Picking The Length Of Your Loan

May 12, 2012 · Auto Loan Terms · Leave a Comment

When it comes to the length of your loan, you have plenty of options. You can get a 12 month loan all the way up to a 60 month loan. The exact loan length you choose is up to you. Each option has pros and cons. Let me go through a few of them here.

12-24 Months

With a short loan your payments will be very high. Can you afford these high payments? Use a car loan calculator to input some sample numbers. Vary the length of the loan and see how the payments change when you later the loan length. If you opt for a short loan, keep in mind that while you think you can afford the payments now, you’ll need to be able to continue making those payments for the entire length of the loan as well.

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Refinancing Your Current Auto Loan

April 17, 2012 · Auto Loan Rates · Leave a Comment

With interest rates still at record lows, it is a great time to refinance your auto loan. If you got your car loan several years ago you most likely can get a much better rate now. Refinancing your loan entails paying off your current loan and starting a new loan with a new lender. Your payments will go down due to the lower interest rate and also because you are also extending the length of the loan. Here are some things to take note of if you’re interested in refinancing.

Credit Score

If you got your original car loan when you had a less than stellar credit score you most likely did not get a good rate. If your score has improved since then (and if you’ve been making timely payments then it should have) then it is probably a good idea to refinance your auto loan since you qualify for better rates now.

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Do Credit Inquiries Hurt My Score?

March 18, 2012 · Credit Scores · Leave a Comment

If you have decided to purchase a new car and will be financing it, you want to make sure you are getting the best deal possible. This doesn’t mean just the best deal on the car itself, but the best interest rates as well. So you may be tempted to shop around from dealership to dealership to get the best rates. However, you have also heard that multiple credit inquiries hurt your credit score. In this post I’m going to dispel some rumors and discuss whether or not shopping for a better interest rate hurts your credit.

When your credit is checked by a credit card company who wants to offer you a credit card, it’s called a soft inquiry. These do not affect your credit. But when your credit is checked at a car dealership this is referred to as a hard inquiry and does affect your credit.

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How A Student Can Buy A Car

March 16, 2012 · Buying / Selling A Car · Leave a Comment

Ideally you’ll want to buy a car with cash rather than getting an auto loan. But college is expensive and students rarely have enough money in the bank to do that. But there’s nothing wrong with borrowing money to buy a car, especially if you really need one to get to and from work or school. Here are some ways that college students can afford to buy (or get a loan) on a car.

Good Credit

In order to qualify for an auto loan you’re going to need average to good credit. You can establish a history of good credit by using a credit card responsibly. This includes making your payments on time and not using up all of your available credit.

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Should You Get A Car Loan?

February 22, 2012 · Auto Loan Terms · Leave a Comment

An auto loan allows you to purchase a car over time without having to completely pay for the purchase initially. There’s several advantages to obtaining a car loan. An auto loan will allow you to purchase a more expensive vehicle than you could afford without such a loan. An auto loan can also help to build your credit rating. Additionally, unlike leasing, at the end of the auto loan you will own the vehicle outright. Let’s take a look at some more of the benefits of getting a car loan.

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Getting A Car With No Credit

February 10, 2012 · Credit Scores · 1 Comment

Unbelievably, sometimes it may be easier to get a loan for a car when you have bad credit rather than not having credit at all. This is why it is imperative that you use your credit wisely as early as you can. For young people, they can be added to their parents credit card or they can get their own cell phone. Just something that establishes that they are responsible at making monthly payments on time.

However for many young people getting a car is the first time they’ve really needed to use their credit. But there’s no need to worry, there are still ways to get a car loan without having first established a long credit history. Here is how it can be done.

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