What Do I Need To Buy A Car

Apply For Financing From Multiple Lenders

Car dealerships price the actual cost of their vehicles very competitively, but the financing packages from one dealer to the next can vary widely. Again, the internet is your friend here look online for financing deals from:

• National and local banks
• Compare financing offers between target dealerships

What Credit Score Is Needed To Buy A Car

There is no official one-size-fits-all credit score needed to buy a car. Instead, each lender sets its own criteria, so there may be different cutoff points for different lenders.

That said, its definitely easier to get approved for a car loan if you have a good credit score. The lower your credit score, the harder it may be to find a lender, and if you do, youll usually pay a lot more for financing. Thats why most people who end up taking out an auto loan have a good or excellent credit score.According to Experians State of the Automotive Finance report from the second quarter of 2021, heres how many people got car loans within the different credit score ranges:

The lower your credit score, the lower your chances of you being able to buy a car. If your credit score needs a lot of work, it may be hard to find a lender who will approve you for a car loan.

Figure Out Your Financing Options

Before you step foot onto any forecourt, whether it is to buy a new car or buy used cars, its always a good idea to take a good long look at your finances. The state that your financial affairs are in will have a huge impact on what you can buy and from where. For instance, you may have been hoping to get a loan or a financing deal, but if you dont have much of a deposit or the amount you can afford for a monthly payment each month is much lower than required for many new car deals, you may have to look at second-hand deals that are overall often cheaper, but will still require hard cash.

If your finances are in good enough shape, it is then an idea to carry out some market research on the type of loan you can achieve, if you need one at all.

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How Should I Dress To Buy A Car

It shouldnt matter how you dress when you go car shopping, but it can unfortunately affect your experience at dealerships. The way we dress can often influence salespeople in a certain way because they consciously or unconsciously think we can or cant afford a new vehicle. Your clothing may also affect the prices and deals youre offered.

Dressing too casually can give the impression you arent taking car shopping seriously or you dont have the money needed for a new vehicle. Dressing too nicely might have people thinking youre made of money and you wont get the best deals. Overall, its best to dress nice and neat, but not erring too much on either the casual or fancy sides.

Advantages Of Buying A Car From A Private Seller

Whether youve decided to buy a car from a private seller in order to get a good deal, avoid hidden fees or simply because you found the exact vehicle youve always dreamed of, there are a number of advantages to purchasing from an individual.

Price

Low price is the most important advantage to buying from a private seller. In fact, if your first concern is budget, but you have some cash on hand and don’t need to finance, it’s almost always the way to go.

Level playing field

A professional car dealer has probably sold hundreds or thousands of cars. You, on the other hand, have probably bought and sold just a few.

But when you buy from a private seller, chances are you and the seller are negotiating on a much more level playing field.

Time

When you buy from a private seller, they want to finish the sale and get back to life. This means a ready buyer who can pay immediately will probably get a good deal.

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Check Used Car Documents

If the car is used, you need to check if it comes with all the important documents.

• The V5C registration document/logbook present?
• Details of the service history. Is it full or partial? Partial service history will have an impact on the cars price
• If applicable, does the car have a current MOT certificate?
• Is the vehicle handbook present?

New Car Purchase Checklist

When buying a car, there are certain documents you need to bring with you to complete the transaction.

Depending if you are buying a new car or used car, you will need a few different documents, so be sure to read through the entire checklist to make sure you have what you need.

The last thing you want to is to have to delay the purchase because you forgot something.

#1. The Payment

The form of payment can be cash or check if you are buying the car outright without a loan.

While you can use a credit card, most dealers have a limit on the maximum amount you can put on your credit card.

This is because the credit card processing fees they pay eat into their profit.

In most cases, the limit is around $5,000.

If you are taking out an auto loan, and are using a bank or credit union, you will have to bring the check they give you.

If you choose to let the dealership handle the financing, then you can make the down payment with your credit card.

Even a cashiers check, a personal check, or cash is acceptable.

And even if you plan on taking advantage of dealer financing for a special rate, it makes sense to still get pre-approved by another lender.

