I got a letter from citifinancial today and I called... it said in small print: This loan offer is limited to credit-qualified homeowners I called and questioned this... they said... it doesn't matter, did you want to apply? I said... what the hell... will a 640 fico do it for me? He said he saw a 610 get approved for 4k. I said DO IT... He said he couldn't approve me with his level of authorization, but he would show his manger (because I had 60 and 90 day lates from 2 yrs ago) He called me back about 2 hours later and said... good news... you were approved not for the 4500 lower limit... but 5k!! I said COOL... when do I sign..? This is an installment loan which should boost my credit rating... right? (thats my question) should I do it? Its an installment loan... will this lead to a citibank credit card in the future if I don't screw up this account? Advice please... BTW... I live in jersey... if you want to call them, the number is 908-688-4100 Talk to Allan... he was real cool... I think they pulled Experien since they talked about the number of inqs on my credit... (has 34 or 35) the others have 2 and 3
citifinancial if I am not mistaken is a loan shark I mean a finance company. I beleive that having one on your credit report actually hurts you but I am not an expert.
First off you applied for a Installemnt Loan. Not a revolving account. Citifinancial are loan sharks at best. As long as you pay the agreed upon term each month you should increase your FICO slightly if that is you main objective. Did you get a check did they deposit it in your checking account?
If I do it, I will get a check... I will see them tonight... been holding off waiting on responses...
It is not reporting yet... (went through with it) Paid off my First National CC and my MBNA loan... Also paid off my wifes student loan, so I am acutally saving 100 bucks a month by consolidating this way. I think I will pay it off in about 6 months... I get a couple lump sum checks which will easily pay it off... My score should go up about 20 to 30 points since I am under 10% of my revolving credit now... (once its reported)
Congratulations! Not all installment loans are from loan sharks. Yes, in many cases the interest is pretty high, because they cater to sub prime people. Be careful of prepayment penalties. Sometimes you come out ahead in the end if you put the extra money in a good investment and pay the loan as agreed. Most installment loans don't have interest computed as simple interest, but instead use the Rule of 78 (don't confuse with the Rule of 72 for compounding). I can't remember exactly how to figure it, but it severely front-loads the interest. Many times people try to pay these loans off early to save the interest only to find out that they pay almost the same amount. And paying it in a shorter period makes the effective rate you pay higher. At least you can feel good about getting some other accounts paid off, and that will help your ratios.
Cool. I only asked because I believe they were investigated for 'predatory lending' practices in connection with home equity loans.
