5MinuteAutoLoan.com Blog

The concept of Car Lease Finances is different from car finance, which finances the purchase of a car.  Auto leasing, pays for the use of a car, truck or van over a period of time and is different from renting. A car may be rented for hours or days, but a minimum period of leasing is 2 years. There are two kinds of car lease finance that you need to know about.  

One is a Closed End Lease: Whereby the person who leases the vehicle (lessee) returns it at the end of the lease period to the leasing company. In a closed end lease the lessee has no liabilities other than paying for any damage or excess mileage (agreed upon earlier). 

In an Open End Lease: The lessee bears all the financial risks associated with the leasing of the vehicle. An open-end lease is best suited to commercial businesses, because the market value of the car is fixed at the end of the lease contract. This value is compared to the original value of the car, and you pay the difference in values; which could set you back quite a bit, financially. 

Monthly payments on leasing are 30%-60% lower than other kinds of loans for the same time period. On a lease, you only pay for a portion of the car’s value over the lease period. Down payments on a lease are usually much smaller as well. Normally you pay a deposit of your first monthly payment, as well as tax, title and registration fees. You can also put down a larger deposit, to reduce your monthly payments. ¼/p>

Buying a car fundamentally involves making a serious monthly financial commitment. To make it easier on yourself, calculate your car loan well in advance and check if it is easy on your budget. You will have a better understanding of your payments and less chances of defaulting on it.

Calculate your down payment and then deduct it from the price of your car. Further deduct your trade-in-value. The resulting amount is more or less what you would be paying on your car loan.

Calculate the total amount of cash you need to have, to buy your new car. Make sure you actually have more money than that quoted on the sticker price of the car. There will always be fees, minor and other small expenses before concluding the sale, which may hike the total price of the car.

There are many online tools to calculate your car loan for free. Use a financial calculator when you are ready with all your figures.

Check on how much money your new car will cost to insure. Any insurance company will be able to give you an estimate on how much and what sort of coverage you need on your new car. Make sure you opt for extra safety features like airbags, which will save you money on insurance payments in the long run.

It’s not really difficult to learn about different kinds of auto loans, but knowing their intricacies is often a whole new game. Sometimes we lose out on little details that could make life easier with a personal car loan. When you apply for an auto loan, you need to know that you have a fair chance of approval. However, not everyone’s credit is good enough. A secured auto loan is one way you can help your chances of being approved for an auto loan as fast as possible.

Secured auto loans are easily available, but a buyer must be careful to make efforts to get such a loan at a comparatively lower interest rate, to save money. To get the cheapest secured loan to suit your budget, pay special attention to the collateral or security you are going to offer to the lender. The value of the collateral offered will determine a lower interest rate and the loan amount. For example, a home is something which has high value, so you can get a secured car loan against it. Most lenders will readily provide you with a bigger loan amount at a lower interest rate, under such circumstances.

Secured personal car loans normally offer between 90% and 100 % of the cars’ total cost. So if you want to buy a luxury car, you can do so, as the full amount may be financed by the loan. Secured car loans for a new car, are usually best taken for a short term ranging from 36 to 72 months, even though you can get one for 2 to 7 years. Two factors will help to ease your repayment: One – keep the loan repayment term as short as possible. And Two - take a smaller loan lower amount and get a lower interest rate. If you are looking at buying a used car, that car should not be more than 5 to 6 years old.

Drivers in Michigan now benefit from a new Auto Insurance rate plan that puts savings back in the pockets of thousands of customers like themselves. The new plan introduced by GEICO will come into effect on July 3, 2008, for new policy holders and October 1, 2008, for policies that need renewal. 

The new auto insurance rates will include- premium changes for motorists, based upon factors such as risk perception, coverage, geographic area, type of vehicle, and other discounts available. Millions of Michigan drivers can now take a fresh look at new car insurance, compare rates and save on auto insurance premiums. 

GEICO is one of the largest and fastest growing auto insurance companies in the US and meets the insurance needs of the people of Michigan. Find out more about competitive auto insurance rates, accident forgiveness, claims services and savings on insurance premiums. 

If you are someone looking to buy a car and can manage to get approval, you may be toying with the idea of buying a used car, as against a brand new one. A used car seems like a great idea, because you pay less. However, getting a used car loan is not as easy as it used to be with the current squeeze on credit.

The value of a used car dips every year, so lenders charge high interest rates and present you with impossible terms and conditions. Moreover, with used car loans, you could end up paying much more than your car’s actual worth. It is a tricky situation and one that needs careful consideration before signing on the dotted line.

With fuel prices pushing $4 a gallon, “Hybrid-hysteria” has set in among commuters looking to beat the gas pump. People are grabbing fuel efficient vehicles and hybrid cars like the Toyota Prius, sending sticker prices on a spiral upwards by as much as $5,000. With buyers shifting away from gas guzzlers, small car sales seem to be picking up, but none can match the outstanding fuel rating of the Prius at 48 mpg (city). For most buyers, this car offers a combination of generous features, eco-friendly emission levels and fuel economy. According to several dealer websites, a year-old Prius with average mileage was now fetching more than it was new, at $28,000.

If you want to buy your dream car, but can’t afford the monthly installments that you need to pay off, would a car loan that stretches to 7 years or longer actually lower help with auto loan rates and monthly payments?  

At a meeting in February 2008, Toyota Motor Credit acknowledged reducing the consumer’s payments and boosting sales by extending 84-month/7year loans. According to Power Information Network, a unit of consultant J.D. Power and Associates GMAC, various credit unions also offer 84 months; and 0.1% of auto loans are for longer at 96 months to nearly 102 months; around 82% of auto loans range from 60 to 77.9 months.

With today’s credit scenario being what it is, most buyers take long loans to get the best auto loan rates and retain their vehicles for a long time period.

Source: USA Today

Most people drive out of a dealership with a shiny new car after agreeing to a car loan that’s actually too expensive for them. If you are in the market for a new car, it certainly pays to shop around, by taking time to read the fine print, understand the process, know about different kinds of auto loans and be smart about comparing rates. You should also get to know the pros and cons of each kind of auto loan.

The first kind of auto loan and the most common is a loan that has a fixed interest rate. This necessarily means that your interest rate will not change over the entire period of the loan, and you will be protected from any hikes in interest rates during the term. Variable rate loan has a certain amount of risk since the interest rate can change, but usually has a lower current interest rate than a five-year fixed-rate loan. Variable-rate auto loans will be based on the prime lending rate prevailing at the time.

When many consumers sketched out their automotive budget while shopping for a new car, few could predict $4 per gallon gasoline. The near doubling of gas prices over the last year has wrecked havoc in many driver’s pockets and left them with the dilemma of having to choose between filling their car with gas or making the payments. And those are the lucky ones. According to The Columbus Dispatch, one unlucky repo victim could afford neither.

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

More and more people are falling for the tempting bait of credit. In the credit-card balancing world of today, it is inevitable that one is being judged based on his or her credit rating. This is further compounded by increasing individual needs and wants. The new car or rising fuel and maintenance costs are everyday dilemmas on has to face.

Bad credit car loans are planned for individuals with bad credit problems that can occur from conditions like defaults in reimbursement, county court judgments, bankruptcy, arrears, and so on, can lead to bad credit. Lenders or auto dealers are often reluctant to provide car loans to bad credit holders, because of the risks involved. However, now, it is possible to get a bad credit car loan for buying your dream car. You can opt for a bad credit car loan through online methods to save time in addition to money.