[qwerty]

Hi,

Looking to refinance my used car, bought in 11/2007. Right now my interest rate is 8.25 and my monthly is around $1300. Right now the loan is through the dealership, my mistake which I'm trying to move away from.

My credit is above 700 so credit is not a problem. I've already received a quote of 6.50% for 60 months from my credit union and found a 4.99% for 60 months online.

Just want to know if anyone one else knows of reputable credit union/banks offering better rates, or if there is a reliable search engine online to find good rates in the Houston area.

thx

[kylejack]

Do you really want to refinance a used car for a 5 year term?

Anyway, I've had good luck with Bayou City FCU. That 4.99% rate sounds pretty solid.

[qwerty]

yes, I really want to lower that monthly note. It's too bad I waited this long, I should have done it last year.

[BryanS]

qwerty, on Thursday, February 5th, 2009 @ 5:50pm, said:

Looking to refinance my used car, bought in 11/2007. Right now my interest rate is 8.25 and my monthly is around $1300. Right now the loan is through the dealership, my mistake which I'm trying to move away from.

You're paying 1300/month for a used car? Forget about refinancing; you need to sell this car immediately and get something with about $500 or less per month payment.

[barracuda]

Wow, that's more than a lot of mortgages. I would sell the Bugatti and get something more affordable.

[qwerty]

Ok, I really like the car and yes I can afford it. i just want to a) lower the monthly note cause I want more play money try to get a better interest rate if possible.

Just trying to find the best interest rate deal in town.

[editor]

I hate to be of no help like most of the other posters in this thread, but I've got to know -- what kind of used car costs $1,300 a month?

[sevfiv]

Definitely try to get out of that deal - owing and paying that much (plus interest) on a depreciating asset seems like a bad financial situation..

[qwerty]

hmmm, maybe I should have left out the monthly note detail. It's a porsche 911 turbo btw.

[westguy76]

qwerty, on Thursday, February 5th, 2009 @ 11:13pm, said:

Ok, I really like the car and yes I can afford it. i just want to a) lower the monthly note cause I want more play money try to get a better interest rate if possible.

Just trying to find the best interest rate deal in town.

No offense, but If you are paying $1300 a month for a used car at 8.25% interest than you can't afford it. That or you have no common sense.
Ouch, to say it better if you can afford those payments and interest on a used car you could have afforded to buy it on the spot with cash with a little planning.

This post has been edited by westguy76: Friday, February 6, 2009 at 9:32 AM

[qwerty]

like I said, maybe I should have left the monthly note detail. I'll open up another thread on getting advice from others on what I can afford for another time, since it's a totally different topic from what I'm asking here.

In the mean time, anybody got leads on good interest rates around town?

[TheNiche]

westguy76, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 8:31am, said:

No offense, but If you are paying $1300 a month for a used car at 8.25% interest than you can't afford it. That or you have no common sense.
Ouch, to say it better if you can afford those payments and interest on a used car you could have afforded to buy it on the spot with cash with a little planning.

Hey, now... Maybe qwerty's priorities are different from yours. You don't know anything about this guy. How do you know he can't afford it? Maybe he's making tradeoffs elsewhere because he really likes his car. You can't begrudge him that. Besides, in the high-end used car market, you sometimes have to act quick when a car comes to market that meets your exacting criteria and that's priced well.

He already admitted that it was his mistake to finance through the dealership. He made a mistake, he knows it, he's trying to fix it, now lay off him.

[sevfiv]

^Yes correct, this is about finding a lower interest rate, not the cost or current payment amount.

I'll rescind my earlier comment about bailing on the loan completely and add that it seems you found a good deal with the 4.99 - my credit union rate schedule starts at 3.99 for refinancing, but it also depends on the year of the car..

Maybe look for something less than 60 months, too?

[qwerty]

It depends on the months. If there isn't much of a rate difference from a 60 month or a 48 month, then I'm inclined to take the 60 month, knowing if I come across bonus money I could just use that towards the principal and that will shorten my maturity date.

that 3.99 sounds great, care to list the phone number of your credit union?

[westguy76]

Sorry for being such a jerk, that's just me.

This is where I bank
They are advertising 4.75% for used cars but it rises with the age of the vehicle it seems.
Maybe there is a provision for a car that holds it's value so well.

link

[kylejack]

sevfiv, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 9:47am, said:

Definitely try to get out of that deal - owing and paying that much (plus interest) on a depreciating asset seems like a bad financial situation..

