Dental financing at Aspen Dental is provided by third-party lenders to offer you a flexible way to pay for your dental treatments. It provides access to the care you need without having to worry about the cost upfront.

Dental credit cards

Dental credit cards offer patients a line of credit to pay for their current and future dental treatments. Similar to traditional credit cards, your lender will set a credit limit for you to draw on up to a designated maximum amount. Similarly, you can use as much or as little of your credit line as you need, plus you can repay the borrowed funds on a flexible schedule.

Dental loans

Dental loans are unsecured personal loans that you can use to pay for dental procedures with a set monthly payment. Loans like this have a designated borrowing amount that will be repaid over a set period of time, typically through a series of equal payments called installments.

Principal

Principal refers to the initial amount of money that’s borrowed. It does not include any interest that may be charged on a loan. For example, if you borrow $1,000 for your dental treatment, the principal amount of your loan is $1,000.

Interest

Interest is the cost accrued for borrowing money. It’s calculated as a percentage of the principal amount and is typically paid periodically, such as monthly or annually. For example, if you borrow $1,000 for your dental treatment at an annual interest rate (APR) of 5%, you will need to pay $50 in interest over the course of the year. The interest is added to the principal amount, meaning you would need to repay a total of $1,050 for a one-year loan term.

Deferred interest is when your financing plan has a period of zero interest if your balance is paid off before the designated timeframe ends. If you can’t pay it in full by then, interest payments will be owed, often retroactively.

The term of a loan refers to the length of time you have to repay your loan. It’s the period between the date the loan is disbursed to you and the date it’s fully repaid. The term of your loan is typically expressed in months or years, depending on the duration of your loan.

The term of your loan is an important consideration when borrowing money as it can have a significant impact on the amount of interest you have to pay over the life of your loan. Generally, a longer loan term will result in lower monthly payments but may result in higher overall interest costs. On the other hand, a shorter loan term will result in paying higher monthly payments with lower overall interest costs.

Your credit score is a numerical representation of your creditworthiness. It’s used by lenders to evaluate your ability to repay debt(s) and to determine the level of risk associated with lending you money.

The most widely used credit scoring model is the FICO score, which ranges from 300 to 850. A higher credit score also indicates a lower risk of default, and is therefore seen as more favorable by lenders.

Factors that impact your credit score may include your repayment history, amount of debt owed, length of credit history, types of credit used and new credit inquiries. It’s important for you to maintain a good credit score in order to have access to favorable credit terms and interest rates.