Credit Tips When Buying A New Car
You should always check your credit report or your credit score before buying
a new car. Why do you need to check your credit report first?
Because you need to know now if there’s anything on your credit report that will
keep you from getting your best possible financing rate.
Objectives:
1. Review your credit report for errors
2. Find out your credit score (it determines your loan rate)
Advantages:
1. Catch errors and correct them
2. Save hundreds in car loan interest
Action Items:
1. Get free credit report online
2. Get FICO credit score online
Time Required:
1.
Free Credit Report - 5 minutes
2. FICO credit score - 5 minutes
Knowing what your credit report says is crucial to getting your best loan rate.
Don't assume that it's correct because chances are that it's not.
Knowing what your credit report says is crucial to getting your best loan
rate. Don't assume that it's correct because chances are that it's not.
Errors creep in to your credit report in multiple ways. All it takes is a simple
data entry error somewhere and bogus information gets added to your file.
Long-time lenders say it's common for reports to have errors. Some estimate that
as many as 80 percent of all credit reports have some kind of misinformation:
- Wrong birth date
- Accounts you never applied for
- Similar names
- Address misspellings
- Social security number errors
- Sloppy bookkeeping
- Kids leaving home
- Co-signing for someone else
When the Consumer Federation of America and the National Credit Reporting Association analyzed credit scores in the summer of 2002, they discovered these common mistakes:
- 78 percent were missing a revolving account in good standing
- 33 percent lacked a mortgage account that had never been late
- 29 percent contained conflicting information on late payments
- The average report contained five mistakes
Are you willing to pay extra interest on a large loan like your car loan just
because you trusted that your credit report was accurate?
A swing of as little as 10 points can cost or save you 1% or more on your loan.
On a $20,000 loan over 48 months that's $780. It’s worth it to take five minutes
now and review your report online.
Simply click here and you'll have yours instantly.
Free Credit Report
Next: Understanding Your Credit Report Related: FICO Credit Score