Auto loan or lease - self employed

[cluelessoregonguy]

Our little Toyota really needs to retire. I want to do some road tripping this summer but I can't trust it. I need a new car.

Credit score should be 720s +  (eq might be a tad lower) but my AAoA sucks right now and I have tons of inquiries and new accounts from generally just being very bad about new accounts. My reported util will be about 9% with 29% on 1 card and .8% on another.

Here's the catch. I'm self employed and I've been really really lazy. I might work 600 hours a year. I've been slightly more aggressive this year so may even hit 50k but i can only prove about 25k for past years with schedule Cs.

What kind of options should I expect as far as lease or purchase? Any tips to increase my chances? We're actually just looking for reliable, good mpg and not crazy monthly payments. I've seen lease options on 2015 Camrys for $200 a month but not sure if we even have a shot at that.

Are there any lenders that would work better with my situation?

[Anonymous]

Having a lease has it's Pros and Cons.  If you are planning a roadtrip this summer, then the lease may not work as it comes with miles restriction you know where with the loan, you can put as many miles you want on it.

If I were you, I'd check a CU to see what their current offers are on an auto loan and then also get a quote for car leases to do a comparison as to what works best for you.  But before leasing should you decide that, make sure you educate yourself properly.

Lastly, whether you are self employed or employed by another company should not be a problem.  As long as you can pay for the car you want is what they care about.

[Creditaddict]

sometimes easier to just be an employee at your company (just list company as your employer and your title as anything but owner) however I think car companies are starting to come back around to not be so picky about it again and with strong credit, they don't even ask for verificaiton of income.... trust, they rather not ask because then they may loose the deal!

and unlike many of the credit unions I have dealt with, the dealerships will usually accept bank statements for income verification so usually easier to prove higher income if they accept ALL deposits!

[RussianPassion]

Creditaddict is correct. Its all a matter of how they submit your app. I feel that your score is high enough that the app will sneak through the auto approval process so I would not worry about it. Employment verification is really reserved for people will less than perfect credit. They key would be to KNOW how your employement is being reported right now and fill out the credit app the same way. Consistency is critical. 

[cluelessoregonguy]

Thanks all for the responses. I really hate dealing with the whole self employed aspect of credit. I'm going to see if I can find somewhere that would prequal me without a hard pull just to get some leads to follow. It sounds like leasing might be a bit hard to accomplish with my situation so we'll look into new or slightly used I guess.

[Creditaddict]

Don't make it more complicated then it is!
If you make $50 but can only "verify" 25... You make 50... Deal with the verify if it comes up but with a 720+ score I'd be shocked if you had any issues if you don't create them yourself... You can talk yourself right into a red flag by saying and giving info not asked for!

What do you want to lease? Let's start there, some banks almost NEVER want income verification.

[Anonymous]

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@Creditaddict wrote:
Don't make it more complicated then it is!
If you make $50 but can only "verify" 25... You make 50... Deal with the verify if it comes up but with a 720+ score I'd be shocked if you had any issues if you don't create them yourself... You can talk yourself right into a red flag by saying and giving info not asked for!

What do you want to lease? Let's start there, some banks almost NEVER want income verification.

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Agree.... It seems OP is over thinking it...

[RussianPassion]

Yep. Income verification is only needed for lower tier credit.

There is no such thing as pre-qualification without an inquiry to lease or buy a car. Your approval depends on your credit, the car and the deal structure.

If you want to feel good, I am telling you that you pre-qualify...

[cluelessoregonguy]

I probably am overthinking. I have no experience with car loans and self employment. We've always just cashed stuff out but too easy to end up with something high mileage that way.  I would love for this to be a breeze. I'm waiting a few days for a couple balances to report 0 then maybe I'll give Cap1 a shot. Hopefully they're one of the lenders that don't ask for tons of stuff. I have tax returns going back 5 years just in case.

[Creditaddict]

Cap1 will ask!!
You need to apply at dealership to most likely not get asked