I agree with what a lot have said... It is a good idea to get pre approved financing through a bank or credit union ahead of time. But don't totally rule out financing with the dealership. Often there are incentives to finance though the dealership like cash back, money off, etc. You can always finance through them, recieve the incentives, pay one or two notes, then refinance through your bank/credit union of choice.
I've done this every time. I was pre-approved through my credit union with some insanely low rate. it forced the dealership to match or beat it with rate and/or incentives.
I'm actually waiting for my vehicle loan account to be paid off before I apply anywhere for financing. Does anybody know when this type of information gets reported to the bureaus?
It depends on the lender. Some report monthly, quaterly, etc... Just check with your lender. Or run a credit report, you can can do it once a year for free from all three bureaus, and see how up to date the info is.
Just go to a site like Edmunds.com and look up the car you're interested in. They show msrp and invoice prices for you, and if you enter your zip code, tell you about what to expect to pay in your area. Not foolproof, but very useful.
It depends on the car. Do you have a Costco membership. Costco has an auto program that most dealerships participate in. This automatically takes it down to invoice (rarely) or a few hundred over (most likely). No hassle/negotiation involved and it's much a better deal than any advertised "true car" value.
Don't have a Costco membership but I doubt it would be difficult to get one. how does this program work? Does it work with used cars? When I talk to dealers, either online or in-person, what is some information I should not share with them? I know not to say what I want my monthly payments to be but what else should be off limits when negotiating price?
if you are getting your loan somewhere else and not trading a car in, then pretty much just the price of the car. dont let them sell you $500 floor mats or anything
Are you referring to the Costco benefit or what not to discuss? Yeah, I've seen a big list of things to avoid such as premium floor mats, rustproofing, window etching, etc.
Since we are on the topic, is it worth it to buy gap insurance or extended warranties on used vehicles that have expired warranties?
GAP insurance is useful, especially if you put little to no money down. But I wouldnt buy it from the dealership. Its cheaper to get GAP insurance from your bank (if pre-approved for a auto loan) or from your insurance company.
I've seen at a few dealership where you can pre-qualify for financing online. They say that it won't affect you credit score as it won't count as an inquiry etc. Is this something that is true or should I hold off on doing any per-qualifying until I do it through my CU first?
Speaking on down payments, what is considered a good down payment? Is there a certain percentage of the vehicle's value they (insurance, financiers, etc.) would like you to pay?
im curious if anyone knows that if you put say a $15000 down on a $30k car if it can help you negotiate a better interest rate on a loan if you do not have much credit. it seems like it would since they would then have less risk involved if you did not end up paying the loan because they already have half of the value of the car from you.
The online applications I have looked at never ask for down payment so I'm not sure if they take it into account or not. Maybe it is different in person.
