I was inspired to write this post on buy now pay later
shoes after a reader of the Millionaires Giving Money Blog emailed the
following question:
‘I am experiencing hardship and am on a very low income.
The banks won’t lend me any money and I want to avoid credit cards and pay day
loans because the repayments are high. Is there any way I can borrow money at
low costs because my children needs shoes. Are there any free places where I
can get shoes for low income families? I need money fast, is there any way
you can help?’
Jill – New York
Detailed Response to Question
I get a lot of emails from low income parents who are
experiencing hardship and need help with clothes and shoes. If you need money
now you do have a lot of options. Most parents make the mistake of buying these
items using payday loans and credit cards and then get into trouble when they
can’t make the payments. In this short guide I will be offering advice on how
to make essential purchases for the family without breaking the bank.
Info: This
strategy can also be used during Christmas and Thanksgiving and is commonly
referred to as Christmas buy now pay later or Christmas bill me later catalogs.
Option 1 – Buy Now Pay Later Shoes
If you’re experiencing hardship and need new shoes you
should consider buy now pay later sites that offer bill me later facilities.
Most online catalogs allow customers to buy items on credit and the credit
approval process is lenient compared to banks and credit cards that perform a
credit check. Some online catalogs even offer instant credit approval for most
customers and offer at least 50 to 100 dollars to spend on their account. This
is a great strategy especially if you need money today and want to avoid using
credit cards and payday loans.
Use Bill Me Later Shoes
Also most of these online catalogs offer bill me later facilities
which means that you can defer your payment for a specific timeframe and them
pay off the balance in small manageable installments. Some of these online
credit accounts which offer instant credit also offer interest free periods. It
is not uncommon to find 12 months interest free with nothing to pay for 12
months.
How to Use Buy Now Pay Later
You must be disciplined when you use buy now pay later
facilities to fund emergency expenses. You must always complete a financial
statement to work out your income and expenses and find out what your
disposable income is. Remember this is not a financial assistance scheme
and you will have to repay the money. Suppose you earn $1000 dollars and spend
$800 you have $200 disposable monthly income. You could use this income to
slowly pay off any purchases made using buy now pay later catalogs.
If you’re monthly installment payments exceed your
monthly excess income you will get in trouble again so it’s very important to
stay within your means and build up your credit. If you can pay off your purchases
without missing any payments you can easily build your credit score and improve
your credit file.
If you’re experiencing hardship and need new shoes for
your family you should follow the process outlined below. This process will
ensure that you get the best deal possible at the lowest possible cost. I have
used this myself when money was tight and I had nowhere to turn to buy
essential items for my household.
Buy Now Pay Later Shoes
1: Make a list of all buy now pay later shoe catalogs available
which offer lenient credit. You can find a comprehensive list of BNPL catalogs
which offer Bill Me Later. You can use this list to find essential items such
as shoes.
2: Look for more buy now pay later catalogs which offer a
long deferred period. This means that you do not have to pay anything for a
fixed amount of months, it is like have free money for a period of time.
Sometimes retailers will allow you to defer your payments for up to 12 months.
I remember buying my kitchen appliances and couch on deferred credit for 12
months. This was great because I needed to replace them urgently and I did not
have to pay them until the 12 month period was over.
3: Look for buy now pay later credit catalogs which offer
interest free periods for your purchases. The way these credit catalogs make
money is buy charging you interest on your purchases. The interest rate is
usually slightly higher than credit cards but lower than payday loans. Nevertheless
sometimes in an attempt to lure customers these credit catalogs offer interest
free period and you should take full advantage of this.
4: Once you’ve decided on the credit catalog you can
place the order and then make monthly payments to pay off the balance as
quickly as possible.
Example of Buy Now Pay Later
Suppose you buy a pair of shoes for $100 and the Buy Now
Pay Later credit catalog offers you 12 months interest free credit and nothing
to pay for 6 months. This means that you don’t have to worry about the purchase
for 6 months while you get your finances sorted and then use the next 6 months
to pay off the balance at $17. After the 12 month period you are likely to be
charged interest of anything between 20% and 100% so it’s important to pay off
the balance before the 12 month period.
Best Option for Buy Now Pay Later Shoes
Overall I think Bill Me Later is the best option. Not
only is this service available at hundreds of stores you can also make minimum
payments and pay off the balance in 6 months without interest being charged.
Suppose you were to buy your shoe using a credit card or
use a payday loan you would probably paying twice the purchase cost in interest
which would only put you into more hardship.
Bill Me Later Buy Now Pay Later Shoe Sites
- Auditions Bill Me Later
- Bamason Buy Now Pay Later Shoes
- Bagsbuy.com Bill Me Later
- Champs Sport
- Comfortology
- Diaper Bags.com
- Eastbay
- eBags
- eBay (Offers Bill Me Later)
- Finish Line
- FootSmart
- Guess by Mariano
- JC Penney
- Journeys
- Kenneth Cole
- Luggage Set Select
- Maryland-Square
- OnlineShoes
- Onlyslippers
- Outletbuy
- Overleybuy
- Shoebuy
- Shoemall
- Shoesgotsole
- Walmart
- Zappos
Buy Now Pay Later Options in the UK
If you live in the UK you can also use Bill Me Later. You
also have the option of using other buy now pay later catalogues such as
- Very.co.uk
- Littlewoods.co.uk
- Gratten.co.uk
- Woolworths.co.uk
Other Options to Get New Shoes
Buy now pay later and deferred billing is a great way to
get access to new shoes if you’re experiencing hardship. If however you can’t
get access to these facilities due to adverse credit you do have other options
which I have outlined below. Remember never to give up because there is a way
out of every problem and it just requires thinking at higher levels.
Free Shoes Option 1: Rather than buying new shoes is
there a way to repair and restore these shoes. Sometimes the cost of repairing
shoes is much lower. You can use these services to repair and restore shoes so
that they look new. Once you’ve repaired these shoes you could take better care
of them so they last twice as long.
Free Shoes Option 2: Visit shoe shops and explain to the
owner of the store that you’re experiencing hardship and if there is anything
they can do to help. I have seen many families get assistance or hefty
discounts when they ask for help. There is nothing to be ashamed of and you
could save money and avoid going into debt.
Free Shoes Option 3: Visit charity shops which have
shoes. These charity shops sell second hand shoes at 90% discounts. These shoes
have been repaired and restored which means that you could save a lot of money.
Do this on all your clothes and shoe purchase and you’ll overcome your
financial hardship very quickly.
Free Shoes Option 4: Freecycle.com is a great way to get
access to free items such as shoes. Create an account and then request all the
items you need. There is a great community feel to this site and people are
very willing to help other people.