert, but I think that credit in general will be harder to get in the coming months. I think developing an all cash lifestyle is a good idea. Nonetheless, I think there are benefits to building your credit rating. Just my $.02

 

[vipergts2207]

First of all, this is NOT true. If you pay your credit card bill every month, you WILL NOT be charged any fees. You should definitely look into getting a credit card NOW. You will need one to have phone service, buy a house, rent an apartment, get car insurance, pretty much everything. Everyone checks your credit. Therefore, you need to have some. Also, if you make your purchase on your credit card you will get REWARDS! I make all of my purchases on my Discover card, which I then pay in full every month (you can even pay multiple times throughout the month). It is all done online - easily. AND I get 1% cash back on everything (5-20% on some things) which I can then turn in for giftcards or have the money directly applied to my account. I never have any fees and they give me free money for using the card!

Anyways, back to your question. AT&T checks your credit to start an account with them regardless of the phone you are buying. They will use your SSN and set the account up under your name. The iPhone itself has nothing to do with this.

You can pay your monthly bill with any credit/debit card or bank account you'd like. You can set it up online and even choose to have it automatically paid so that you never have a late fee.

The only way to get around this is to have the account set up in someone else's name. However, they will be considered the account holder and will have complete control over the account. You might not even be able to upgrade your phone without them there.

You do need to pay for the iPhone with some type of a card. This could be a credit card or a debit card. Also, if you bring cash into the store they will often allow you to purchase a giftcard with it to use to pay for the iPhone. They just have the system set up to not accept physical cash for iPhone purchases.

+1 to this. I get 1% cash back on my mastercard and have gotten two $50+ dollar checks back from my CC company in the two years I've had it. Not much over two years, but it's better than nothing. If your smart, you'll actually gain from having a CC rather than losing. I'm using the CC to pay for my 3GS bill every month too. 1% off monthly phone bill ftw.

 

[AiralynRose]

Oh. 1 thing I forgot to add. Everyone should get an American Express card and always use it to pay for their electronics. Amex will add a 1 year warranty onto these items for free! http://www212.americanexpress.com/d...y_allccsg_shareddetails&type=intbenefitdetail

You probably won't be able to get approved for an Amex without having any credit, but keep this in mind in the future!

 

[xerenthar]

god i hate you luddites