Citifinancial
48-Month Loan Pushed Despite Request for Quick Payoff

My husband and I are small-time home investors. We were in the middle of remodeling a home, but we were running out of money fast. We had to complete the job so we could put a mortgage on the home to cover most of our out-of-pocket expenses. I received a letter from Citifinancial stating I could get thousands of dollars, fast. When I signed the contract, I noticed the extremely high interest rate, but I was in a bind and had no intentions of paying the loan off slowly.

I made sure there were no prepayment penalties, and I thoroughly explained to the representative my horrible experience with Beneficial and said I wanted to make sure that Citifinancial was not similar. I told her that I should have the loan paid in 6-8 months, no longer than a year, so I did not need a 48-month loan. However, she said it is best to have my payments low just in case something unexpected happens, plus I can always pay off the loan early with no prepayment penalties.

I borrowed $7,650, and they added a $150 service charge. I have paid around $2,500 so far, and my payoff is still a little over $7,000. They accumulated interest on a base of $12,000 at 20% (the amount if I paid over 48 months), and the first 18 months of payments go to interest, which she did not explain to me. That is why they push the 48 months. Their practices are shady. Please beware!

Company: Citifinancial
Country: USA
State: Pennsylvania
City: Brookhaven
Address: 4511 Edgemont Ave

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