Business & Finance Harvey Norman - GE Interest Free

[Falchoon]

I was having an argument with a mate this morning, me - GE finance are the lowest of the low - but the question here is, what do they charge in interest post the interest free period?

http://www.harveynorman.com.au/customer-service/finance-options/interest-free

can't find it here

More info button

http://www.gomastercard.com.au/en/Personal/interest_free.html

not here either

FAQ's

surely the first question is, what's the interest rate

http://www.gomastercard.com.au/en/Personal/faq.html#faqInterestFree

nope, & that is the dodgiest FAQ set up I've ever seen, I can't keep the answer viewable long enough to read.

 

[Falchoon]

Found it under - Using your account

29.49%

GE - Caveat Emptor

 

[Crimson Azure]

As long as you pay it off on time you're fine.

I have used them & also HSBC a few times & make su I pay it off right at the end of the interest free period. They never get any interest out of me, so in my case they are good to use.

 

[raskolnikov]

I've used them a few times. I've always paid it off well before time.

They're fine. Just make sure you do pay it off before the interest free period ends.

One way they try to catch you is to give you a credit card to use which has a sizeable limit on it. I cut it up and threw it in the bin as soon as I got it.

 

[prankmonkey]

their credit card is awesome if you travel or shop online
no fees, no foreign transaction fees. i've saved quite a bit of time and money since their exchange rates are quite good
just make sure you pay it off on time

 

[Selective Retention]

Motor finance wizard says yes.

 

[Scotland]

I still don't understand how people go for these deals (or credit cards in general) and don't pay back what they spend before it attracts interest.

 

[CAS79]

I still don't understand how people go for these deals (or credit cards in general) and don't pay back what they spend before it attracts interest.

You've shown why your not part of GE's target market.

 

[Dan Moody]

we've had 1 for years and have never paid a zac in interest.
in fact if you're smart, they work out a truckload better than credit cards e.g. we purchased a new digital camera about 4 years ago when they were having a 60 month (5 years) no interest, NO REPAYMENTS! (you'll be hard pressed to find a no repayments for that term anymore)
anyway, total came to $800, we paid it off in 18 months at $45 a month. could've bought it outright but when not stretch the payments out to help budget.
best things ever if you use them right, worst things ever if you buy and forget to repay before interest kicks in.

 

[SirJimi05]

There is no such thing as interest free.

 

[powerful girl]

There is no such thing as interest free.

Agree, even if you don't pay interest you are still definitely paying a lot more than if you go in with cash and negotiate a good price, by the time they load up the selling price and add fees etc, you can be up for a lot more. And most interest free contracts are designed to set you up to fail and end up paying a lot more in extortion style interest rates.

There is no such thing as a free lunch!

And this is just one of the reasons that Gerry Harvey gets my vote for the un-Australian of the year!

 

[KardiniaPark]

I've used them a few times. I've always paid it off well before time.

They're fine. Just make sure you do pay it off before the interest free period ends.

One way they try to catch you is to give you a credit card to use which has a sizeable limit on it. I cut it up and threw it in the bin as soon as I got it.

Another way they get people, is on the paperwork the minimum payment will be say $20 a week. I'm sure most people would see that and assume that paying the min payment would pay off the item but they don't work it that way. It should be maybe $35 a week so at the end of the time you will find you have only paid just over half of it off and now you are stuck paying the rest with 30% interest.

 

[powerful girl]

Another way they get people, is on the paperwork the minimum payment will be say $20 a week. I'm sure most people would see that and assume that paying the min payment would pay off the item but they don't work it that way. It should be maybe $35 a week so at the end of the time you will find you have only paid just over half of it off and now you are stuck paying the rest with 30% interest.

Some contracts really screw consumers and if the amount is not paid off by the end of the interest free period, borrowers pay high interest rates right back to the original date of purchase.

As someone above has said, "Caveat Emptor" buyer beware, understand what you are signing.

 

[rocker_oz33]

l got caught out by ge money l got small loan from them while l was waiting for my house to sell.l used all my other money on the new place l needed the $$ over the xmas time.there rate was low then it jumped right up l paid the rest outright l think l paid one or 2 months of the highrate not that bad but bad enough.worst thing ge money keep on ringing me every 2weeks/month seeing if l needed more money.till l finally told them to eff them selfs.

 

[brucetiki]

Have a GE Creditline card for the laptop - 24 months interest free. Paying well above the minimum amount so that means it will be paid off well inside the interest free period.

I know it's not as cheap as outright cash (and the cash discounts), but it works for me.

 

[Mingo]

People also always forget the $25 account creation fee and the (recently upped) $4.95 monthly "account keeping" fee. If you're taking 60 months to pay something off, even though you don't pay interest in that period, you still pay a heck of alot more.

