Auto Loan & Car Financing: Top Tips to Get Started
Look at your credit record and consider paying a fee to check your current score.
Apply for auto loans during a 14-day time span.
Compare both the monthly and overall costs of different financing options.
Find a lender before you select a vehicle.
Apply for loans from reputable banks, credit unions and Internet lenders. Local and online auto loans from banks tend to offer a lower rate. The same goes for credit unions.
Don't buy without finalizing the details of a car loan, such as the term, down payment and rate.
You might save money by directly communicating with a bank rather than obtaining the loan through a dealer.
If you can choose between rebates or a low interest rate, carefully calculate the savings that either decision would yield.
Rebates frequently represent the more advantageous option. This is how you get a cheap car loan.
Before borrowing money, take the time to research the lender's reputation.
Read the entire financing agreement. Don't let anyone pressure you to sign it immediately.
Confirm that the bank's monthly payment amount matches the term and interest rate.
You may use a car payment calculator, specialized computer software or a smartphone app. If a lender's calculations don't make sense, it may be trying to deceive you.
To sum it up, always exercise caution and take your time when you look for a car loan. You can save a considerable amount of cash by carefully comparing a wide range of car financing options.
Best Auto Loan Services
MyAutoLoan is best for first-time buyers or drivers who want to work with lenders to purchase their leased vehicle.
U.S. Bank is best for drivers who want a loan to buy a vehicle from a private seller.
Understanding Auto Loans
Auto loans deal with a lot of different concepts. Financing, credit, and contracts are all hard to understand. Auto loans involve all of these things, and more. Here's a list of things you need to know when you’re applying for auto finance.
Interest Rates
The first thing you need to understand if you’re going to get the best auto loans is how interest rates work. Interest rates are the way that the lender makes money on your loan. The lower the interest rate, the less you’ll pay for the loan.
That means that you want the lowest interest rate possible. This will save you money over the course of the loan. Your interest rates are based on the amount of risk the lender is taking.
People with a good credit score are more likely to repay their loans. That means they aren’t as risky for lenders. As a result, they get better interest rates.
However, when it comes to car finance, things are always more complicated. Another important factor in your interest rate is what kind of car you want to buy. Remember, interest rates are based on risk. Usually, the car acts as collateral for the loan. That means if you don’t pay your loan, the lender can take your car. They’ll sell your car to get back the money they loaned you.
This means that you’ll usually get better interest rates for newer models of cars. So expect higher used car loan rates. That’s because these cars will sell for more money than older cars will. The exception to this is brand new cars. Brand new cars lose their value very quickly. As a result, you’ll usually get the best auto loan rates on cars that are one to two years old.
Fees
Fees increase the amount of money the loan costs you. That means finding a loan with few or zero fees can help you save money on your car loan. Be on the lookout for things like disbursement fees, when the lender charges you for giving you the money they’re loaning you.
Additionally, you’re more likely to pay fees if you get car financing through the dealership. That’s one of the many reasons that you should try and get a loan from a bank or a dedicated lender. They don’t need to charge as many fees to generate a profit.
Credit Checks
However, checking your credit causes it to go down. That’s because it shows that you’re looking to obtain a loan. However, there are several things you can do to help this situation. First, you can use credit repair services to improve your credit score. Additionally, you should know that your score won’t go down for every loan you apply for. That’s because credit agencies recognize that you’re “rate shopping”. Therefore, they will treat multiple credit checks for the same kind of loan as one inquiry, instead of several.
Finally, you can take advantage of pre-qualification. This process doesn’t use a “hard” credit check, which shows up on your credit report. Instead, it uses a soft credit check. It uses the information from the credit check, as well as the information you provide, to give you an approximate rate. We’ll cover prequalification more in a later section. However, it is one of the best ways to get car financing, even with bad credit.
Funding
It pays to know how your loan will be funded. That can save you valuable time when you’re at the dealership. Also, some dealerships require certain kinds of funding. Take note of this when receiving auto finance.
