CertainTeed is offering a finance program backed by Wells Fargo Bank. They are calling it the Home Projects Visa Card Program.
The general idea is that a contractor that has qualified for CertainTeed’s credentialing program can offer financing to your customers. Part of the draw is that you can offer your customers same as cash no interest financing or very low interest rates. They say, “By offering a comprehensive range of reduced rate interest and no-interest option payment plans, you help your customers get that home improvement project started today.”
Sounds like a great idea, Right?
What CertainTeed and Wells Fargo want you to do is sign up your customer for a Visa card. Your customer can use the card to charge your services and then continue to use the card like a regular Visa card.
You have to dig down a bit to discover the rate of interest is a minimum of 25.99% or the prime rate plus 22.74% whichever is greater. That’s surprise #1. The second surprise is that if you want to offer say 18 months same as cash with regular payments then you are going to have to pony up 9.35% of the selling price, or $935 on a $10,000 job. Want to offer 48 months same as cash? It will cost you $1775.
I don’t know about your customers but most of mine are pretty smart. I don’t think it would go over too well because I think they would understand that they are paying for the reduced interest rate in the price off the home improvement. I believe that not only would this program not get you more sales, but it would also negatively impact your reputation
In addition you will be charged $20 to $50 a month to participate in the program and an additional $35 a month for every month that you don’t generate at least $2500 in financing sales.
The rate breaks it all down. When I read it I can’t help thinking Wells Fargo and CertainTeed are making more money on the roof than the contractor.
Here are the links:
http://www.certainteed-myedge.com/Newsletters/WellsFargoHomeProjectsSellSheet.pdf
http://www.certainteed-myedge.com/Newsletters/WellsFargoHomeProjectsPPT.pdf
http://www.certainteed-myedge.com/Newsletters/WellsFargoHomeProjectsRateSheet.pdf
What do you think? Feel free to post a comment.
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I think that you don’t understand how financing works. Probably best if you don’t sign up for that program. For the rest of the guys who understand financing…… you just landed the best program in the industry! The largest exterior remodeling companies across the company are using financing. I guess the small guys stay small for a reason
If this was “the best program in the industry” it would have come with better disclosure on how it worked.
Since this reply came from an IP address resolving to Wells Fargo; is this the Banks official position?
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Maybe the problem is that we do know how financing works. The program offered by Wells Fargo and CertainTeed represented a huge miscalculation on your part regarding the ignorance of roofers.
That may well explain why you pulled the program as soon as you were found out.
The passive aggressiveness (“I guess the small guys stay small for a reason”) at the end was great, just great.
Do you knuckleheads at Wells Fargo know how the internet works?
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