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Penfed with Very Thin File?

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Damikester892
New Contributor

Penfed with Very Thin File?

Hey guys, my younger brother is looking for a reliable car now that hes secured a job and such.

However he has a very thin file, 7 month old Capital One card on his own and hes an AU on one of my 13 month old cards. Limits are only $300 and $500 so $800 total available credit..

His EQ score is ~700, which is decent however the lack of history has me wondering if he should even go for it?

Anyone seen approvals with that thin of a file? Hes looking for around $15k. 

 

Thanks in advance.

6 REPLIES 6
jeffm4688
Frequent Contributor

Re: Penfed with Very Thin File?

The thinest file I ever personally put through Penfed was someone who had two credit cards (one for 2 years, one for one) and it came back with an approval for the amount asked ($20K). This was with about 4K down & 35K made annualy & a job that was there for 3 years prior.

 

I think at the end of the day the vehciel being purchased, LTV & Down payment will be a big factor on first purchase & approval with penfed or not.

FICO 12/2015 - EX 692 TU 685

FICO 10/2021 - EX 596 TU 605 EQ 600 - officially rebuilding.

What survived:
Amex HH - 1.5K | Amex Delta - 1K | Amex Bonvoy - 1.5K | Amex BRG - 3.5K | Amex BRG - 3.5K | Amex Business Cash- 2K | Amex Business Plus - 2K
Message 2 of 7
Damikester892
New Contributor

Re: Penfed with Very Thin File?

Thanks man! Did they need to put 4k down because the car came out to 24k or because penfed simply wanted money down, meaning they actually loaned 16k?

Message 3 of 7
jeffm4688
Frequent Contributor

Re: Penfed with Very Thin File?

car was 24K, we punched in 4K down and asked for $20K loan and it was approved no other negotiations. Penfed's been pretty great to me and everyone I know. 

FICO 12/2015 - EX 692 TU 685

FICO 10/2021 - EX 596 TU 605 EQ 600 - officially rebuilding.

What survived:
Amex HH - 1.5K | Amex Delta - 1K | Amex Bonvoy - 1.5K | Amex BRG - 3.5K | Amex BRG - 3.5K | Amex Business Cash- 2K | Amex Business Plus - 2K
Message 4 of 7
Damikester892
New Contributor

Re: Penfed with Very Thin File?

Gotcha! How do you think he would fare with requesting 15k at 0 down? Do they like to see money down meaning he should put in say 15k with 1k down meaning 14k loan? The car he wants comes out to a couple dollars under 15k after tax tags and such. 

Message 5 of 7
Gmood1
Super Contributor

Re: Penfed with Very Thin File?

Putting money down certainly won't hurt his chances. I just applied for an auto loan yesterday with PenFed. It was pretty painless. I only ask for $12,000, putting down $10,000. Car MSRP is just over $24,000. I got them to sell it $1000 below invoice. Which put me at $21,230 before TT&L. So I'm paying nearly half of the cars value before financing.
Filled out application online and then called for status update an hour later.
Now I'm just waiting on the check to arrive so we can finish the paper work. Im already driving the car.

The more he can put down the better. The more valuable the car is over financing, the greater your chances.

Message 6 of 7
jeffm4688
Frequent Contributor

Re: Penfed with Very Thin File?

It might be difficult to get into that without a down payment with such a thin file & no other installment loan history. Score isn't everything. It also really depends on the MSRP of the car. If he's asking for over MSRP with 0 down on a first loan with such a thin file I wouldn't imagine an approval but I'm not an expert and all you can do is ask. 

FICO 12/2015 - EX 692 TU 685

FICO 10/2021 - EX 596 TU 605 EQ 600 - officially rebuilding.

What survived:
Amex HH - 1.5K | Amex Delta - 1K | Amex Bonvoy - 1.5K | Amex BRG - 3.5K | Amex BRG - 3.5K | Amex Business Cash- 2K | Amex Business Plus - 2K
Message 7 of 7
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