Car Refinancing Rates – 5 Suggestions For Landing the Best Rate
When you first buy a car, it is easy to take for granted that you got the best-possible deal on your loan. This is especially true if you bought your car from an auto dealer.
It is well-known that auto dealers use a combination of tactics to give themselves the best-possible deal while making you (the buyer) feel that you, too, came out ahead. For example, an auto dealer can play with a few different variables when putting together a deal for you. These variables include the price of the car, the various vehicle options that they can “throw into the deal,” and the interest rate on the loan.
The catch is this: you may have walked out of there with a pretty good deal overall, but you may be paying a higher interest rate on your loan than you need to be paying now.
The only way to know for sure whether you can qualify for a better interest rate on your auto loan is to apply for a car refinancing loan. But, do not just walk into the process blindly or you still may not end up with as good of a rate as possible when all is said and done.
If you are shopping for car financing rates, here are 5 suggestions for landing yourself the best rate:
1. Check the Sunday paper for current competitive rates:
Start by doing some good old-fashioned research: check your Sunday paper’s auto section. Even in the Internet age, this is surprisingly an excellent place to establish as “baseline” or reference point for what constitutes a good rate today. Of course, advertisers in the paper will advertise their most attractive rate that is designed for customers with an excellent credit score of 720 to 750 or better. Still, this gives you a good idea of what numbers to meet or beat.
2. Look at the websites of 3 local car dealers to see their best-advertised rates:
Now, check out the websites for 2-3 local car dealers in your neighborhood. What rates are they advertising? Again, this can serve as yet another reference point for you as you shop rates.
3. Dig deeper with online research:
Now that you have some good points of reference, dig a bit deeper by doing some online searches. Do not limit yourself this time to local banks or auto dealers: widen your search to the national level.
4. Target at least 5 car financing lenders:
As you do your research, a picture will start to emerge. This is what information researchers call the point of “information saturation.” And, it means that you are starting to see a pattern in what you are looking for. You now have a good sense of which banks and dealers are offering the best rates. Make a shortlist of at least 3 of them.
5. Apply with at least 3 of them:
Time to start applying for your auto loan. Run your credit report first to make sure everything looks okay. Then, apply to all 3 refinancing lenders on your list – even if the first one or two give you what seem like great offers. Follow through with applying to all of them and you just may be rewarded with a better rate.
Take these 5 suggestions for landing yourself the best-possible car refinancing rate.
Author Bio: Find out more tips on how to secure the lowest-possible car refinancing interest rate at: Best Car Financing Deals.
Category: Finances
Keywords: Car Refinancing Rates,5 Suggestions For Landing The Best Rate