iPhone 7 Upgrade Program - credit check

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
I think it's nice to have the option of getting a new phone at 12 months.

Pricing inclusions are listed under the FAQ:


What do my monthly payments cover?
Your monthly payments spread the full cost of iPhone and AppleCare+ over 24 months. Your first monthly payment also includes any applicable sales tax on the full price of the iPhone and any shipping costs.


Not sure if I want to do all that and then only get $250 upgrade if I want to get a new phone the following year... I need to see more info on this.

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You get no trade in credit if you do the annual upgrade...You turn the phone back in since you've only paid 1/2 the cost of it and AppleCare+ and Apple essentially pays the remaining 12 payments off and take the phone back leaving you free and clear to jump into another upgrade option. Now if the phone is damaged in any way except blemishes, you also have to pay the accidental damage fee when you turn that phone in unless you file a claim and get it fixed first then turn it in, but it still is the same price. What I find cool about the program is that the phone is unlocked, you have to activate it before leaving with it but it's still free to use from carrier to carrier but with the iPhone 7 is that really a big benefit...Since the AT&T/T-Mobile models this time are GSM only but the Verizon/Sprint models are both CDMA/GSM these would have the best benefits.

I didn't get approved for it last year, the requirements I guess Citizens One is looking for is tough, I ended up having to fall back on AT&T Next installments after I got the decline in store, at least they don't just send you away lol

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Anyone have experience doing this through Apple ? I really want the new iPhone 7 and this seems to be a good option for financing. I could pay for it in full but this gives you the option to upgrade in 12 months and Apple Care comes with it free. There is an application and credit check, I called and got confirmation that it is a HP. I would hate to leave the garden for this so I want to get your opinions. Would this be considered a new account on ones CR and would it classify as a personal loan ?

The iPhone Upgrade Program is financed through Citizens One Personal Loans.

"Your personal information and credit card.

You will be asked to provide your Social Security number and date of birth for a credit check. You will also need a valid U.S. credit card. Debit cards and prepaid cards are not accepted."

http://www.apple.com/shop/iphone/iphone-upgrade-program

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To put it in perspective, that's done through Citizens One as you mentioned, what they are doing is acutally financing the full price and AppleCare+ upfront for you, thus creating a monthly 24 installment payment loan. It is a HP but it doesn't report, at least it hasn't since it was introduced with the iPhone 6s last year. It coul dchange at any time honestly as with any lender. Anyone pulling your credit will see the HP but not the actual loan itself.  BTW AppleCare+ isn't free under the program, it's a part of your cost like if you get the iPhone 7 32GB that's $649 and AppleCare+ is $129 your payments are $778 / 24...Upfront you pay the taxes on the full price of the phone and AC and the first installment $32.41

THis is a good option for anyone that likes to upgrade often and prefer an unlocked iPhone. If not do one of the carrier financing options if you're with one of the big four carriers, let it bill on your phone bill and pay for AC+ out of pocket upfront. That way there's no hard pull but you're still getting the benefit of installments with no HP.

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Thanks for the info !! I decided to go through AT&T. Made more sense for me, I couldn't justify a HP just to finance a phone that I could easily pay for if I wanted to. Got the 7 plus 256 GB in jet black =)

[kromix]

So Last Year Apple announced an 'upgrade program' which is basically a 0% interest loan for 24-months, of which you can turn in your iphone after 12 payments and get the new one. They use Citizens One Bank for the loan/financing.

The Program itself is great becuase it includes apple care puts you in line for the latest gadget yearly etc, but now i'm debating if I just buy it cash yearly instead of doing this program because 

1) It's a hard pull every 12 months from Citizens One (not a huge deal)

2) It's a new installment loan every 12 months from Citizens One (this is what I'm concerned with)

Isn't the new loan being opened and the old loan being closed every 12 months a horrible proposition for AAoA, and other things? Or is it ok to have a new installment loan every 12 months and a previous installment loan closed?

