Car buying question

[Cuzzin]

So me and my wife just got a car, the payments are for 4 years on the app only one of us are currently working. My question is when the other starts working do companies have some kind of program or whatever where you can redo the application with 2 sources of income instead and get a lower payment or approved for a better/newer car altogether? I hope someone understands what i'm trying to say. thanks.....

[Blueobelisk]

Ya you're saying if you get a job you want them to lower the car payments since you guys are more qualified.

I'm pretty sure no, you're locked in to the deal you do, but yes eventually if you're both working at the time you're car shopping you will be more credible and can get approved to buy more expensive cars.

[Spectral]

Yes, refinancing is an option. I don't think car credit companies generally re-fi things, but you can go through a bank.

[Dasffion]

You could refinance with your bank or another bank but that could end up costing you even more money depending on the bank and if they have closing costs and such associated with auto loans. It wouldn't be redoing your current loan though, that's not going to happen, it's going to be a completely new loan that you would use to pay off the old loan.

[Cuzzin]

You could refinance with your bank or another bank but that could end up costing you even more money depending on the bank and if they have closing costs and such associated with auto loans. It wouldn't be redoing your current loan though, that's not going to happen, it's going to be a completely new loan that you would use to pay off the old loan.

sounds like a rough process

[Blueobelisk]

I never really heard of refinancing for cars. Only for mortgages.

I mean, if you have the extra cash I would just throw it on the car payments and finish paying sooner, especially if you have a lien on the car.

Edit: Yeah I don't think it's worth refinancing for a car lol.

[Spectral]

I never really heard of refinancing for cars. Only for mortgages.

I mean, if you have the extra cash I would just throw it on the car payments and finish paying sooner, especially if you have a lien on the car.

Edit: Yeah I don't think it's worth refinancing for a car lol.

I don't really follow your thinking here. If someone's in a circumstance where they're able to drop their interest from, say, 9.9% to 3.9%, why would refinancing not be worth it? I can't speak for all lending institutions, but credit unions will often do this with no additional costs, so it's just a straight decrease in payment.

[Dasffion]

You should really take a look at some loan calculators. If you're able to afford your payments now when your wife is out of work then when she starts working you should start adding more to your payments, not looking to get less out of them. A 20,000 4 year loan with 8% interest and paying 488.26 a month will pay $3,436.41 in interest over the life of the loan. Add $200 a month and you'll save $1,131 and will pay it off a year and a half quicker. What you really would want out of a refinance is a lower interest rate.

Cuzzin, are/were you or your parents ever in the Military? USAA has fantastic financing services and offer really good rates.

---------- Post added 2013-02-25 at 09:10 AM ----------

sounds like a rough process

It's not any more rough than getting a loan in the first place.

[Spectral]

If you're able to afford your payments now when your wife is out of work then when she starts working you should start adding more to your payments, not looking to get less out of them.

This is not uniformly true, depending on the finance rate and an individual's present liquidity situation. I wouldn't recommend that someone rush to pay off a loan taken at 2.9% interest to the extent that they burn most of their cash on hand.

[Dasffion]

This is not uniformly true, depending on the finance rate and an individual's present liquidity situation. I wouldn't recommend that someone rush to pay off a loan taken at 2.9% interest to the extent that they burn most of their cash on hand.

If they're making due with 1 salary I think it's probably a safe assumption that they'll be ok adding some extra money with a second income. Of course I'm making the assumption that they're not living partially off of credit due to the single income so I suppose you're correct that it's not uniformly true. Paying minimum payments on any type of loan though when you can afford to pay more is just giving the financial institute your money.

[zeropeorth]

You could refi with your bank ... but just know that getting another car is going to be a pain for you. As soon as you drove your 'new' car off the lot, it depreciated greatly. Very rarely can you not lose 3-10k just from driving it off the lot. It has to be a sought after car, low production, with very few miles on it, and you can't have done anything to devalue it like minor scratches.

Live and learn lessons is probably the best thought to have here. Instead of rushing into what you have, you could've looked for something used and had it checked at a shop; something in the 3-6k range. If you had a bank account for a few years with good standing, and the value of the car was within the bank's accepted value and risk, they'd have no problem financing you for a used car under 100k miles on the odometer and I think 6 years old or newer.

Your best bet is to stick it out with this car for the 4 years. If you can get it refinanced at a lower rate, then great. If not, just take the beating, and save up your extra cash until you can pay it off ... though you could make extra payments, but you have to specifiy those need to go to the balance, or they will just consider it a pay ahead for the following month and you are paying the same total interest cost.

Next time, (though not always feasible in the U.S. because of travel distances), just wait it out until both of you have a stable job, and look for and save up down payment for the car you really want and are willing to stay committed to 3-6 years of payments. It is the only way to not have buyer's remorse. Or to possibly just see your current car as purely trasportation without the desires of it being 'fancy' or 'sexy' or 'speedy' or whatever other adjective you want to tell yourself you need.

Personally, I've gone through a lot of vehicles. I know the mistakes and joys of car buying. I also know the passion for a car you love, and the disdain for one you bought for the wrong reasons (budget/availability). From my experiences, I can tell anyone that either a) you need to not care what you drive, and be happy with something dependable and affordable (while still keeping up with responsible maintenance) or b) save up and be patient for something that really makes you happy ... whether creature comforts, styling, ride quality, colors (interior and exterior), engine response/power, economy/mpg, etc.

Some stealerships have a grace period where you can return the car for no (real) penalty ... you could check to see if yours has that ... or just accept what you have.

I'm curious as to which car you decided at the time it was worth it, for whatever amount you agreed upon, and are now feeling like you want something better and newer in a few months. How bad could it be? Wait, I know it can be really bad, I worked as a porter for a stealership, and they brag about how much profit they make on people, to the point it disgusted me, one used vehicle, they got 10k over what they gave someone trade-in for.

So, I'll add in an extra rule, before you buy any car, leave the dealership, do a ton of research on it, go find kelly blue book, nada, and edmunds true market values for it, for trade-in, private party, and retail, at different conditions ... so you have an idea of what they gave the person they got it from (or what they may have paid at auction), and you can haggle them a bit better, and ALWAYS be willing to walk out the door, even with pen in hand just before signing.

They assume you are going to buy a car the moment the see you on the lot. They will always (nearly) try to push you to higher profit margin cars, especially in the used lot (commission). They will do anything to stall you, waste your time, and keep you from leaving. They want to wear you down, and they want you to leave with a car, even if they have nothing you want. Never give them numbers, like how much a month you are willing to pay, down payment you are willing to make, etc until you have settled and feel comfortable on the value/price of the car you are wanting (and never want the car so bad you can't leave, know there are thousands of lots in every state you can go to). If you give them -any- numbers, make sure they are far lower than you really want, something like 1% interest, 500 down, 200/mo ... out-bullshit them ... they are con-men (most of them).

But really, your best weapon will always be knowledge. Your best resource is to save up and have the money to buy it cash, or get pre-approved for something by your bank, where you don't deal with their in-house financing. Never take their warranties or paint and wheel protection schemes. These are major profit addons on the back-end.

Hope you get what you want in the future, and hope you can come to love what you just brought home. 4 years isn't that long, don't trade in, because unless you make a lot of money and can afford a bigger payment, you won't be trading up; because you'll be losing thousands on what you just purchased.