Payment Plans
Depending on the technique, clinic, and success and extent of the procedure, you can pay hundreds to thousands of dollars, with US averages being around $4000 to $15,000.
Instalments can vary widely, costing anywhere from $70 to $300 per month.
This will depend in part on how long the payment plan is, with plans ranging anywhere from 24 to 60 months being common.
Personal Loans
The first thing you may think of in terms of financing your hair transplant may be to get a personal loan from the bank.
You can often take out a loan between $5000 to $50,000 for most purposes, but that may come with a lot of interest, especially if you have a poor credit history.
Medical Loans
You’ll be hard-pressed to find a company that will loan you a sum based on the fact a hair transplant is a “medical” procedure.
These companies typically only take claims that can be proven to be medically necessary — for example, if you have been in an accident that scalped the top of your head and you’re getting skin grafts with hair, or you need a transplant to replace hair lost in the course of chemotherapy.
Factors to Consider | Before applying for hair transplant finance
When comparing different financing options, you’ll want to keep a few key factors in mind.
- Interest Rate: As mentioned above, this is one of the biggest catches to the personal loans option.
Not only does interest mean paying extra, but the longer it has to accrue, the bigger the final figure can grow, which can prove problematic for payment schemes with long timetables for full repayment.
One of the most important things to research is whether the interest rate is fixed or variable.
Fixed rates set the same interest rate for the whole of the loan while variable rates can change over time, leading to the accrual of higher interest over time.
That said, interest rates can also decrease over the length of variable loans as well.
In cases such as these, spreading out payments may prove more affordable.
- Penalties: Paying for hair transplants will already be costly enough, so be sure to make your payments on time to avoid incurring penalties.
- Flexibility: Some loan schemes are flexible as to when you need to repay the amount in full or when certain thresholds need to be met.
If you are less certain of your long-term finances, these options may be more attractive.
- Secured or Unsecured Loans: This is another key difference between different types of loans.
Medical and personal loans are often unsecured, though for higher loans, equity sometimes is required.
- Debt Traps: Much as you want to make sure you can afford that hair transplant, you don’t want to saddle yourself with debt for years to come.
Check the rate of the loan now against what it will be in the future and budget accordingly.
Clinic Financing Options
What about financing options from the clinic itself?
While some clinics filter things through third-party lenders, others do indeed offer their own financing options.
In this case, you may be able to work out a special arrangement with them to best suit your financial situation.
Some clinics are also international, which may mean that they offer different rates and deals to different clients from different countries.
Among the most common countries covered by international plans are the US, UK, Australia, Nigeria, Brazil, and the United Arab Emirates.
While all of these countries may be covered, some may enjoy special perks, such as 0% interest or the ability to negotiate individualized plans.
Among these, US, UK, and Australian clients in particular are often able to secure great deals on hair transplant financing packages.
US hair transplant finance
As mentioned, private healthcare plans don’t tend to cover hair transplant procedures that aren’t “medically necessary.”
Hair grafts average $5 to $9 per graft nationally, with procedures often involving at least 500+ grafts.
That said, where you go can have a big impact on the pricing; compare Nashville vs. New York, and as is so often the case, the Big Apple costs bigger bucks.
UK hair transplant finance
You cannot use the NHS to cover hair transplants for cosmetic reasons.
Many of the leading UK clinics will charge a few thousand pounds for major procedures.
However, this is highly variable, procedures that are less intensive can be cheaper, and you have a much greater chance of negotiating a customized repayment plan with a UK clinic.
Australia hair transplant finance
As with the US and UK, Australian healthcare plans don’t usually cover cosmetic hair transplant surgeries.
Personal flexible loans are the most popular options for Australian clients.
Conclusion
Hair transplant financing can be worth it as long as you know what you’re getting into and can budget accordingly.
US, UK, and Australian clients in particular should be on the lookout for clinics that offer personalized plans.
If you seek out personal loans, try to opt for an unsecured loan, be careful about fixed vs. variable loans, and, in the case of the latter, watch out for interest accruing over time.
While there are plenty of ways to make hair transplant payment plans affordable, however, the potential for accrued interest means that if you can, you typically should pay for procedures up front.
Pharmacist with special interest in hair loss and hair transplantation.
Read my book on hair transplants in Turkey on Amazon:
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