Everything You Need to Know About a Used Auto Dealer

Finding the best used auto dealer can be a hassle unless you know have car shopped before. However, if this is your first time dealing with an auto dealer, then you are going to need a few tips before you purchase your first car from a car dealership.  This guide was built to help you find the best used auto dealer as a new car buyer.

Look at Your Credit Score First
The first thing you want to do before going to car dealerships is look at your credit. You want to see where you are in the credit spectrum so you can look to see what kind of financing you can expect to find from the dealers. If your credit score is below 600, you can expect to pay high APR rates on your interest. So keep this in mind and be mindful when looking for a car. In addition, if you have a low credit score, you won’t get financed for as much as someone with over a 600 credit score.

According to the FICO system — especially when you are dealing with auto sales or any financing in general — a person who has a score of 599 and lower has “bad” credit and has been scaled according to their previous credit history. If you don’t have any established credit, you may have bad credit. Know your score for the best car buying experience.

Try to Get Pre-Approved for Financing
You can even try to get pre-approved for financing before you even go to your used auto dealer. This can help you figure out the maximum allowance a loan company is going to give you before you shop — so you know what price range you need to look into. Some car dealerships offer you this service, but not all of them will until they get to the financing part of the car buying process. This means that you could be ready to buy a car and be denied by all financial companies based on your credit worthiness and the car price.

Most of them will just run your credit and have an automatic formula put into place that will tell you what you’re approved for right then and there. All you have to do is go online and check it out and they will offer you the quote immediately. If you choose to accept the loan amount, they will send you out a check that will say how much it is good up to so that you can just write the check at the dealership.

Basically, this takes out the need to bring a deposit with you to the car dealership. Most loan companies won’t ask you for a down deposit unless your credit score is below 550 usually. So even if you have bad credit (550 to 599) you still have a shot at getting financed without a down payment.

Look for Cars That Fit Your Criteria
Look online to see which cars fit what you are looking for in a car. There may be features in car you want that you may not even know. So look carefully at each car and dealership near your area. If you can focus on the features before heading to the dealership, you can gauge what to look for in the car when you see it in person.

Most of the auto dealers will try to make an aggressive sale. So be sure you’re ready to tell them that you’re not looking to buy that day, even if you are. Give yourself an opportunity to look at all the cars before making a decision on one of them. Although certain cars, especially in a used car dealership, can go quick, you likely have a shot of getting the car you want if you wait it out a few hours to check out your other options.

Enjoy Your First Time Car Experience
Enjoy the car buying experience you are getting. Most people don’t enjoy their car buying experience and it’s how they wind up with a car that malfunctions on them within only a few months of having it. Invest your time wisely with your local used auto dealer today.