Terms
You need to carefully evaluate the terms of your loan. Sometimes it might be worth it to take a loan with a higher interest rate if the terms are better. Remember, the longer you have to repay the loan, the more the loan will cost over time. That’s why loans with longer terms generally have lower interest rates. You’ll have a lower monthly payment, but you will wind up paying more over the course of your loan.
Restrictions
The Value of Preapproval
Many people worry about trying to get bad credit car loans. After all, credit and credit scores are confusing and scary. It’s hard for a regular person to understand what their score means. That’s why getting preapproved for an auto loan is a good idea.
The Idea Behind Pre-approval
A pre-approved car loan uses a soft credit check to determine a few things. If you’re pre-approved, then you get a range of possible interest rates. You’ll also get a minimum and maximum amount for the loan. This can help you narrow down your options. You can pick a car that gets you the best interest rate. You can also be confident that your loan will be approved. Finally, you’ll understand how much you can spend on your new car. Remember though this is not a guarantee.
Because of these things, pre-approval makes finding a new car much easier. You don’t have to worry about getting a big enough loan for the car you want. You also won’t have to stress about your credit score while you’re trying to make an important decision.
Also, many companies that offer auto loan pre-approval also have car loan calculators. Other companies offer auto loan calculators as well. However, using a calculator with pre-approval gives you a very accurate idea of how much your loan will cost.
This happens because the lender can use the information about the different cars you’re looking at to show you a more accurate interest rate prediction. It will show you the different options for terms. This lets you customize your loan before you even get to the dealership.
Refinancing Auto Loans: Key Information for Borrowers
Refinancing a loan is the process of taking out a new loan with better terms and using it to pay off your old loan. As a result, you’ll be able to lower your monthly payments. You also might be able to pay off your car faster than you could with your current loan.
When to Refinance
There are several situations which could lead you to refinance car loan rates. If you had bad credit when you got your loan, and your credit has improved, then you can probably get better terms refinancing.
Also, you might want to refinance if your financial situation changes. For example, if your hours or pay are cut, then you might want to refinance to a loan with longer terms. This will mean you don’t pay your car off as quickly. However, it also means that you’ll be paying less each month. That can save valuable money for other necessities. You can always pay more than the minimum if your situation changes to pay your car off faster.
Things to Know Before You Apply for an Auto Loan
Downpayment amount
The first thing you’ll need to know is how much money you have for a down payment. A down payment is the money that you can pay for the car up front. The more money you put down, the less you’ll need to borrow. That means you’ll pay less for the car over the course of your loan. Some companies offer zero down payment options for low income individuals.
Check your score
If you have a bad to fair credit score, then you might want to look into ways to improve it. Even a change of 10 points can make a huge difference in the interest rates you’re offered. Therefore, if you can wait to get a new car while you improve your credit score, you might save money in the end.
Trade-in option
Additionally, if you already have a car, you’ll need to decide if you want to trade it in. You can put the value of your trade in toward your down payment. However, you usually won’t get as much for a trade in as you would if you sold your car in a private sale.
That means you need to decide if the hassle of trying to sell your car is worth the extra money you get. Thankfully, you can find out from the dealer how much they’ll offer you for your trade-in. You can even negotiate over the price. Most dealerships will come up a bit on the trade in value if they think it’ll help make the sale.
However, most people can’t wait for their new car. That’s why it’s important to comparison shop for different loans. Make a list of car lenders with a minimum credit score you meet. That way you won’t need to worry about getting rejected for a loan. Instead, you can focus on finding the best terms on the loans you’re offered.
Everyone needs a car. Don’t let fear or lack of cash prevent you from getting the car of your dreams. Follow this advice and find the best possible loan when it comes to financing a car. Don’t be afraid to compare many different lenders. Just because you need a car doesn’t mean you need to overpay for it.
Are you looking for car insurance?
