Financing Through Apple??

[Mattym62]

Hey guys, this is the second post i've made.. Has anybody financed through apple?? I would like to.. I have credit and it is perfect. I just bought a new motorcycle so buying laptop in full would break the bank.. Would anybody suggest NOT to financing through apple?? or do you think it'd be cool.. Thanks
-Matt-

 

[niter]

I have a coworker who went this route. However, he did it on the phone and got some cool deal set up as his credit was good. I will ask him about the details tomorrow, but it was a really nice deal with an interest free time for him with no prepayment penalties. He is paying the computer off during that time.

 

[Mattym62]

Thank you niter.. I will just wait a month or two more and pay it off in full.. I just talked to an mbna credit specialist and he told me that getting it done can take up to 17-31 days before i get approved, not to mention they will probably hammer me w/ interest.. I will just pay it in full next month or the month after.. Thanks again thougH!!

 

[niter]

no problem. actually, they approved him within 30 seconds and they gave him a several month interest free grace period. he just made sure that there was no prepayment penalties, divided the total computer bill over the months and started paying it off interest free. i will ask him the details tomorrow.

 

[Mattym62]

what kind of computer did your friend get?? insignificant.. but just curious.. Thanks again, i appreciate you looking into it for me!

 

[niter]

Hi. He purchased a 12" PB...the one with the superdrive.

 

[applemacdude]

There is a minimum amount you have to spend to get teh 6 month no interest thing. i beleive its 2235 or something like that, Its a pretty sweet deal if you could pay off most of it within teh first 6 months...

 

[applefan]

I did it once

I did it so I could postpone payment for six mo. and it worked out fine. Better than credit card interest. When the six mo. came around, I paid in full. However, It's like revolving credit. It has been over a year since I paid the loan, and the finance co. keeps sending me those checks that I can write anywhere against the account. Could be a problem for someone with credit issues. Maybe I should get a G5.........

 

[gemio17]

got my 1st iMac thru the Apple loan/MBNA in 2000, right out of college....they hit me for 24 percent apr!! I had great credit and other credit cards with really low apr's (so I made a rookie mistake), -I can't understand why with my credit it was so high. Definitely don't go this way unless you're going to pay it off real quick, or are desperate...and want to spend the remainder of your life getting blank checks and other junk from MBNA trying to get you to spend money you don't have at an interest rate that equals financial suicide!.....Why won't they leave me alone!!!! (It's been 3 years -Applefan- since I paid off that loan and I am still getting offers for that credit!)

 

[Foxer]

AppleLoan (or whatever) is operated by MBNA, so it is much like a credit card. Quick approvals, which I guess is the only selling point. Interest rate is higher than you would otherwise get. Even if your credit is good and established, you can do better elsewhere. If you plan to pay it off during the grace period, go for it. If not, or you're not sure, you might want to check out other options.

 

[jeremy.king]

I agree with Foxer

I did the Apple loan in 1999 and it was just okay. At the time I didn't know a lot about credit companies and how credit works...Looking back now, I was pretty much gouged and didn't even know it at the time. It was the $70/month payment that made up my mind.

Assuming you pay within 6 months, Apple financing is a good deal.

"With six-months same-as-cash and annual percentage rates as low as 9.99%" - Apple.com

Seems nowadays, you can get a better rate on a credit card and get no interest periods simply by asking. Better yet, during the holidays, you can get fixed low interest "balance transfer checks" that you can use to purchase your new mac. The benefit is that these are fixed for the life of the balance and often times are quite lower than your credit card rate. They do anything to encourage you to spend money.

Personally, I had no problems getting a 7.9% fixed rate on an MBNA Platinum card and I always get those dreaded checks that are as low as 3.9% - fixed. Although I would never rack up more debt

 

[Mattym62]

Hey Guys, I appreciate all of your responses.. I am just going to save up for aonther month and drop the cash for it next month.. It isn't worth being hassled by some pain in the ass credit card company for the rest of my life.. lol.. Thank you again,
-Matt

 

[mwjd299]

I bought a 20" iMac las Friday at the Apple store event. I used one of the display computers to apply for the loan and I was approved in about a minute. I am planning on paying off the loan before the 6 months are up. It was painless, i walked out with a computer and didn't give them a dime yet.