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Auto Loan Through DCU?

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EW800
Valued Contributor

Auto Loan Through DCU?

Hello,  

 

I am interested in an auto loan through DCU because of their attractive rates.  I currently have no relationship with DCU and live in CA.  Just to confirm, do they still allow pretty much anyone to join simply by joining one of many organizations?  I seem to recall some can be joined for about $10.  If so, do I join one of the organizations before applying or is the joining of an organization done when applying for DCU membership?  

 

Is it generally best to have the DCU auto loan approval all done before selecting a vehicle, so that I can tell the dealership that I already have financing taken care of?  I assume DCU does not need to know all the vehicle specifics at the time of application, correct?  

 

Thank you!  

 

 

 

Year 2012: All Scores in the 520 range, during a foreclosure, CC Settlement and high UTIL. Very ugly days...
April 2023: EX8: 840; EQ8: 832; TU8: 842 -- Middle Mortgage Score: 822
In My Wallet: Discover $73.7K; Cap1 Venture $48.7K; Amex ED $38K; Amex Optima $2.5K; Amex Delta Gold $18K; Citi Costco $22.5K; Cap1 Plat $8.4K; Barclay $7K; Chase Amazon $6K; BoA Plat $21.6K; Citi TY Pref $21K; US Bank $4K; Dell $5K; Care Credit $6.5K. Total Revolving CL: $296K
My UTIL: Less than 1% - Only allow about $10 a month to report, on one account. .
Message 1 of 6
5 REPLIES 5
EddieK
Established Contributor

Re: Auto Loan Through DCU?

Yes, you can join one of their organizations with a $5 donation.  You can either get a membership first, then apply for the auto loan, or vice-versa.  Most people say go the first route so that if you get denied membership, you only get one HP, I went the opposite.  Either way, you'll end up with two HPs if approved for both.

 

You don't have to have a car picked out beforehand, but you will need to know how much you want to borrow.  They'll probably ask you what you plan to buy, to find out LTV, but if you don't have one in mind, that's fine.  Once the auto loan is approved, they'll probably ask you to upload a paystub and then a purchase order.  They also have an option where you can request them to overnight a check for a $15 charge.  I've done two loans with them in the last 14 months and they are very easy to deal with.  Good luck with your loan.

Starting Scores:
1/19/14:

1/28/14:
2/12/14:
Current Scores:
7/10/19:
12/17/16:
9/05/17:
Message 2 of 6
EW800
Valued Contributor

Re: Auto Loan Through DCU?

Thank you very much!  

 

Also, when going into a dealer with pre-approval in hand, is there any reason at all for the dealer to run credit?  Can it be avoided?  I assume they would love to run credit to know who/what they are dealing with, however ideally I do not want any inquiries other than from DCU.  Is it possible to flat out tell the dealer they are not authorized to pull creidt or will they typically not go for that?  

 

Thanks again! 

 

Year 2012: All Scores in the 520 range, during a foreclosure, CC Settlement and high UTIL. Very ugly days...
April 2023: EX8: 840; EQ8: 832; TU8: 842 -- Middle Mortgage Score: 822
In My Wallet: Discover $73.7K; Cap1 Venture $48.7K; Amex ED $38K; Amex Optima $2.5K; Amex Delta Gold $18K; Citi Costco $22.5K; Cap1 Plat $8.4K; Barclay $7K; Chase Amazon $6K; BoA Plat $21.6K; Citi TY Pref $21K; US Bank $4K; Dell $5K; Care Credit $6.5K. Total Revolving CL: $296K
My UTIL: Less than 1% - Only allow about $10 a month to report, on one account. .
Message 3 of 6
EddieK
Established Contributor

Re: Auto Loan Through DCU?

Nope, no reason.  Both times when they brought up the financing question, I said I have a check from my bank.  No more questions after that, they didn't have an issue with it at all.

Starting Scores:
1/19/14:

1/28/14:
2/12/14:
Current Scores:
7/10/19:
12/17/16:
9/05/17:
Message 4 of 6
EW800
Valued Contributor

Re: Auto Loan Through DCU?

Excellent.  Thanks again!

 

 

Year 2012: All Scores in the 520 range, during a foreclosure, CC Settlement and high UTIL. Very ugly days...
April 2023: EX8: 840; EQ8: 832; TU8: 842 -- Middle Mortgage Score: 822
In My Wallet: Discover $73.7K; Cap1 Venture $48.7K; Amex ED $38K; Amex Optima $2.5K; Amex Delta Gold $18K; Citi Costco $22.5K; Cap1 Plat $8.4K; Barclay $7K; Chase Amazon $6K; BoA Plat $21.6K; Citi TY Pref $21K; US Bank $4K; Dell $5K; Care Credit $6.5K. Total Revolving CL: $296K
My UTIL: Less than 1% - Only allow about $10 a month to report, on one account. .
Message 5 of 6
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Auto Loan Through DCU?

I actually went to the dealership with a blank DCU check in hand just because I didn't trust the dealership about running my credit. I think you need to have a decently high score to get the check though.

I signed up with DCU to get an auto loan, but ended up changing my mind. (I still got the 2 pulls because I was really intending on purchasing.) In the interim I decided to have my PT job direct deposit into the DCU savings account. About 6 mos later when I decided I was ready to buy I was preapproved for an auto loan at an even higher amount than I was originally and they did not do another credit pull. So maybe start a relationship with them now so they can soft pull your report on occasion and you may not need to take a hard pull when it's time to buy. I have tons of soft pull financing offers on my DCU account right now including another preapproval for an auto loan.
Message 6 of 6
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