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Getting car credit is easier than you think

Paul McIndoe
February 15, 2008

Despite recent headlines about the US credit-crunch, getting car credit is easier than you think. Regardless of your past credit history, there are several car credit specialists able to provide you with no-obligation quotes from dealers in your area.

In addition to being a way to get a new car, financing the purchase through a poor credit car loan can help repair your own credit history in the process. Since they are generally used to purchase a used vehicle with a relatively short payback period, these types of loans are intended to be paid back easily in a timely manner, which in turn helps to re-establish a good credit rating.

A poor credit car loan usually has a higher than normal interest rate, and the payment periods usually range from two to five years in length. In order to accommodate for this, you need to always be fully aware of the prices of used cars in your area for the model and make of car that you are looking for, since some dishonest dealerships may try to take advantage of your predicament.

The first step when looking for car finance is to contact a credit agency to see whether or not your credit report is completely error free. There are services provided by online credit monitoring companies and credit bureaus that are available to estimate your credit rating.

After checking out your credit score, search for a trusting car finance specialist that deals specifically with these types of bad credit auto loans. The best way to get a good deal is to shop around and compare the various rates available from different vendors. If you find it hard to make sense of the different options, the Office of Fair Trading provides its APR and Rebate Calculator for free online.

Remember that, as the interest rates are higher than a normal loan, the corresponding monthly payments will be higher also, so aim for a model of car that you can make the payments on with relative ease. If you are aiming to purchase a car that is just within your budget, you may end up defaulting should another regular expense suddenly increase or unforeseen circumstances require a substantial one-off expense.

So, regardless of your previous credit history, with enough tenacity and research you should be able to get car credit on a vehicle within your budget and may even end up re-establishing your credit rating in the process.

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