Refinancing for 5 years is an even worse prospect than his current arrangement. As a former car salesman, I cringe when I hear this kind of thing.

Sure, re-financing at a lower rate is a good idea, but do 36 months, or 48 months tops. I mean hell, this car was already a used car in November of 2007! You'll probably still lower your payment.

This post has been edited by kylejack: Friday, February 6, 2009 at 11:17 AM

[sevfiv]

qwerty, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 9:09am, said:

It depends on the months. If there isn't much of a rate difference from a 60 month or a 48 month, then I'm inclined to take the 60 month, knowing if I come across bonus money I could just use that towards the principal and that will shorten my maturity date.

that 3.99 sounds great, care to list the phone number of your credit union?

I'll send a message to you with the link

[qwerty]

sevfiv, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 10:22am, said:

I'll send a message to you with the link

thanks got it. Unfortunately my car is 2003, bumps it up 5.49 at a minimum.

kylejack, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 10:16am, said:

Refinancing for 5 years is an even worse prospect than his current arrangement. As a former car salesman, I cringe when I hear this kind of thing.

Sure, re-financing at a lower rate is a good idea, but do 36 months, or 48 months tops. I mean hell, this car was already a used car in November of 2007! You'll probably still lower your payment.

Please tell me why it's worse to go 60 months if it substantially lowers my monthly and the interest rate difference between a 48 and 60 is minuscule. Plus if I come across bonus money in the future I can apply it to the principal and the maturity date lessens.

Let's say I was quoted 4.80% interest rate for 48 months, and was quoted 4.99% for 60 months. Is it worth it to go for the 48 months even though my monthly note will be lower with the 60 month? I know in the end I will ultimately pay more with the 60 month, but it seems negligible.

This post has been edited by qwerty: Friday, February 6, 2009 at 12:34 PM

[sevfiv]

qwerty, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 11:23am, said:

thanks got it. Unfortunately my car is 2003, bumps it up 5.49 at a minimum.

Ah yeah, has to be fairly new for the lowest rates - I didn't realize your car was over five years old.

[kylejack]

qwerty, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 1:23pm, said:

Unfortunately my car is 2003

The news keeps getting worse and worse.

[kylejack]

qwerty, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 1:23pm, said:

Please tell me why it's worse to go 60 months if it substantially lowers my monthly and the interest rate difference between a 48 and 60 is minuscule.

Because finance charges on the same interest rate for 60 months are significantly more than those for 48 months or 36 months, and because you're just going to compound your upside-down problem pushing your payoff for a 2003 vehicle to 2014.

Quote

Plus if I come across bonus money in the future I can apply it to the principal and the maturity date lessens.

I don't see why you would do that when your only priority seems to be lowering your payment.

Quote

Let's say I was quoted 4.80% interest rate for 48 months, and was quoted 4.99% for 60 months. Is it worth it to go for the 48 months even though my monthly note will be lower with the 60 month? I know in the end I will ultimately pay more with the 60 month, but it seems negligible.

Yes, because that's an entire year of payments that you won't have to make.

[qwerty]

yeah, 48 months seems the way to go after some more number crunching. 36 months is not going to help my monthly note objective.

[kylejack]

Good choice. In the end it will save you a lot of money.

[TJones]

westguy76, on Friday, February 6th, 2009 @ 8:31am, said:

No offense, but If you are paying $1300 a month for a used car at 8.25% interest than you can't afford it. That or you have no common sense.
Ouch, to say it better if you can afford those payments and interest on a used car you could have afforded to buy it on the spot with cash with a little planning.

Just because YOU wouldn't pay that amount ,because it ain't in your beer budget, doesn't mean that this person can't. qwerty, if you can get that 4.99% you need to jump all over it. That is as low as it gets. There are no 0% on used ANYTHING. It just doesn't happen. Even that 6.5% is pretty solid for a little over 700 beacon score these days. How do I know ? I am in the used car business.

BTW, take the 60 months, I am sure your refinance loan will be simple interest, so you can ALWAYS pay more on it, and pay it off early, but if something should effect you in this economy, you have something to fall back on, i.e. lower payment.

This post has been edited by TJones: Friday, February 6, 2009 at 2:48 PM