Gripe of the Day: Bad Credit "Get A Computer" Rip-Offs

Have you heard of those "poor credit" computer offers such as "Help Me To Buy" or "Blue Hippo"? These companies offer credit towards the purchase of "top-of-the-line" computers or other electronics, for people with bad credit. While these programs will get you a computer, there are a lot of catches and they actually further assault the credit of people with poor credit rather than help re-build it. Here's what these type of programs say they offer:

1 - Help Re-establishing and rebuilding credit for people with poor credit.
2 - Guaranteed credit approval for everyone.
3 - Top of the line equipment.
4 - Large assortment of High-end software bundles.
5 - Free extras (MP3 player, Printer, Digital Camera, etc.)

Here is what you really get:

1 - First off, they don't help you re-establish your credit because they DON'T report your credit history with them to any reporting agencies.
2 - Credit is only guaranteed because it is "secured" credit. In other words; they require a substantial deposit towards the purchase before they will accept your credit application and they require that you give them access to make automatic payment withdrawals from your bank account.
3 - The equipment is often refurbished (used but rebuilt).
4 - The software is often sub-standard (instead of MS Word, you get Corel Office).
5 - The free extras often don't come until you have completely or close to completely paid for the purchase. So if you would like to actually print anything you type up on your "new" refurbished computer, you'll have to wait a year or more, which is when you're expected to have paid off the purchase.

Here's what else they don't tell you:

1 - Your computer will end up costing you substantially more than its actual retail value as a result of high interest rates and an inflated retail value. They get away with this because they know you have no where else to go if you have poor credit.
2 - The so called "Name Brand" equipment and software can be substituted for anything they determine to be of equal value at any time, for any reason and without prior notice to you.
3 - You are expected to place a down payment (over the phone) on the purchase BEFORE you have seen a full contract outlining the details of the agreement that you are entering into.
4 - It's a head ache getting tech support because the equipment is often registered under a different name on the warranty. In other words; the company (Blue Hippo or Help Me To Buy) is not the name the company uses to register for tech help.

If you have poor credit, the best thing for you to do is pay cash. Save the money you would be spending every month on one of these schemes and buy the equipment yourself from a real store with NEW equipment that you get right there on the spot. It will take you far less time to save the money you need to buy the equipment at actual retail value, than the year or two it will take to pay off the inflated value equipment through one of these programs.