Bad Credit Car Loans Tips

Having been in the automobile business for 20 years, we occasionally get calls from consumers who “made a mistake”, went to the wrong kind of dealer, and are trying to get out of their finance contracts. Here is what they, and you, need to realize: a bad credit car loan sales contract is a binding agreement. Once you “sign on the dotted line”, you are committed to the terms it contains. There is no “cooling off” period and, as much as you’d like to, you can’t change your mind later on.

So here are some tips to follow when the time comes to take delivery of your new car:

To begin with, when you’re in the finance office to sign the paperwork, be sure to take as much time as you need . You won’t get another chance. Check and double-check the contract to make sure the terms are the same ones that you agreed upon with the salesperson.

• Sales price – make sure the sales price of the vehicle is correct (hard to believe, but many customers only look at the monthly payment). This figure should include the selling price of the car plus tax, title and license fees. The dealer may also charge a documentation fee to process the paperwork. This should all be outlined in this document and broken out as to the type and dollar amount of each fee.
• Amount Financed – this is the amount that you will be financing. It should be the bottom line price of the car plus all taxes and fees less all rebates and any down payment amount from cash or equity from your trade-in.
• Contract Term – this is the term in months of the sales contract and should reflect the term you agreed to with the finance manager.
• Interest Rate – this is the interest rate that you will be changed. Again, it should be the same rate the finance manager said you qualified for.
• Monthly Payment – this is the payment that you will be required to pay the bank each month for the term of the loan. It should match the amount that you agreed to.

If there is anything in the car loan contract that you don’t think you agreed to, you have the right to either request that the contract be re-typed and corrected or to walk away from the deal.

If everything is correct and you sign the documents, by law the dealer is required to furnish you with copies of the purchase agreement, finance contract, odometer statement, window labels and any other documents that you signed before you leave the dealership.

The bottom line is that you should be paying as much attention to going over the sale and finance documents as you spent researching your car purchase and deciding to finance your next vehicle with a dealer that offers bad credit car loans. If you blindly sign anything put in front of you and miss something, it’s your fault as much as it is the dealer’s. Taking a few extra minutes at delivery could save you from a lot of headaches in the future.