Do you remember the old days of lay-a-way? Your parents would determine something they wanted to buy and would pay the store a number of payments until it was theirs. But in our instant gratification society, that antiquated payment strategy would never fly. No worries - it's received a modern update - Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL).
BNPL can help you get what you want now for a low, installment amount instead of the sting of paying the full price upfront.
Case in point. I'm itching to take my mom to Vegas. Two round trip tickets with Air Canada priced them around $1,580. Ouch! But with their BNPL option, I could secure the trip for only $134 a month over 11 months. Sounds great, right? But the fine print tells me I'll pay an extra $104 in interest. No thanks.
Other BNPL programs like AfterPay tout zero interest on their plans. Problem is, you'd better not miss a payment because the fees are hefty.
To learn all about the pros and cons of BNPL and so much more, I weighed in with Global National's, The Morning Show. Check out the segment here.