First Things First. Create an Excel or Google Spreadsheet clearly laying out your income, debt, and expenses clearly.  A person who knows their budget is in a good mind set to buy a car. Never buy a car that you think you can barely afford with your budget, or buy a car in hopes that something big might happen soon for you. Once you have laid out your budget, now it is time to check your credit and get pre-approved for a loan. You can generate your credit report online as well as get pre-approved for a loan for free here.

How Important Is My Credit Score When Buying A Car? Actually, it can mean everything. A car that once was in your price range can turn into the price of a ferrari if you have terrible credit. Interest rates on a car loan for you can be as much as 25%. Insurance prices as well go up when you have bad credit. Isn't it starting to make sense why credit is such a big deal? Maintaining your credit should be something you are always paying attention to. Read our section on Credit Repair Secrets to learn more. Get 20% off all 3 FICO Credit Scores Now.

What Credit Score Do I Need To Be Approved For A Car Loan? If your credit score is above 680, you are considered a "prime borrower", which will earn you a great APR for your loan. If your credit score is below 680, you are "sub-prime" and start to see muc higher APR rates. If you are below 550, you should spend more time researching how to fix your credit than how to get a car loan. Whatever your credit score may be, Any-Credit-Auto-Loans.com can be of great help in generating a report to see if you are eleigible for a car loan and at what APR. Bring this report with you to the dealer so they can try and beat their rate.

Bonus: 80% of Americans do not know what their credit score is. Dealers will use this stat to their advantage and try and tell you your score is lower than it actually is. This will let them charge you a higher APR for your car financing or lease payments. Don't think your credit score is great just because you always pay your bills on time. Many mistakes can show up on your credit report that can devastate your credit, not to mention there are over 100 variables which make up your score. Order 3 FICO Credit Scores Now. CarBuyingInfo.org can now get you 20% off!

Are There Benefits To Getting My Loan Online? Yes. With an online loan, you won't have to pay application fees or a down payment. Your loan approval is instant and you can easily pay your payments and view your loan status online.  It's just a good idea all around to begin your search for a loan online so that you can use it as negotiating power with offline lenders. Try MyAutoloan.com or Any-Credit-Auto-Loans.com for reliable and fast results. There are no hidden fees, you will almost always pay a lower APR than a dealer and you can have your check Fed-Exed to you. Paying for the car is more than 90% of the battle, choosing which one to get is easy. Start your finance search now.

Credit Unions? These can be a good option if you are a corporate employee, student, government worker, etc. They approve financing much slower than doing so online, but they can be as much as 2% cheaper on the APR. It's worth taking a look at if you are eligible. They can even deduct payments from your paychecks so you don't have to ever worry about missing a payment and hurting your credit score. They can also offer a few leniant benefits such as no downpayment and comofrtable payback periods. As always, read the fine print because some credit places try and get you to sign away a lien on your home, which other lenders cannot generally do.

Family. If your family can afford to back you, let them help you with a certain percentage of the money you need to get the car. Dealing with lenders is never a fun process. Your family will always love you, your lender doesn't even know your name.

Equity in Your Home . Don't borrow more than the house is worth, but very easily the bank will lend you 80% of the equity in your home. If you own a home and you want to get a great APR, try this route. It is riskier in case anything happens to you or the car, but this another way to get 2% less interest on your loan.

Dealer Financing. Try not to go this route unless it is your last resort. Dealer's don't ever really have their own financing. They will sign you to an interest rate and then sell that note to the bank for a profit. They will never have anything to do with the loan. This is a sure way to get a loan and get a bad deal. Check online rates before you go down this road. Remember MyAutoLoan.com and Any-Credit-Auto-Loans.com are great for this.

Bonus Tip: If you do go for dealer financing, then be sure to leave the dealer with a loan payment calendar along with your approval. Don't let dealer's get away with this scam. They love to call you later on when you get home saying the first payment is due or you weren't approved. If you have already been scammed on your loan by the dealer (or recieve too high an APR), then head to MyAutoLoan.com or Any-Credit-Auto-Loans.com to have them buy your current loan and let you pay them back at a lower APR than the dealer scammed you with. 

Monthly Payments. Be careful to look at how long you are going to pay off your car for. Dealer's love to beat the monthly payment your bank is going to give and then tack on 3 more months of payments. Make sure you bring your calculator to the dealer so you can compare the end cost of the loan from your bank and the dealer. See which is better and then go with the lowest one!

Don't Co-sign! Dealer's want you to Co-Sign the loan with someone with higher credit so that they have an easier time selling the loan to the bank. They most often will never even put your name on the loan so they can make more money on the loan purchase because of the person with higher credit. This won't help your credit one bit and then you are back to square one. This will also be a big deal when you go to buy your insurance. Make sure you get a copy of the loan approval once it has been processed. Look for YOUR NAME.

The 7 Helpful Hints For Getting Car Loans:

• Do not apply for a loan with high debt or with major credit card balances

• Do not have charge off's on your credit report

• Try and Have A Stable Job, no Self-Employment
  

• Pay off your credit calances as soon as possible and as low as possible.
  

• Do not apply for a loan if you have only been out of school for 3 months and have a new job.
  

• Try to have other examples of credit that you have been lended and paid back.
  

• If you have been moving houses or apartments frequently, it is not a good time to apply.
  

First-Time Buyer?  Well, just a word of advice, do not fall for any "First Time Buyer" Programs from the car dealer. They will try and give you what they call a good first time APR rate around 18%. If you have been watching your credit at all in the last few years, you can get a much better rate online or from a bank. Don't trust dealer financing.

How Long Should I Take To Pay Off My Loan? If you can't pay off the car you want in 48 months, then please don't try and buy it. Buy a car that is good on gas and can be paid off in 48 months worst case scenario. You still have to pay for insurance, gas, warranty, repairs, etc. Check our Tools section up top to calculate it exactly.


Helpful Hint: Once You Get Your Car And Know Your Credit Score, it's the perfect time to get Insurance. Head to NetQuote.com for the #1 reccomended Car Insurance search site on the web. This is the best place for you to protect your new car for cheap with great coverage. Or read our section on Everything You Need To Know About Car Insurance


Extended Warranties: Credit won't help you here, but it's great to have and even better to know about. Learn more with our article on Extended Warranty and Roadside Assistance.