topic Re: Any Hope? in Auto Loans

Any Hope?

ds3 — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 03:48:49 GMT

I have been reading some of the posts today, and am wondering what some of you might think. My wife and I are coming out of a rough patch...she lost her job in the banking industry 5 years ago and just recently got a new job. I have a long (19 year) employment history, but a score in the 600+/- range due to collections and charge offs that are all a few years old because of the loss of income after she lost her job. We now make $130k a year, and have a combined debt to income ratio of 19% or so, which is almost entirely mortgage debt. My last auto loan was 7 years ago. What are our chances of getting a somewhat decent rate on a $35k car with 10% down? It seems to me that we are in ok shape, but I really want to avoid a ton of hard hits to find out. Any help is greatly appreciated...thanks!

Re: Any Hope?

Shogun — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 04:30:26 GMT

The problem isn't getting the loan, it's getting the right financing. You shouldn't have any problem getting the loan but you want it at a decent rate. Do you belong to a CU? They often offer the best rates on car loans. Just a thought. And have fun car shopping!

Re: Any Hope?

Elcid89 — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 04:33:59 GMT

ds3 wrote:
I have been reading some of the posts today, and am wondering what some of you might think. My wife and I are coming out of a rough patch...she lost her job in the banking industry 5 years ago and just recently got a new job. I have a long (19 year) employment history, but a score in the 600+/- range due to collections and charge offs that are all a few years old because of the loss of income after she lost her job. We now make $130k a year, and have a combined debt to income ratio of 19% or so, which is almost entirely mortgage debt. My last auto loan was 7 years ago. What are our chances of getting a somewhat decent rate on a $35k car with 10% down? It seems to me that we are in ok shape, but I really want to avoid a ton of hard hits to find out. Any help is greatly appreciated...thanks!

Honestly, your best hope of getting a decent rate is probably to buy down the loan. Front a larger downpayment and the lender is more likely to reduce the rate. Some captives are locking into a no tier bump policy though (VW Credit in particular), so it pays to shop around. If possible, offer to front a 10% downpayment and have the F&I guy shop it to all of his buyers. See what happens.

Re: Any Hope?

AZHeather — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 04:37:00 GMT

If you still have collections, charge offs, etc. (and if you can hold off on buying for a bit), you may want to try to clean up as much as you possibly can with PFD and GW letters to try to maximize your score for a lower interest rate.

Good luck.

Re: Any Hope?

ds3 — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 15:33:05 GMT

Thanks for the replies. I do belong to a CU, so I'm going to hit them up at the end of the month and see what happens. I know the rate won't be great, but my CU does automatic rate drops each year based on credit scores, they offer a .75% reduction for auto pay, and I can buy the loan down almost 2 points with 10% down. If I can get close to 10%, I'll be happy. I plan to pay $1,000 a month on it regardless what the payment is to pay it off sooner, the rate will just determine how much sooner.

Re: Any Hope?

Shogun — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 01:56:19 GMT

Sounds like an excellent plan! Let us know how it goes.

Re: Any Hope?

ds3 — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 03:55:17 GMT

So I got impatient and decided to test the waters with a dealer. First try...Experian Auto adjusted 616, offer of 20.99%...uh, no thanks. Dealer #2...Experian Auto adjusted 675, offer of 10.19%, VW Finance. Bought a 2013 Passat TDI SEL Premium...worked out well overall. Now I'll wait to hear from my CU tomorrow to see what they can do to beat it.

Re: Any Hope?

Shogun — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 04:16:53 GMT

Looks like a new car for you. Hope CU comes through. Good luck!

Re: Any Hope?

EandK23 — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 04:36:34 GMT

Congrats on the new car!

Re: Any Hope?

ds3 — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 16:28:39 GMT

My CU came through with 8.99% at 95% funding of MSRP. They also automatically drop the rate by .5% each year the loan is current with no lates. I am amazed at how easy it was to get financed, and thank you all for your advice.

Re: Any Hope?

ds3 — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 17:26:48 GMT

So I call the dealer and tell them not to submit my loan docs because I'm using my CU. He calls me back a few minutes later to tell me he can now go 7.9% if I am willing to take the Platinum extended warranty and gap. Same payment as the CU, lots more coverage. Now I'll wait and see what the CU is willing to do.

Re: Any Hope?

nissanaltimacrazyhorse — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 18:21:01 GMT

cu probably gave you there best offer, my personal experience is they don't mess around and play games like the dealer does. I would take the cu, you get a better longterm relationship,

Re: Any Hope?

ds3 — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 04:04:16 GMT

Decided to go with the dealer since the first car I bought broke down on the way home, and they gladly traded it out for another one exactly like it. They also gave me $300 worth of free VW stuff and knocked $1k off the total price. I'll still refi it in a year though :)

Re: Any Hope?

Shogun — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 04:26:11 GMT

Nice dealing there! Congrats on the new car and the perks that came with it!

Re: Any Hope?

coreyb80 — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 13:09:30 GMT

Congrats on the new whip!

Re: Any Hope?

Epcot — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 14:19:35 GMT

Congrats!

Re: Any Hope?

DCole3g — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 20:04:03 GMT

W2G...congrats on your new car!!!