topic Re: 18 years old, want to finance new car. HELP! in Auto Loans

18 years old, want to finance new car. HELP!

markymark313 — Wed, 14 May 2008 18:30:55 GMT

Hello all, I'm trying to purchase a new car. I'm 18 years old but I have a full time job. Monthly income is $2000. I live with my parents so I don't have any expenses so I will be able to make the payments. I have a down payment of $6,000. Looking at my fico scores in my signature, do you think I can get approved for an auto loan? My credit is very limited. I only have one account open which is a chase credit card with the limit of $1,000. Any help would be appreciated, thank you.

Re: 18 years old, want to finance new car. HELP!

1111mel — Wed, 14 May 2008 18:46:45 GMT

Absolutely! You have great credit scores and a large down payment. Just make sure you don't buy a $20K car and you will be fine.

Re: 18 years old, want to finance new car. HELP!

masdeocho — Wed, 14 May 2008 21:30:38 GMT

Keep in mind that you will have lots of expenses when you own a car.

Insurance (as an unmarried male under 25, your premiums are the most expensive). Annual registration. Oil changes. Tires. Preventative maintenance. Gas. Parking meters. Parking garages. Parking tickets. (Hopefully no traffic tickets.) Car wash. Cell phone car charger. Repairs (even if it's a brand new car, somethings are unavoidable -- like stone chips in the windshield from a passing truck). Etc.

Add it all up, because the total monthly cost of owning a car can be twice your payment.

Good luck!

Re: 18 years old, want to finance new car. HELP!

CreditMizer — Thu, 15 May 2008 21:54:49 GMT

You 100% can get approved. You have already done something smarter than 90% of consumers and that is saved a large down payment. Now don't go crazy. With your scores, income, lack of expenses, and down payment I can see (I did it myself) salesman steering you towards $20K-$25K cars. They are nice but don't do it. You will thank yourself in 10 years. Buy something used with low miles for $10K. Later in 3-4 years if you want to trade up you will be in a better position than those that over-extend themselves early.

Re: 18 years old, want to finance new car. HELP!

RevMen — Thu, 15 May 2008 22:06:53 GMT

CreditMizer wrote:
You 100% can get approved. You have already done something smarter than 90% of consumers and that is saved a large down payment. Now don't go crazy. With your scores, income, lack of expenses, and down payment I can see (I did it myself) salesman steering you towards $20K-$25K cars. They are nice but don't do it. You will thank yourself in 10 years. Buy something used with low miles for $10K. Later in 3-4 years if you want to trade up you will be in a better position than those that over-extend themselves early.

I agree 100% with that post. You can get a very sweet ride for $10k, especially for an 18 year old.

Re: 18 years old, want to finance new car. HELP!

MattH — Wed, 21 May 2008 03:35:01 GMT

RevMen wrote:

CreditMizer wrote:
You 100% can get approved. You have already done something smarter than 90% of consumers and that is saved a large down payment. Now don't go crazy. With your scores, income, lack of expenses, and down payment I can see (I did it myself) salesman steering you towards $20K-$25K cars. They are nice but don't do it. You will thank yourself in 10 years. Buy something used with low miles for $10K. Later in 3-4 years if you want to trade up you will be in a better position than those that over-extend themselves early.

I agree 100% with that post. You can get a very sweet ride for $10k, especially for an 18 year old.

Absolutely, a used car would be the best option for OP. OP should arrange in advance with a mechanic to check the car out, aside from the actual examination by your chosen mechanic you wanna be able to say early on in your conversations with the dealer, "by the way, before purchasing I'll need to have my mechanic check it out and also run the VIN to check the history of the title."

AND bring along a friend or relative who knows cars when you go to dealers.