If you can, go cash. Better for you, less fees and better prices, and better for the retailer not copping the huge fees GE charge them. And at the moment retailers need all the help they can get.

 

[Northworth]

These things are good to use
but get rid of them before applying for a mortgage (may be a dumb, obvious comment but anyway)

We bougt a couch and said sure... we'll go interest free which amounted to a $10k credit card we didn't need.... paid the couch off.

But from a home loan point of view, the bank assesses your credit worthiness based on you having a contingent liability of $10k... because they could give you a loan and you could straight away spend $10k on crap and pay the ridiculously high 29% interest rate. So the credit card reduces the amount you can borrow for a house, etc.

So get them sure... but when it is time to consolidate your debt - GET RID OF

 

[brucetiki]

These things are good to use
but get rid of them before applying for a mortgage (may be a dumb, obvious comment but anyway)

We bougt a couch and said sure... we'll go interest free which amounted to a $10k credit card we didn't need.... paid the couch off.

But from a home loan point of view, the bank assesses your credit worthiness based on you having a contingent liability of $10k... because they could give you a loan and you could straight away spend $10k on crap and pay the ridiculously high 29% interest rate. So the credit card reduces the amount you can borrow for a house, etc.

So get them sure... but when it is time to consolidate your debt - GET RID OF

Exactly what I did. Had an interest free card for my TV, which was all but paid off (and well before the interest free period) when I applied for my mortgage, but because of the very high credit limit, it reduced the amount I could get on my mortgage. So I cancelled it (and my other credit card, which had been paid off), got a debit card, got a bit more money to play with for the mortgage, and then a year later reapplied for an interest free card when I needed it again.

 

[Beary17]

As a youngster I bought a couch with my ex and went interest free, through GE money. Me with no debt, ok income and enough to buy the couch in cash was ineligible (wanted it interest free to keep the cash as a backup) her on a traineeship earning half my wage and no cash in bank was approved. No wonder why. Unbeknown to me the kept upping her limit, sending her credit cards with instant cash withdrawals promoted, by the time I found out the $1000 lounge was out to $6000.

Gladly when we split up that went with her and was never in my name.

 

[Mingo]

As a youngster I bought a couch with my ex and went interest free, through GE money. Me with no debt, ok income and enough to buy the couch in cash was ineligible (wanted it interest free to keep the cash as a backup) her on a traineeship earning half my wage and no cash in bank was approved.

Can be for any number of reasons. They look at duration in current job, duration at current address, whether or not you have a credit history at all. Heck even the lack of a home phone number can go against you with some credit checks.

 

[Dan Moody]

Can be for any number of reasons. They look at duration in current job, duration at current address, whether or not you have a credit history at all. Heck even the lack of a home phone number can go against you with some credit checks.

No it can't, this is not part of any credit assessment criteria.

 

[Mingo]

No it can't, this is not part of any credit assessment criteria.

The majority yes, but I know for example Flexirent have been known to decline for that reason. Or at least that's the reason they give.

 

[Dan Moody]

The majority yes, but I know for example Flexirent have been known to decline for that reason. Or at least that's the reason they give.

That's the reason they've given you.
We do credit checks daily, people taking out mortgages, the amount of people on mobile only these days that we see would be nudging 25%.
It has no bearing on their ability to service a loan contract at all.

 

[Caesar]

People also always forget the $25 account creation fee and the (recently upped) $4.95 monthly "account keeping" fee. If you're taking 60 months to pay something off, even though you don't pay interest in that period, you still pay a heck of alot more.

If you can, go cash. Better for you, less fees and better prices, and better for the retailer not copping the huge fees GE charge them. And at the moment retailers need all the help they can get.

It depends how much you're spending and what you're doing with the cash.

I've always taken the position that this stuff is good in two situations:

1) You need something desperately (e.g. washing machine carks it) and you don't have the money
2) You have the money to pay cash, but you intend to invest the cash somewhere that you expect to receive a higher from than the account keeping fee you'll be charged on the card

As you say, (2) is quite a trap. $4.95 a month doesn't sound like a lot, but if you buy a $1,000 computer on 12 months interest free, you've just spent an extra 6%. If you have $1,000 sitting in your bank account earning 2-3%, then even with compounding you're still a long way behind.

That's even before you take into account the effect on your credit rating, etc.

 

[Lensen]

That's the reason they've given you.
We do credit checks daily, people taking out mortgages, the amount of people on mobile only these days that we see would be nudging 25%.
It has no bearing on their ability to service a loan contract at all.

I love it when people think that because their workplace does something, every other workplace also does it exactly the same way.

I work for a bank and the absence or presence of a home phone has an impact on your credit score, and if your score is below a certain number you get auto-declined. The impact is neglible in most cases, but it is definitely a part of the criteria.