Everything You Need to Know About Plastic Surgery Financing

Perhaps you were in a car accident? Maybe you’re just hoping to make some enhancements to your physical features? Whatever the case may be, you’re thinking about undergoing plastic surgery. 

The only problem is, you’re not sure how to afford it. Fortunately, there are several financing options available, the most prominent of which we’re going to review below. 

Without further ado, here’s everything you need to know about plastic surgery financing. 

Plastic Surgery Financing Options

If there’s one thing you can say about plastic surgery, it’s that it’s not cheap. Whereas a breast augmentation costs around $3,700, a facelift costs around $7,000.

Unfortunately, most individuals lack the immediate disposable income needed to afford these costs. So, what can you do? There are a number of options available, including the following: 

Save Up

The most cost-effective option is to save up money over time. By foregoing unnecessary expenditures over a long enough period of time, you can eventually save up enough money to undergo your desired procedure. 

Of course, you’re going to have to live in a thrifty way. No more eating out, no more expensive coffees, and no more self-indulgence. Every spare penny will have to go toward your plastic surgery fund. 

For obvious reasons, this method is unattractive to many. Not only does it take substantial amounts of time, but it also requires that you sacrifice a quite a bit of your life. This is why many instead turn to the options discussed below. 

Take Out a Personal Loan

Another option for cosmetic surgery financing is to take out a personal loan. By taking out a personal loan, you can obtain enough money to pay for your surgery within just a day or two.

Of course, there are major downsides to this option. Namely, personal loans carry exceedingly high-interest rates. Depending on your income and credit score, you could be hit with interest fees of anywhere between 6% and 36%. These are about as high as interest rates get and could put you in an absolute hole financially. 

For this reason, unless your plastic surgery is an absolute requirement, you’re advised to pursue other options. You don’t want your procedure to ruin your financial future, after all. 

Draw from Your Retirement

You might also consider drawing money from your retirement account. Most retirement accounts allow their holders to withdraw up to 50% of their total balances. Then, the money taken out can be repaid over the span of the next five years. 

However, this isn’t as great an option as it sounds. There are plenty of negatives associated with withdrawing from one’s retirement account. 

For one, you’ll have to pay taxes on the withdrawn portion twice. For two, you’ll miss out on valuable monetary growth. For three, you might even have to pay penalty fees. 

Ultimately, unless your procedure is medically necessary, this is a bad option. It will negatively impact your finances for the rest of your life. And again, you don’t want to ruin your financial future over a cosmetic procedure. 

Charge it to a Medical Credit Card

One of the most viable financing options for plastic surgery is to use a medical credit card. Medical credit cards are designed solely for medical expenses, and, generally, offer interest rates that are lower than those associated with standard credit cards. 

Even better, many medical credit cards come with 0% interest intro periods, allowing you to pay your medical expenses off over time without accruing any interest. If you pay your expenses off before the intro period ends, you’ll have paid no more than the cost of the procedure itself. 

Note, however, that there is some risk involved. If you fail to pay off the expenses before the intro period ends, you could be retroactively charged interest on the full cost of the procedure. At the end of a year or two, this could be a substantial amount of money. 

Charge it to a Personal Credit Card

You don’t necessarily have to use a medical credit card when paying for plastic surgery. You could use a personal credit card as well. 

A personal credit card offers the same benefits as a medical credit card, allowing you to pay 0% interest over the first year or so of use. The difference is that personal credit cards carry much higher interest rates after the introductory period. 

So, if you don’t pay your expenses off in time, you will be hit with an even larger bill than what you would have had from a medical credit card. 

Utilize a Home Equity Loan

If you own a home, and if you’ve built up substantial amounts of equity in it, you could consider taking out a home equity loan. A home equity loan carries an interest rate which is identical to average mortgage rates. This means that the rate usually falls around 4%. 

The downside to this option is that you’ll lose some equity in your home. Should the market take a dive, you could actually end up in the red on your mortgage. 

In essence, you should only pursue this option if you’ve built up plenty of equity. 

Take Advantage of a Payment Plan

The best-case scenario is that your plastic surgeon allows you to make payments through a payment plan. This is a long-term payment process in which you make small, interest-free payments every month. It’s beneficial because it doesn’t force you to pay any more than what is necessary for your procedure. 

The only downside to this method is that your surgeon might not let you get any more work done until your past expenses are paid off. This can be a hindrance if you’re planning on multiple procedures. 

Learn More About Healthcare Financing 

Now that you know a bit about plastic surgery financing, you might be looking to learn more about healthcare financing. If so, Healthcare Business Today has you covered. 

Brush up on healthcare financing by browsing our other articles now!