The reason is because you have no control over the loan process.

The dealer financing unit might find a reason to not offer you a loan, or one at a high interest rate.

#2. Drivers License

The dealer will need your drivers license to verify your identity and ensure that youre permitted to take the vehicle home.

#3. Car Insurance

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What Documents You Need To Bring When Buying Or Leasing A Car

Coming to the dealership with all the right paperwork can go a long way toward easing up the purchase or lease process and getting you back home with a new car. What you need to bring depends on what you intend to do at the dealership, but just in case, it doesn’t hurt to bring everything. That includes:

You may not always need all of these, but at the very least you should always bring the first two items, or the first three if you intend to trade in a vehicle. Items #4, 5, and 6 can be beneficial if you are unsure of your credit score or know that it could be better than it currently is, as they can help you get a better deal on a car than based on credit score alone.

If you just want a test drive or to get a quote, you only need to bring a valid driver’s license. If you want to get approved for a loan, bring your driver’s license, last two recent pay stubs, and proof of residence.

We’re always prepared to give you all the assistance you may require at Sunny King Honda, but if you come prepared as well, you’ll find yourself back home in a new car in no time! If you have any questions concerning vehicle finance, please reach out to us at 200-3049.

Calculate What You Can Afford

Let Your Budget Do the Driving

When considering a new vehicle purchase, the lines of affordability can easily become blurred due to the varied financing options available. A wise buyer shops for a new vehicle based upon what he or she can truly afford. Keep an open mind and you could be pleasantly surprised by the list of vehicles within your price range.

Affordability is a multi-faceted issue because the car-buying process can consist of several financial considerations. It will help if you determine, accurately and honestly, what your current car is worth, how much of a down payment you can make and a reasonable amount you can handle for monthly payments. Some careful thought and cold, hard honesty will pay big benefits later. Far too many buyers shop for cars that are beyond their budgets, want small down payments, drastically misjudge their capabilities regarding monthly payments and then want to reduce the monthly payments by stretching out the lengths of the loans, all of which leads to trouble in the future.

Another key element is deciding what to do with the current car? As a general rule, it may be worth more when you sell it yourself to a private party, rather than trade it in. But many people dont want to take the time and make the effort to do that. Understand that if you trade it in, you will probably not get as much for it as if you sell it yourself.

Calculating Affordability

Loan Amount

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What Do You Need To Buy A Car Heres Everything You Need

THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS. PLEASE SEE MY DISCLOSURES FOR MORE INFORMATION

Buying a car can easily be an overwhelming process for anyone, regardless if this is your first car or not.

In fact, many people are clueless when it comes to what they need to buy a car.

In this post, Ill run through all the documents you need to finalize the purchase of your next car as well as how to buy a car.

In the end, you will have confidence that you have everything you need and are getting the best price possible.

Representative Example: Buying A Car Out Of Province As An Ontario Resident

Corey lives in Ottawa, Ontario, but wants to purchase a vehicle in Gatineau, Quebec . After doing some research, he finds a 2013 Kia Forte that hes interested in through a private sale. He heads to Gatineau to inspect the vehicle and checks the VIN and the accident history to make sure the car is in good shape. He also schedules a third-party inspection of the car, which comes back clean.

When hes satisfied, he applies for financing from an online lender and is approved for $6,500 . He pays for the vehicle in cash and goes with the current owner to an insurance agency in Gatineau. The agency provides temporary one-day insurance and transfers the registration into Coreys name. Corey then drives the vehicle back to Ottawa and begins the process of registering and insuring it in Ontario.

Requirements to register an out-of-province vehicle in Ontario

Corey checks the requirements to register an out-of-province vehicle in Ontario. He finds out that he needs to pay 13% harmonized sales tax to register his new vehicle. He also needs to get it inspected to ensure it meets basic safety and emissions standards.

Overall costs for Corey to purchase the vehicle

The costs below are a representative sample of what Corey might have to pay for buying a car out of province in Ontario:

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Have You Researched The Trade

Though it is tempting to weigh one with the other, you should keep the trade-in of your old car and the purchase of your new car as separate transactions by getting the trade-in offer before discussing the price of the new car.

