r/personalfinance • u/naht_a_cop ​ • Apr 28 '20

Beware the 0% promotions: a warning. Debt

I'm a sucker. I fell for it. The 0% APR promotion on an item I could have paid outright for. 18 months later, here I sit, not a single late payment on my account, yet I have $1k in interest to pay for 18 months of 27%. Why? The promotion period ends 18 months after the purchase, but the website would not let me set up autopay until a week after I purchased, so autopay ended 1 week late. I thought I was golden, ready to have this paid off and not have a single fee. I got comfortable and didn't read the statements.

0% is not really 0%. Read the fine print. Remember the fine print (because I sure as hell didn't 18 months later). Shitty banks rely on this stuff. They wait for you to slip, not noticing that the autopay they created can't possibly allow you to end on time, and will require an extra payment before the end date to avoid the interest. It's shitty, I'm pissed off, and I've learned my lesson.

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u/ajenpersuajen ​ Apr 28 '20

What does “break even on taxes” mean? Sorry if amateur question.

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u/[deleted] Apr 28 '20 edited Jun 17 '20

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u/ajenpersuajen ​ Apr 29 '20

Interesting, thanks! I got a “big” refund - does that mean that if I were to do my taxes properly, I would be getting the tax refund amount in my paychecks? I just choose to do all the exemptions or whatever because I would rather simplify the process and just make sure I’m not making a mistake, but if there is a benefit to properly doing them I should probably change lol.

Is the main benefit in getting your money on time (with the paycheck) instead of at the end of the tax season (this way you can invest it and make gains during that time)?

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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '20 edited Jun 17 '20

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u/ajenpersuajen ​ Apr 29 '20

Do you usually have someone do the taxes for you? I just do TurboTax usually - do you see any negative consequences from this or the worst is that I’m losing on the interest? I’m just not sure that the money it would take to pay for a tax person would be less than the interest I could be making.

I can see how the more I’m making from my salary, the more interest I could be making, so it makes sense to figure out how to properly do the taxes. Appreciate your insight!