[Credit_hawk]

This is what makes me grateful I signed a loyalty contract plan with Verizon's retention department a few years ago so I get a new iPhone every 2 years for only $200. All the other carriers have done away with traditional contract plans for new customers including Verizon I believe. However, besides the apple care plan which itself is debatable in its usefulness since in my experience a good persuasive argument will get your phone fixed for free if you're a loyal apple customer (I got both my 5 & 6 replaced out of warranty for free), I believe Verizon also offers 0% APR monthly installments for new phones. However,  I don't know the specifics of it since I don't have that type of plan.

[Discover2016]

If I remember correctly, they don't report the actual loan, just a hard pull.

[CMoore515]

Keep in mind that if you buy the phone retail outside of the iPhone Upgrade Plan, it does not come with AppleCare +, which would be an additional $129 on top of the retail cost of the phone.

[austinguy907]

Or you could just buy something other than an Apple product.  Just because everyone else has one doesn't mean you have to follow the herd.

[kromix]

LOL! **bleep** does that have to do with anything? It's not the only way to buy it, I can afford it cash, but it's an option, you provide nothing to this thread android fanboi.

[Anonymous]

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@kromix wrote:

So Last Year Apple announced an 'upgrade program' which is basically a 0% interest loan for 24-months, of which you can turn in your iphone after 12 payments and get the new one. They use Citizens One Bank for the loan/financing.

The Program itself is great becuase it includes apple care puts you in line for the latest gadget yearly etc, but now i'm debating if I just buy it cash yearly instead of doing this program because 

1) It's a hard pull every 12 months from Citizens One (not a huge deal)

2) It's a new installment loan every 12 months from Citizens One (this is what I'm concerned with)

Isn't the new loan being opened and the old loan being closed every 12 months a horrible proposition for AAoA, and other things? Or is it ok to have a new installment loan every 12 months and a previous installment loan closed?

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1. It is a annual hard pull unless they revamp it next year...last year and so far for qualified upgrade eligible users it's a hard pull still.

2. It doesn't report so no affect of your AAoA...Just the stink of an annual HP showing up but by the time the next one hit you would've have lost the ding each time since my understanding is a HP only affects for 12 months. Unless Citizens One changes the reporting you're good.

I commented on another thread...It really is a good option if you tend to upgrade every new release and get AppleCare+, since you're effectively only paying 1/2 the cost for both then upgrade. The T&C says when you upgrade Apple immediately pays off the remaining 12 payments. The only thing that I find I don't like is because of that you have no trade in value.

Personally I've alternated how I upgrade each year. I took AT&T Next the year before and then traded that one in for trade in credit at Apple last year, did Next again and the phone is already paid off since I had the trade In credit to lower the amount due overall under Next. I always took Next 12...Now they call it Next 30 and Next every year. That way I only had to make 12 payments to trigger the turn in clause or PIF the rest to AT&T then trade it in to Apple without worrying about still paying AT&T for remaining installments. It balanced out and the credit has been more than what I owed going for the Plus models.

[Anonymous]

Just thought I'd chime in since I did the Apple Upgrade plan last year with the 6S and then renewed it again this year and for the 7....

I was somewhat annoyed at the thought of doing an HP every year, but I went ahead with it anyway. However, it turns out that they did not do another HP to Equifax this year when I renewed. I was pleasently surprised that I have not had any inquiries after being approved for renewal in the store. The whole process was reltively easy (except having to remember a PIN for my Verizon account instead of the usual password).

Also, the program in general is a very good deal if you want to get a new phone every year. If I were to buy it outright and sell my 6S to recoup costs, I would not get as much as Apple gives you in paying off the rest of the loan ($489 for my 128GB 6S). For comparison, the best I was looking at selling it for was ~$350. 

So in conclusion, it looks like you only have to endure a single HP when enrolling in the Upgrade plan. 

Another point is that when enrolling you have to pay first months payment and all tax up front, but when renewing they bill that in the first installment, so the first payment will be larger than the subsequent onces.

(also this is my first post to the myfico forums