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Now, if you're a mathematician, you will discover something to buy through AffordIt is embarrassingly bad deal. It's PlayStation (REFURB, note), will cost $ 432 if you pay it off, compared with $ 299 price on Amazon.com for a new unit with the same specifications. But if you live from paycheck to paycheck and have no financial cushion - that is true for 50 percent of the U.S. population, I am told - AffordIt you can get the equipment you want for only a small salary from (the weekly cost is automatically deducted each week from your current account) .


I spoke with the director Wil Shroter concepts and facilities for the business. "This is a way for people who have problems of cash management for the products they want," he says. But in the price. You pay an amount above the retail product, although there's no "interest rate" shown on the sales pages. If it were not, Shroter said, you would see used in the amount of 35 percent to 50 percent. That's A Nice income for the company. Plus, AffordIt making money on the retail markup.

Shroter says to apply a high rate of production, because it expects default rates to be "ridiculous." In fact, he expects one of the four clients had never sent in their first payment, although the initial deposit is required before the company will ship product. But after poring over public statements, rental companies Rent-A-Center and Aaron's rent, he believes that he has received bids found that the company will continue to turn a good profit. (AffordIt does not rent products. As soon as he put, he owns it.)

As a company pay in advance, Shroter AffordIt wants to appear friendly, despite its high actual charges. He wants to give people achievable payments and "carefully" if the collection is necessary. Furthermore, attempts to re-debit deliquient account every week, AffordIt can not really put the accounts in collections, because due to this compared to the amount of debt may not add up. In addition, "We do not want to build a brand bandit" Shroter said.

But AffordIt morally ambiguous situation. On the one hand, sales people who really can not afford the $ 299 PlayStations and the same product for $ 432 for the span of six months will strike some as usurious. On the other hand, one could argue that credit cards let people do the same thing, only in different interest rates.

This site and confirmation of the concept of raising working capital. Objective Schoter for us is to make its alternative engine for the trip to the retail sites, as well as Bill Me Later "(review) there. EBay bought Bill Me Later, in 2008.

I am of two opinions on AffordIt. If my job was to invest in startups, I would not put money into this company because I do not like the business helps people living from paycheck to paycheck, to buy things they do not need. Yes, I'm taking a noble, snobbish position, but we're talking about my pretend money here, and I can do with it what I want. But I think that Shroter intelligent and realistic, and I am confident that he can raise money quickly. Prohibition of execution errors, it should be able to turn it into a profitable business.

What do you think about AffordIt?