Driving a brand new car is one of the most thrilling experiences of your life. However, the entire car purchase process can be quite intimidating if you don’t know what you are doing. In this guide, we can help you gain some confidence when it comes to buying a new. Here are some smart tips to follow:
Know What You Want
Shopping for a car isn’t like shopping for a new jacket or a new smartphone. It is important to understand that the car you are buying fulfills your needs and your family’s needs. If you have small children, you will need a car with child-safety features. If you have a large family, you cannot buy a sleek sports car built only for two.
Before you set foot into a car dealership, you need to do your research to find out what you can afford, what features need to be present in the vehicle of your choice, and what reviews say about the car.
This way, you will be able to make a more informed decision when buying a car.
Compare Prices
As a car buyer, you need to shop around, both online and in-store and find out the prices of different cars. An excellent tool that can help you is the Kelley Blue Book. With this resource, you can find out the MSRP and dealer invoice of a vehicle and the range of price that you can afford. This can help you negotiate prices. Another good way to look for deals is to visit auto dealership sites and look for rebate offers.
Find Out Car Histories
It is a good idea to look at consumer reviews to find out if the car is well-received and reputable. However, this doesn’t mean that it does not have any issues. It is important that you visit services like CARFAX where you can find out about the car’s history, how many times it has changed hands, whether it has any bugs and glitches, and if the car has ever sustained significant damage.
You should also check the title of the car, which you can easily do online at the DMV.
Calculate Your Monthly Car Budget
Buyers should find out how much money they can afford to spend on a car on a monthly basis. However, they should never share this figure with the dealership. Instead, they should first negotiate the actual sales value of the car, independent of any financing or down payment. Many dealerships offer online calculators that can help you convert your loan, term, and interest rate into a monthly payment. This can help you determine whether a car you love is out of your reach or not.
Check Your Credit Score
If you are buying a new car, you will probably need to take out an auto loan to pay for it. Whether you apply through a bank or a dealership, they will run a credit check. You can find out your credit score via FICO that has scores that range from 300 to 850. If you have a super prime or prime score, you may be able to get a lower interest rate, which can help reduce your monthly payment.
Shop Around for Financing
Some dealerships offer interest rates as low as zero percent but spread the financing over the long-term, which means you will ultimately have to pay more in total. Before you decide to stick to an offer a dealer made, it is a good idea to look for financing independently from a bank or credit union and get a pre-approval loan on the vehicle, if possible. Sometimes, the dealer might make you an excellent offer but there is no way to be sure unless you compare various financing offers.
Factor in the Insurance
Many buyers may feel like they have struck a great deal that fits perfectly within their monthly budgets only to find that they neglected to add insurance to the calculations. Keep in mind that your financing terms will require comprehensive coverage for a collision to protect the lender. Make sure you check the rates of your car with your insurers before you step foot into a dealership. It is a good idea to look for cars that have features you are interested in, have a lower level trim, or small engine.