Are You Ready To Buy A New Car

So your thinking you need to buy a new! Before you start there are a few things you should sit down and consider:

1. Look at your household budget and figure out exactly what you can afford to spend.
2. Take into consideration that the sticker price of a vehicle does not include the registration fees and monthly insurance costs.
3. Take a good look at your current vehicle situation, Is it reliable? Does it get you from A to B? Is the car fuel efficient? Could you get away with keeping your current vehicle for a bit longer?
4. If a new car is what you need then sit down and come up with a list of all the extra features you need on the new vehicle. Leaving out the expensive unnecessary features!

There are also a variety of options available to you to help in your purchasing decisions be informed before you shop:

1. Pre- Approval- Before you start shopping around for a new vehicle, shop around for the best financing deal. All lenders are not alike and in some cases you can save yourself 100's of dollars by shopping around at different financial institutions. There are banks, credit unions and finance companies all looking to get your business. You can negotiate here as well. The great thing about being pre approved it is like your walking into a dealership with cash in hand. There is no waiting and you can in most cases drive your new vehicle right off the lot.
2. Borrowing from the dealer- In some cases dealers come equipped with there own lending affiliates. choosing this option is about convenience.This process is usually quicker and dealers are more apt to lend than say a bank. (especially in cases of less that perfect credit) Dealers that lend also are more likely to help finance first time car buyers as well as recently graduated college students. There is however a downside to borrowing from the dealer and that is it can tend to get a bit more expensive. Remember to haggle in this situation as well. Dealers want your business and will make a deal so that they are getting their sales numbers. Never accept the first offer and make sure the offer you take includes all the extra fees.
3. Investing- Borrow at the most attractive interest rate that has a flexible repayment plan using a security portfolio or a cash value life insurance plan.

Always Remember

• When taking a loan get the shortest payback plan that your household budget can afford to pay.
• Haggle for the offer you want, and never take the first offer.
• Shop around not only for your best vehicle option, but for the best possible financial option at banks, credit unions and other financial establishments.