Haven't had a loan in awhile, need advice

[Anonymous]

Hey everyone,

EDIT: Ok, so I decided to do the Capital One Prequalfication since it won't impact your score - why not.  Turns out even though I had issues with them long ago they pre-approved me for up to $40k between 3% and 8.5% (New to Used sliding rate).  Obviously not the best rates, but I can work with it.  So I'm not sure if this impacts the information below in any way.

  I haven't had an true auto loan in quite awhile and need some advice.  About 7 years ago I finished a small loan from a credit union.  I most recently had a loan from a buy here pay here dealership and unfortunately they didn't report anything even though they said they would.  I hurt my credit pretty bad in the past.

Right now my score on Credit Karma is 701 and 709.  I realize these aren't true scores.  My last job I was at for almost 9 years and made about 80k a year.  I left that job 3 months ago to relocate and just now got a new job.  I have an offer letter but my start day is Friday  - salary is $62,000 + bonus.  I need a car because I sold my old car when moving out here.

I do not have a lease as I am living with someone else for free.  

Ultimately, I am looking to put down around $7k or $8k.  I would like a used car 2011 or newer that is less than $14k.

Also to note, I had a Capital One credit card years ago that was charged off (about $2,100k).  This is not on my credit report any more, but I highly doubt Capital One will be willing to work with me.

My questions are:

What is a good place to look for financing online given some of my history?

Is there anything I can do to help the situation of no current pay stubs?

Will it be an issue that I don't have a lease?

Credit Score: 709 (TransUnion) 701 (Equifax)

AAoA: 7 yrs, 3 mos

# of positive trade lines: Not sure what this is

# of negative trade lines: Not sure what this is

Income: $62,000

Lenght of Employment: Start Friday - previous employment was 9 years

Previous Loan Experience: No recent loans (7+ years)

Debt-to-Income (DTI): Not sure how to calculate, but I only have $350 in debt listed on my last report

Year of Car: 2011+

Miles: <60,000

Purchase/Refinance: Purchase

Requested loan term (XX Months): 60 months

Down payment amount: $7,000 or $8,000

Co-borrower/Co-Signer: Could utilize my fiancee, but she has a current lease and only earns $32,000

Other: See above

Thanks for any help!

[Appleman]

I am certainly not the expert but you do have a few things that seem to be working in your favor. From your post it looks like you are going to put down 70 to 75% of the purchase price. This will certainly look good to the lender. Your employment situation is good and bad. You had longevity at your last job but currently can't prove income at your current job (no actual paycheck).

The rates that Cap1 has quoted you are not terrible and may be pretty good given your current situation. You are looking at a level in which you may want to see if you can purchase something new or newer (still under warranty). Bump your budget to $20,000 and you could have a fairly good pool of cars from which to choose. That range would still give you a reasonable payment and a car that is hopefully reliable.

The financial planners would likely encourage you to purchase a used car for the money you have available. Try going to the Cargurus site or autotrader to see what used cars fall within your budget. 

Another factor I would consider is the amount of money you have available for the down payment. Will this be all of the money you currently have or will this still leave you with money for the other needs in your life?

There are a few challenges but your situation sounds hopeful, good down payment, reasonable credit score and you are taking the time to seek advice. I am sure some other members will have suggestions or maybe have been in a similar situation. I wish you luck!

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