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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review |
So I have heard that Fingerhut can be a great way to buy certain things without paying the full price, but I chose to use Fingerhut for the purpose of increasing my credit score. I am a college student and I am kind of in debt with attempting to pay on some hospital bills from a surgery that I had last year as well as getting ready to graduate. I am about to have a decent amount of loans to pay after I receive my degree. I currently have a fair credit score, but I would love for it to be a lot higher than what it is. Over the course of a few months, I am going to assess how greatly Fingerhut can alter my credit score.
I have heard mixed reviews about how finger hut can affect credit, but I decided to try it for myself.
So let's jump into this review and my experience with using Fingerhut!!
Applying for Fingerhut
I applied for Fingerhut.. It requires putting in your information: name, birth date, SSI, and I want to say your address as well.
I received an update on the security system I use for protecting my credit. It expressed that a new form of credit had been open under my information within a few hours. I was allowed a $300 credit to Fingerhut.. which was pretty cool. I have heard that the ranges of available credit can differ based on your past credit history and your age, but this is what I was given. The amount you receive could be more or less than mine.
Also, I would like to mention that I waited awhile (3 weeks) after signing up for Fingerhut credit and received a catalog about 2 weeks after creating an account with them. They have a lot of items in their book to choose from, but of course you need to be careful within purchasing anything on credit.
Choosing something to buy
When using any sort of credit, I have heard that it is good to use maybe around 30% of credit available if you are deciding to buy something. You do not want to use more than you can afford. Plus I have noticed that using a substantial amount of credit available can affect your credit score and lower it a bit. So I decided on buying something fairly cheap. My choice was to buy Sims 4 since I haven't purchased it yet and because I was going to get a lot of use out of the game. On the EA website it retails for... Okay so I looked it up just now. Sims 4 usually retails at a value of $39.99, but it is on sale for $9.99 right now which makes me kind of mad since I bought it on Fingerhut. However, I am looking to improve my credit score so I purchased it off of Fingerhut for $59.99 which isn't cheap, but let's just overlook that. LOL
I would like to mention that many of the items on Fingerhut are overpriced by around $20-60. A lot of items that you see on this website you could buy at a cheaper price, but Fingerhut increases the value. I suppose they do that to acquire more money on their end. Keep in mind that with whatever you are buying, you have to make sure to pay the minimum balance amount to Fingerhut back on time because they will report right away if you are a day late on your payments. I would suggest paying about 5 days before your payment date because of the possibility of a payment taking a while to process which could possibly happen if you choose to submit a payment in between Friday-Sunday.
I received my payment minimum date after my item was shipped to me. I have to pay a minimum of $6.99 every month until Sims 4 is payed off. This is roughly about almost 6 months of payments. I make my first payment in December, but I plan on paying it off by March (month 4). That would make it so that I had been paying towards the credit used for a period of time which would hopefully be reported after 90 days (3 months) as me having responsible habits. I am hoping this will increase my credit score a bit considering I will be paying on time.
I also plan on buying something else at some point again if this works to see if there is a steady increase within my credit overtime.
**Random Moment**
Used a code to receive free item i.e. blanket!
^_^
Of course, I had to do some research before purchasing from Fingerhut. I wanted to see if I could find a discount code to use towards my purchase. Sadly, I found none that I could actually apply to my purchase, but I did come across a code for a free blanket. I figured, it's free... might as well get it. So I typed in the code and began going through the check out process.
Paying the $30 down payment on Fingerhut
When you first join Fingerhut, you have to pay an initial down payment of $30 which goes towards your purchase as well as the shipping. I believe you only have to do this the first time you buy something from the website, but I could be wrong so don't quote me on that.
Standard shipping was a ridiculous $9.99. Okay, so I was kind of irritated by this because I figured shipping would be under $6. -_- I paid for it anyway and went through with my purchase. As you can see Fingerhut adds on extra money to make more money, clearly.
59.99 (Sims 4) + 9.99 (Fingerhut shipping) = $69.98
69.98 - $30 (initial payment) = $39.98
After paying the initial $30, my balance was $39.98.
Fingerhut Shipping
How long did Fingerhut take to ship?
Fingerhut will have the tracking number attached to your purchase on their website for you to check where your items are and the expected delivery date. I received my items way before the expected delivery date shown on their website as you can see.
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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review |
I purchased my items on the 13th. They were shipped out on the 17th. They shipped through UPS and then transferred the item to USPS to ship to me. I received my purchase Tuesday, November 21, 2017. I am kind of surprised that the Sims 4 I ordered was merely shipped inside a poly bag considering the disc could have been smashed or damaged through shipping and handling.
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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review - Fingerhut shipping |
I feel like I deserved a box since I paid $9.99 for shipping and handling in my opinion. A part of me feels like if I had paid for one of the Service Plans that they would have shipped my item to me in a box, but I could be wrong. LOL
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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review - Sims 4 |
Anyway, I have my game and I am happy right now.
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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review - Fingerhut shipping |
The blanket was shipped separately from my actual purchase. It was shipped through USPS and it reached me November 22, 2017. It was shipped in another polybag.
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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review - Fingerhut shipping |
It took roughly 8-9 days for me to receive my purchase.
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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review - It's a free Christmas blanket! |
Quality of the free Blanket
It's a pretty, but cheaply made blanket. It is very thin, but the texture is pretty soft. I will get some sort of a use out of it in some way. I am glad it was free though. LOL
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| Can Fingerhut Build Credit? : Fingerhut Review - It's a free Christmas blanket! |
What happened after I received my items from Fingerhut?
I had been monitoring my account for shipping as well as for what my minimum payment would be as well as when it would be due. After I actually received the items, it showed my minimum payment that is due every month.
I actually set a reminder to show me when to pay Fingerhut since I did not sign up for the automatic payment option that is on their website.
Current Thoughts on Fingerhut
It is easy to get approved for credit. I have read that if you have low credit, it is great to use and perfect for building credit. However only buy what you can afford to pay back.
The prices can be outrageous for the items that they have available though.. My main issue is how overpriced everything is...even the shipping.
Always look up discount codes... I have seen Fingerhut codes online as well as in the coupon inserts of my newspaper. Always find codes to get things cheaper or to even get something for free.
Fingerhut shipping did not take too long, in my opinion. Again the only thing I would say about shipping is how expensive it is and the fact that the packaging could have been better. I will say that since I don't know what the shipping will be like for larger or heavier items to tread carefully because if you plan on purchasing anything kind of heavy, it maybe pretty expensive to have it shipped to you.
There is a possibility that it can increase the credit score from my research and what I have read online, but we shall see what happens.
Overall, I shall see if my credit is affected greatly by Fingerhut and by how much in the next few months. I will report back and let you guys know the results in case anything changes with my experience with Fingerhut and my credit score.
