Can I get approved?

[mamahearts]

Thank you so much for your helpful info! I don't have a trade in, but I should be able to put down at least $500, maybe $1000 if I save a bit more.

[Anonymous]

Great! Like I said play around with the Auto Navigator portal, and see what extra down payment money does for your APR. Good Luck!

[Sloedough]

If I were you I would wait until you are 650+. Stay away from dealer finance, they are sharks. just read this article.

https://jalopnik.com/the-car-loans-that-never-die-1829206900

Get yourself a beater that you can afford, that way you will own it. Work on your credit, and get over to the garden for a while. You will get a nicer car, and you won't get stuck behind a never ending car loan.

[mamahearts]

Thank you! I got preapproved with Capital One AutoNavigator, just paid off that collection acct. Hoping to at least break 600 by the time I find a car and give the dealer my preapproval letter and make an offer.

[Sloedough]

Cap 1 auto is great. I've used them and they were great. I always tell my friends to use their own bank or Chase or Cap 1. You are on the right track.

[mamahearts]

Hey guys, 

I'm going car shopping on Friday with my Cap One approval. 

But I saw on CK that my score dropped a few points after I paid off that one derogatory account ($90) it shows that I paid the balance and then it showed that they closed that account.   I was hoping that by bringing down my CC balance and paying off that collection account, that my score would go up to almost 600.  That is what the simulator estimated. Is it normal for my score to go down?

[Sloedough]

CK's scoring model has problems. You can see it when playing with the simulator. For example, my score went up 32 points when I simulated a denial. Their AAOA is wacky too. On CK my AAOA is ~2 years, FICO is ~11 years. CK is complete garbage.