Some dealerships will offer you a good trade-in value but will later be less likely to come down on the price of the car you’re buying to compensate. To avoid this potential bait and switch, you should know the trade-in value of your current car and decide whether you’d rather sell it yourself or trade it in.

Decide Between Private Vs Dealership

If you want to know what the difference is between buying from a private seller or from a car dealership, there are pros and cons for each that you should keep in mind.

• Condition
• Private seller used vehicle comes as is so any issues that exist when you buy it are your responsibility
• Dealership used vehicles are usually cleaned and fixed up before being sold

So in general, a privately sold car might be a bit less expensive but they are less flexible in their selection and purchasing options and you as the buyer take on far greater risk of getting scammed.

Example!

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Narrow Down Your Shopping List

Let Your New Car Find You

With over hundreds of new makes and models available, how do you narrow down your list? To some extent, your lifestyle can help. Imagine the activities youll experience in your new vehicle. If you have small children, you need something thats roomy enough for everything you have to take with you and is also strong on safety features. Or perhaps you care more about performance or style. Or maybe you have a job in sales and need something suitable for taking clients to lunch. If it has to haul or tow something, the choices are pretty obvious.

When considering the purchase of a car, everything counts: Number of seats, number of doors, size, performance, color, style, comfort and sometimes even towing capacity. The key is to narrow your search by creating a short list of choices before ever stepping into a dealership. Where to start? Well, with the convenience of the internet and great sites like kbb.com, easy-to-use decision guides can help you narrow your list of candidates in a short time.

Side-By-Side Comparisons

Another tool that will help you narrow your search is the Side-By-Side Comparison, which allows you to compare specifications and see which features are standard or optional on each new car. This is an especially helpful exercise when you are down to just a few vehicles and want to compare finer points or features.

Drivers License: Do I Need One To Buy A Car

If you live in New York, technically, no. You can buy a vehicle, and even register it without needing a license.

However, NY law requires you to insure your vehicle, and for that youll need a valid state license . Plus, you probably wont be able to test drive a vehicle without one and there are a whole range of insurance issues if you have moved and havent picked up a local state license for later, so make sure you do.

You can find out how to get your drivers license in New York here.

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What Kind Of Car To Buy: Sensible Sedan Luxury Suv

Firstly, make a list of your non-negotiables and wish-list items. For instance, youll want to consider: budget, size, new or used, road trips vs city driving, mileage, fuel economy, features , as well as your personal style!

Youll need to factor in the cost of the car, insurance, registration, annual inspections, maintenance, gas, parking/garaging, and possibly parking fines!

Finally, as an Aussie living in New York, a few extra things to consider are:

• If you need to finance the car, youll need a US credit history and a decent credit score.
• If youll be using on-street parking, know that the body of your car will be at the mercy of your parallel parking skillsand those of every other New Yorkers competing for tightly packed street parking spots.
• How long you expect to live in New York.

Do Your Market Research

The car market is huge these days, there is no denying that. But it still pays to do your own research of it before heading to any old dealership only to be swayed by a salesmans spiel that is heavily dependent on the model for which he gets the best commission. Plus, knowing your market also helps you haggle as well as ascertain how good a price you are getting for a would-be vehicle.

With the use of the internet, research should not be onerous too. There are countless websites out there that will help you steep yourself in the knowledge of any prospective cars. Websites should not always be taken as gospel with respect to what is printed, but you will definitely find some reputable pages out there where the writers really do know their stuff and have imparted their wisdom, for free, to you.

Plus by searching the internet, you can easily cater to your research for buying the new car or buying the used car that you think you need. We are all different and all have different requirements when it comes to our cars. Some of us have huge families that need space for a lot of kits, others just need a car for a little run around whilst others will be doing huge long motorway trips. These all have huge impacts on the cars that will eventually be suitable for you, so make sure you look into your niche rather than looking for cars at your nearest dealership just for ease.

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