How to Finance a Used Car?

Financing for used cars works in the same manner just as financing a new car; however, the certain criteria by lenders may be slightly flexible when it comes to financing a used car as compared to financing a new car due to price difference.

If you are looking for some financing options for used cars and you want to know everything about used car loans in the USA , getting financing for a used car and returning a financed car back to the dealer - keep reading.

Yes! You can absolutely finance a used car by some trusted lending options like banks and dealerships, credit unions and private lenders. You may even get financing for a used car much more easily as compared to financing for a new car because you may need much less capital from lenders in case of used cars. Furthermore, you won’t even need a great credit score to get financing for used vehicles.

Here are some of the important steps that should be noted down to get the best possible financing for used vehicles.

First and foremost step is to get complete details about your credit score. Your exact credit score may make the whole financing process easy and quick because many potential vendors may not be bothered due to average or poor credit score.

After knowing your particular credit score, you should explore several lending options according to your credit score. You should check and compare several financing options like banks, credit unions, community banks and private lenders. Shortlist some of the options according to your credit score.

Compare the shortlisted financing options for used cars. Make sure to choose the best deal by comparing APR vs. financing value.

After getting pre-approval for used car financing, explore the used car market according to your guaranteed financing.

You should not ignore the private sellers and private lenders. You may get the best financing from some private lenders (although it’s risky) and you may always get the best used car deal via a private seller that is too risky as well but you would be ok if you deal along with an attorney and fiance broker.

Don’t let the lender or car seller make some strings attached to the deal that may force you to pay extra over time. Always try to consult the financing papers with your attorney or finance expert. Furthermore, always try to make your financing secure by including all ifs and buts for the rainy day. For example, if you won’t be able to pay loan on time then you should get refinancing at a newer APR instead of losing out the car’s possession.

Financing for a used car from a private seller is almost the same as financing a used vehicle from a dealership; instead, the private car seller is already paid up by the lender and the car’s title is transferred to the lender and now you need to pay the monthly installment to the lender.

There are following major steps involved:

• You search and choose a used car to buy from a private seller.
• After the used car’s selection, you reach out to different vendors to get the used car’s financing.
• The lender pays enough to the private seller to seal the deal and sometimes the full amount is paid and the title is transferred to the lender, so the private seller can be excused from the whole loan cycle.
• You start to pay monthly installment to your lender.
• Once you have paid the full amount that was decided between you and the lender, the car’s title is transferred to you.

If you want a car financing for a used car but you don’t have any credit history, you may need to face more rejections from bigger financing institutions like state banks, car dealerships and credit unions; however, there are still some options that can be tapped to get financing for a use car without any credit history.

One of the best options to get financing with no credit history is to find a co-sponsor. It’s just like getting a financial guardian who can vouch for you getting a car’s financing by putting its own credit score at the table.

You may use some alternative credit history to show lenders that you can be trusted e.g. if you have been a good credit card consumer, no matter how small your credit card limit is - maybe you can get some help regarding used car’s financing.

If you fall into that criteria where you don’t have any credit history because you have not bought any car yet then you may get enrolled in any of the first-time-car-buyer programs where your previous utility bill history, your job stability and your average annual income is considered to determine the APR.

Credit unions like Penfed and online car dealerships like myAutoLoan are considered the most feasible options to get the easiest used car’s financing. State banks have to deal with several other departments while credit unions dedicatedly provide financing services. Besides that, you may tap some top car dealerships to get the easiest used car financing in Ellicott City MD .