Question about refinancing my husband's car

[Anonymous]

Hi there, I'm brand new to these forums. We are trying to get my husband's credit in order. We were married in June. He has a few negative items (late payments on accounts) from before we were married but everything has been current now for several months. We are trying to get his FICO score at a healthy level, but since his car is the only outstanding debt he currently has, we want to get the rate reduced.

He has an auto loan at a pretty high APR (when he bought he had no credit history and his mom cosigned, also a WE FINANCE ANYONE type of dealer gave him the loan).

We want to refinance and I was wondering, should he apply for the loan by himself or should we do a joint app when we apply? Can putting my name on a joint app with him negatively affect my credit?

We were thinking of doing it through Capital One. Is that a good plan or is there a better way to approach it? Will applying for the loan affect his score (or my score if we do a joint app) in a negative way?

Thanks in advance!

[Anonymous]

Who you choose to do the refi is ultimately up to you.  IMO Capital One would be an okay choice, but many people on these boards will tell you to go to a local credit union.  If accepted to the credit union, it is likely that they will have some of if not the lowest rates in town. 

As far as applying jointly or individually that is also up to you.  As far as applying jointly negatively effecting your credit, the only negative will be the inquiry on your credit bureau.  Depending on your credit history this could have little to no effect on your FICO score.  If you get the loan jointly though and a payment is made late, this will also negatively impact your credit.  If your husband's credit is not very good, the odds of him being able to refinance the vehicle at a better rate on his own are slim.  If your goal is to get a better rate and this is the case your only choice would be to apply jointly or for you to apply by yourself.