LOC or Credit Cards for dental work???

ChistineNJ · ‎11-13-2015

I am planning on getting some much overdue dental work done, can you guy please give your best advice on which financing i should use? my cost of treatment for the first phase is 10K after dental insurance is consumed.

I have 3000 in care credit, which im using on a deferred payment plan, plan to pay it off in 3months which was already applied to my balance

to finance the differance which would be the best option?

capital one venture card @ 17.90

NFCU LOC at 16.90% interest rate

NFCU credit cards at 17.99% or 15.15%

my goal is to keep my credit score where it is at 683 but with consuming half of the credit line i know i will take a hit, which brings me to my question is it better for me to utilize my LOC which does have the lowest interest rate, or should i use the credit card? to my understanding the LOC reports differently than revolving credit.

your advice is much appreciated

Anonymous · ‎11-13-2015

LOC's are included under the revolving accounts total credit lines. So, the utilization impact will be the same regardless of which you use. So lowest interest rate would be the best choice.

ChistineNJ · ‎11-13-2015

ughh ok I got it, thought maybe it would be less of a score impact if i used the loc, well at least the loc is the lowest interest rate.

SunriseEarth · ‎11-13-2015

Although it would incur an additonal HP on TU (mostlikely), have you considered requesting a CLI on your Care Credit CC? I was able to get my CL to over $10K with scores in the 670s.

CreditDunce · ‎11-13-2015

With some FICO models HELOC LOC's are not counted towards utilization once the credit limit is over 35-40k. Presumably, it is the same for other LOC's.

I know you are not looking to get another card right now, however, it might be a good time. You could certainly use a zero percent intro period. Plus it would be easy to earn any sign up bonus. I just don't know if your SL would be high enough to be useful. Still it might be worth while to check out Cap1's, etc pre-approval sites.

You may also want to talk with your dentist to see if she has a payment plan. They may have better terms than your credit cards.

Anonymous · ‎11-13-2015

@CreditDunce wrote:
With some FICO models HELOC LOC's are not counted towards utilization once the credit limit is over 35-40k. Presumably, it is the same for other LOC's.

I know you are not looking to get another card right now, however, it might be a good time. You could certainly use a zero percent intro period. Plus it would be easy to earn any sign up bonus. I just don't know if your SL would be high enough to be useful. Still it might be worth while to check out Cap1's, etc pre-approval sites.

You may also want to talk with your dentist to see if she has a payment plan. They may have better terms than your credit cards.

It may be worth it to apply for a card with a 0% introductory offer, take a HP to see if Care Credit will increase your CL, or do both.

Anonymous · ‎11-13-2015

Is the dental work worth more to you than the impact of a HP? Call care credit and tell them you are going to have some dental work done. Ask for about double what you actually need, for you may get a counter offer that will put you at or above what you are actually going to use. My spouse had an $800 limit for 3 years. She called early this year and requested $15k. The counter came back at $9.6k

UncleB · ‎11-13-2015

I agree completely with the folks who have suggested contacting Care Credit about getting a CLI... while a APR promo on a bank card is nice, you really can't beat deferred interest for 24 months.

I got my Care Credit a few months ago in anticipation of getting dental work done. I figured my total bill would be around $2k; I requested $10k and was assigned $8k. It all worked out rather well, because I had a tooth to break last month, which needed a new crown in addition to the elective procedures I have coming up (dental implant).

Whatever you decide, good luck both with your financing and your upcoming dental work!

chally · ‎11-13-2015

Agreed, Care Credit is good about CLI in my experience. My vet's office actually put a call in a couple of times on my behalf, was never an issue and always a 0% APR for at least 12 months for the amount in question.

Anonymous · ‎11-14-2015

@ChistineNJ wrote:
I am planning on getting some much overdue dental work done, can you guy please give your best advice on which financing i should use? my cost of treatment for the first phase is 10K after dental insurance is consumed.

I have 3000 in care credit, which im using on a deferred payment plan, plan to pay it off in 3months which was already applied to my balance
to finance the differance which would be the best option?

@Anonymous one venture card @ 17.90
NFCU LOC at 16.90% interest rate
NFCU credit cards at 17.99% or 15.15%

my goal is to keep my credit score where it is at 683 but with consuming half of the credit line i know i will take a hit, which brings me to my question is it better for me to utilize my LOC which does have the lowest interest rate, or should i use the credit card? to my understanding the LOC reports differently than revolving credit.
your advice is much appreciated

Denistry and Credit, my two favorite things!

Best advice, take the HP for care credit. Ask for 25k let them counter. Not only will it help you now and for future 0% offers, but it will help your utilization.

How many months will you need to pay this off? Utilization will heal with time, but I would try to use no more than 70% of your care credits new limit.

Your scores are probably good enough to score a 0% card with a bonus that will be of use to you in the future. Figuring out which one is the issue.

Have you checked for any prequalified offers? Get on amex and see if you have anything with a sepcific APR. If the APR listed is below 20, your limit could potentially be decent (5k+)...use that same experian inquiry and pair it with the PRG. Then you end up with a card that will grow with you over time, establish yourself with another bank, and have 60-75k points that transfer to delta for upwards of 3 roundtrip tickets and $200 in airline gift cards.

As far as dental costs go, I see you have insurance. How much is that saving you? There exists a discount plan called careington care 500. It is around $7 a month, cancel anytime, and gets you at least half off on treatment costs.

Based on your scores your best bet is to take the HP for care credit unless its only a few months old.