Loans and/or Borrowing Money

Live forum: http://forum.freeipodguide.com/viewtopic.php?t=72688

theysayjump

05-01-2008 23:11:24

Since you guys were ridiculously helpful in helping me with my credit woes, I figured I may as well ask you about loans.

My car (family car) died last night, or at least we're taking it off the road. It won't change from second to third gear, the speedometer doesn't work, it's leaking transmission fluid everywhere, when flooring the accelerator pedal it doesn't accelerate at all, when it does accelerate it pulls and jumps forward, threatens to stall and it's making a high-pitched noise when revving it, so we're not driving it anymore. ?

So since it's the family car, we need a car as quickly as possible (whether it's a day or a month) and with $0 it's a little difficult. I'm guessing the only option for us is for someone to take out a loan and buy another beater, or take out a loan, get a decent car and use the loan money to pay it off monthly or something else I'm not thinking of?

What should I/we look for when taking out a loan or is there a better route to take? Not a single person in this house has anything resembling half-decent credit, so I'm guessing that'll play a big factor in it too.

Thanks in advance.

dmorris68

06-01-2008 11:35:16

Without good credit your options are more limited, but you can always find a dealer willing to finance a car if you have a steady income. You just won't get a decent rate. For some folks, that's the best they can do. Shop around at some of the buy here/pay here dealerships. Just be careful and try to get some referrals if you can, because some are honest and fair but some are predatory and will take advantage of your situation to screw you over. Try to get something safe and dependable, or you'll just spend more money on maintenance (or another car before this one is even paid off), but at the same time stick to a small budget -- the more you borrow, the more inflated interest you'll pay.

doylnea

06-01-2008 11:41:23

I can't really help on loans, but I'd recommend any Honda product from the mid-90s (a Civic or Accord would be a great choice). They may be a little more expensive, but will be uber-reliable.

JKirk

06-01-2008 11:48:51

I'd recommend going with a local smaller dealership. I don't really know how to describe exactly what I mean but in my experience they've always been easier to work with than a big time dealership.

OT I would go with a Subaru to be honest, they are very cheap and very reliable.

samz465

06-01-2008 12:54:07

[quoteb8305e23d7="JKirk"]I'd recommend going with a local smaller dealership. I don't really know how to describe exactly what I mean but in my experience they've always been easier to work with than a big time dealership.

OT I would go with a Subaru to be honest, they are very cheap and very reliable.[/quoteb8305e23d7]
Honda and Toyota are both extremely reliable, I don't know too much about Subaru.
My best friend's brother drives one and he seems to love it. He's a car fanatic, so I'm sure you can't go wrong with them either.
But my family has gone through quite a few Hondas and has never had problems with any of them. They last extremely long.

hairyferry

06-01-2008 14:32:56

Definitely Honda! Specially like a 5 spd if the wifey can drive one of those. I had a 92 Honda accord 2 door, the thing had like 3 different color panels it had been hit by 3 different deer. It was nice a quick and it has almost 300,000 miles on it. The only reason I got rid of it was because some lady tboned me so I had to get rid of it. Plus I was paying $25 a month insurance 100/300 liability. You can pick one up anywhere from like 1000-5000 depending what year. Plus parts are super cheap.

mookieb2

06-01-2008 14:37:06

I'm a youth minister that has one of my high school students living with us (his parents are idiots, and my wife and I are his legal guardians). His car crapped out and we needed a "new" ride for him.

I got in touch with a salvage/tow truck driver/company. She sold us a Neon with low miles for $700 and had several other cars that were much nicer for super cheap.

She takes them from businesses that call her to tow them off and goes through the lengthy process of getting their titles transferred to her them sells them for cheap but for her profit. Our guy got a great (if initially dirty) little car that is great for his needs.

Just and idea for you, hope it helps.

theysayjump

06-01-2008 17:49:52

Thanks guys, I knew you'd pull through.

So it'd be better to finance through a dealership rather than get a loan from a bank? What about financing online?

I was thinking a Honda or Toyota but really have no preference since I won't be driving it.

dmorris68

06-01-2008 18:01:35

[quote7dc73cb081="theysayjump"]Thanks guys, I knew you'd pull through.

So it'd be better to finance through a dealership rather than get a loan from a bank? What about financing online?

I was thinking a Honda or Toyota but really have no preference since I won't be driving it.[/quote7dc73cb081]
Financing directly from a bank is generally difficult. Most banks I know only write "walk-in" loans on excellent credit. However many banks work through dealerships with relaxed credit restrictions and better rates. I don't know how bad your credit is, but you indicated it's poor so I wouldn't bother with a bank.

Online lending works well, I've used e-Loans a couple of times for vehicle loans, and they were very easy to work with. I think they also market loans to those with less than ideal credit. It's easy enough to apply online and find out.

I concur on Honda, Toyota (my preference), and Subaru. Although any car, if abused by its previous owner, can be a problem, so try to get it checked out ahead of time. If your state has a lemon law, that gives you something like 72 hours to return it if it has problems, take advantage of it by taking it straight to a mechanic. Better yet, some dealerships will let you take it to a mechanic before you buy.

ajasax

06-01-2008 18:14:29

I'm another Honda driver. I bought my '03 Civic LX 5spd because of Honda's reliability reputation. Partly because I don't like Toyota's styling wink Also, I get an average 40mpg driving in the city D

theysayjump

06-01-2008 18:40:36

[quoteef1fd740f2="dmorris68"][quoteef1fd740f2="theysayjump"]Thanks guys, I knew you'd pull through.

So it'd be better to finance through a dealership rather than get a loan from a bank? What about financing online?

I was thinking a Honda or Toyota but really have no preference since I won't be driving it.[/quoteef1fd740f2]
Financing directly from a bank is generally difficult. Most banks I know only write "walk-in" loans on excellent credit. However many banks work through dealerships with relaxed credit restrictions and better rates. I don't know how bad your credit is, but you indicated it's poor so I wouldn't bother with a bank.

Online lending works well, I've used e-Loans a couple of times for vehicle loans, and they were very easy to work with. I think they also market loans to those with less than ideal credit. It's easy enough to apply online and find out.

I concur on Honda, Toyota (my preference), and Subaru. Although any car, if abused by its previous owner, can be a problem, so try to get it checked out ahead of time. If your state has a lemon law, that gives you something like 72 hours to return it if it has problems, take advantage of it by taking it straight to a mechanic. Better yet, some dealerships will let you take it to a mechanic before you buy.[/quoteef1fd740f2]

I just checked out eloan.com and we don't meet their Minimum Monthly Income amount. Any idea if it's something they strictly adhere to or is it more of a guideline they use?