New Credit First Auto Score 628!! HELP!!

[elargent]

Need a new Car!! i have limited credit history 2 cards one 1100 other 1000 both nearly empty pa off every month for the most part. But les than one year old. Never late. Will be one year this june. I am 19 and my score is somewhere around 628 from experian. I have gone through my CU but I didnt have them pull for approval just yet. Do you think Ill be able to get a car w/o a cosigner?

[Anonymous]

With the credit where it is now............Not sure, but if this were 2 years ago I would tell you not to worry at all.  628 is NOT bad....

Talk to a dealership, tell us what they say and many of us will know if it is sales material or truth.... But ask us, I was in a dealership 9 months ago when I bought my car and the salesman was LYING about credit scores and what the implications were for certain items.  I bit my tongue and was thankful when the buyers didn't take the line of bull! If they had I would have stopped them!!!!!!!!!!!

Good Luck!!! 

[elargent]

I actually am going tomorrow. I am definitely hoping that I can get the loan through my CU because Scion does not have the best rates.... But interest really won't affect me too much because I have money saved and will be paying off the car early. But my first installment loan should help my score so I do want to make payments for awhile.

[Anonymous]

Whats your income? Whats your monthly bills like?

Score is not the only factor in a car loan. Its not even the biggest factor. Capacity to pay, thats a biggie. You can have a 730, but if you only make 800 a month gross you aren't getting a car.

[kyobakes]

what happened?

its hard to guess. When I was 19,  I tried getting a loan w/o a cosigner from my CU with 650ish scores, and they told me i'd need a cosigner even though I make roughly $1000 a month minimum...

 but a couple months ago, a 20 yr old friend got a 10,000 loan w/o a cosigner.  He had a $2000 DP...and even more astounding, a late payment on his report....

Luck of the draw, maybe.  I KNOW I will get approved once I get my debt mound paid down this summer.

[elargent]

Here's the verdict. The answer was no... I make 1100 a month before taxes of course. They pulled all three of my reports from all bureaus. They also showed me my risk model. I had a low risk model. And my scores have risen a little bit! For all the bureaus my risk level said low. But apparently I don't make enough monthly. What they don't understand is that I am a student that has practically no bills. But I guess if they want my interest money they'd reconsider huh? I was getting a Scion tC so I was working with both my CU and Toyota Financial. The dealership has a deal with my CU and they had a financial advisor on the spot. It just wasn't meant to be I guess. I'll just save up and buy it outright but that means no installment loan in my report but irt also means no interest paid! haha Thanks for all your posts!

[Anonymous]

this is a good example of how score alone does not dictate approval. 

What killed you is the fact that you don't make enough money to support a car loan.

1100 a month even without "other" bills is about what 850 after taxes.

At your age subtract 380 for car payment, 150 for car insurance, add 80 for gas and 20 a month for spread out maintenance costs

You had about 630 from your 850= 220 a month left.

Add in cell phone bill and you were at less then 175 a month free income

They declined due to thef act that you do not have enough income to support a car loan.

Most banks require at least an $1800-$2000 a month gross.

[kyobakes]

You are wanting too fancy of a car as well...if you wanted something used in the 7-8000 range, your chances would have been a little better.

[Anonymous]

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@kyobakes wrote:
You are wanting too fancy of a car as well...if you wanted something used in the 7-8000 range, your chances would have been a little better.

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I agree- although still do not think he has the monthly income to pull off a car payment

[MattH]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@kyobakes wrote:
You are wanting too fancy of a car as well...if you wanted something used in the 7-8000 range, your chances would have been a little better.

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I agree- although still do not think he has the monthly income to pull off a car payment

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Agreed, especially since with cars like with houses the monthly payment is hardly the only cost of ownership.

And I notice original poster writes of "needing" a new car.   A new car is never a need, a new car is an expensive luxury for those who can afford to put at least 25% down (my wife and I could buy a new car tomorrow without going into debt, but have no plans to replace our 2000 Camry anytime soon because we prefer hanging onto our cash in case of emergency in this uncertain economy).  Original poster does not specify the amount of cash available for down payment, but I would not be surprised to learn that amount is not large.  Original poster should at all costs avoid being "upside down" on a car.  If OP has a car now, that means spend whatever it takes to fix it up.  If OP does not have a car now, that means either continue doing without a car and saving for a downpayment, or buying a clunker for now and saving for a downpayment on something nicer.

Automotive and housing costs should be kept to a much smaller fraction of gross income than most people spend, because having too much car or too much house puts a person in a very dangerous position.  If somebody spends a lot on stuff like food, wine, clothing, entertainment, travel, Starbucks, etc., and something happens that makes money tight then he or she can immediately cut way back on those sorts of spending.  But if car or housing expenses are too high then it can be difficult or impossible to cut them quickly enough to avert disaster.

Another thing cars and houses have in common: they can suddenly require large amounts of money on short notice, so it is dangerous to own either if one has no savings.