Self Financial is a company based out of Austin, TX. They are a team of dedicated professionals who designed their loan program to help people on their financial journey.Their credit building service consists of a credit builder loan with customizable amounts and loan terms (repayment plans) and the optional secured Self Visa credit card. They are a legitimate company that has helped thousands of people establish, build, and rebuild their credit. Just take a look at the 400 reviews or 2000+ reviews here . In my own examination of reviews that say this service is a scam, most of them stem from people not understanding how credit scores work or how the program works. If you are considering opening a Self account, or an account with any financial institution, it is important to do your research first.

Can Self hurt your credit?

As with any credit product, a Self credit builder account and/or credit card has the potential to hurt your FICO score if it is not managed properly.Making late payments or keeping a high balance on your secured credit card will decrease your credit score. When initially opening a Self financial account, you may see a dip in your score in regards to the average age of your accounts, but this decrease is only temporary. When a Self account is managed properly, it can be a great way to boost your credit score in a short period of time.

Can I get my money back from Self?

You can close out your credit builder and secured credit card accounts at any time. In order to close out the credit builder loan, you can contact Self via phone or initiate closure through your account portal. All money in your account will be returned to you minus any administrative fee (loan origination fee) or balance on your connected secured credit card (if you have one). Only the portion of your account that you have paid will be issued back, not the full loan value. For example, if you opened a credit builder loan for $1000 but have only made $300 worth of monthly payments, you will get $300 back. Not $1000. It should be noted that the processing of these funds can take some time, and Self Financial has been known to require documentation verifying your identity and bank account or debit card.

What happens if I pay Self off early?

While there are no penalties or fees associated with closing your account early, doing so will limit the account’s ability to help your credit. Six months is the recommended minimum timeframe to have the account open, especially if you previously had no credit . The longer your term length, the better. Length of credit is a significant credit scoring factor. So while only making a few payments will help your credit score some, it will be helped more if you make payments over multiple years. What the exact impact of closing your account early will have depends on your unique credit history and financial situation.

Self Lender Complaints [Don’t Miss These]

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Self Financial offers a credit building program to their clients that is meant to help them achieve their financial goals. But problems with credit do not have a one-size-fits-all solution.

Despite thousands of happy customers, some of their clients have been less than happy with their credit builder account or secured credit card. And they have taken to the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to make their complaints known.

Often, these complaints stem from poor customer service experiences, occurrences of fraud, or concerns about credit score improvement (or lack thereof).

So what are the biggest complaints customers have and is Self’s credit building service legitimate or a scam?

The BBB currently gives Self Financial a rating of a B, which is pretty good. But there are still over 300 complaints that have been filed with the BBB over the last 3 years.

While it appears that Self is good with responding to customer complaints, nearly all are responded to within one week and subsequently closed. It is easy to see why some of the same complaints are coming up again and again.

Are these aspects of Self’s service that they could improve? Probably.

Could Self improve the presentation of their credit builder account and communication with their customers? Definitely.

Do all of their customers fully understand how credit works? Not always, unfortunately.

Below, we’ll take a look at the 5 top complaints that are recurring on Self Finanacial’s BBB page.

1. Credit Score Drops

The purpose of a credit builder loan like the one Self offers is to improve your credit history and credit score. But for some borrowers, their FICO credit score drops after they open a credit account with Self.

Many of these complaints hinge on how and when Self sends information to the credit bureaus.

While a credit builder account is designed to help borrowers build credit by reporting payment history, their initial reporting of the loan amount can temporarily lower a person’s credit score.

Other complaints regarding credit score decreases involve late payments. Many of these complaints were in regards to fraud or delays in accounts being reported as closed.

Self often resolves these kinds of issues sufficiently, but updates to individual credit reports can take months.

2. Lack of Customer Service

Customer service, or lack thereof, is a common complaint many businesses receive, and Self is no exception.

While Self offers customers contact options via email, phone, and live chat, not all of these options are always available.

Most of the complaints revolve around their slow response time to emails. Customers can oft