Financing a car purchase
I am looking to finance $50k for a Tesla, but the APR mentioned on their website is 3.24%. So I was wondering, even if before taking the delivery they take my documents and find an APR for me based on my credit history, can that APR go lesser than 3.24% or is that a hard lower limit that they mention on the website? [I had a chat with Tesla Rep through their website, and they just vaguely said that Tesla has stopped rate matching external rates and that most of the applicants get the rate mentioned on the website at the time (3.24%)] 1. Any Tesla owners here who could help me understand this or share your experience on how you financed your car? 2. Also, I see a lot of posts around people using DCU or other credit unions for financing, can someone share their experience of doing that? What other credit unions do people use around Seattle area? 3. How to shop around for a good APR through credit unions? Do the credit unions do a hard pull on credit just for getting their rates or do they do a hard pull only when the customer finalizes a loan with them? Are there any legit aggregator websites that help with auto loan shopping and comparison? 4. I have heard mixed reviews about DCU and that their Plus account which gives 0.5% rebate on APR needs the paycheck to go in DCU. Has anyone tried that? Does the entire paycheck need to go there or do they mean that we just need some recurring deposit happen in DCU account?
I used DCU for a couple of loans and I got the 0.5% interest discount but only sent a part of my paycheck to the DCU checking account until I closed the loan
Thank you for your response :) I had some quick follow-ups: 1. Did you have to make a donation as well to one of DCU member organizations? 2. Did you send the partial paycheck directly from the employer to DCU account or manually from your primary account to DCU account? 3. How was the entire process of opening account, procuring loan etc. Is it relatively hassle free?
1. Yes made a 5-10$ donation 2. Direct from employer 3. It was decent enough. Back when I applied they had the least rate so was willing to overlook small dumb stuff but I don't remember if there were really any in the first place.
Check https://www.cunj.com/personal-banking/loans/autotruck-loan-rates/. I got 2.74% for 7 years.
Thank you :) A couple of follow-ups: 1. Their website says donate to a foundation and become a member, is that all or anything else also needs to be done? 2. Did you apply from Seattle area, I am assuming that there are no location restrictions, but just wanted to doublecheck?
Nothing else needed. I applied from New Jersey. They don’t check.
As the Teslas are taking months for the delivery, can you lock the rate when you make the deposit?
I am not sure about this. I think no matter what the rate will be decided based on your credit history. But if the minimum possible rate can be locked in or not, I am not sure. Would need to ask a tesla rep.
I understand the credit history aspect of it. However the model Y shows the delivery date as Feb 2023 for the configuration I want and the interest rte could be very at that point
I used DCU for my car loan and I got 0.5% rebate. This rebate is offered only if you do direct deposit in your dcu checking account. So I deposited a part of my paycheck directly into my dcu checking account. The loan process was pretty easy and less time consuming. I got the loan approved on phone in 10mins and next day I got the check from dcu in mail. So I picked up my car the next day. So it took very less time and less no. of phone calls to get the loan. Few months back I paid my load and requested for my documents from dcu. Even that was a very quick call to dcu and in 15 20 days I got my documents. So over all it was a great experience
Thank you for sharing your experience :) One quick question: "This rebate is offered only if you do direct deposit in your dcu checking account. So I deposited a part of my paycheck directly into my dcu checking account." -- is this deposit directly from your employer to the DCU account? or is it from your account in another bank to DCU account?
From my employer
Who buys cars on credit unless you have a business incorporated?
Are you suggesting one should buy it with cash? Or rather buy a car one can afford with cash if not buying it as a business expense?
Yeah l think in almost all cases you're better off buying it with cash (when they say 0% rate just means you can negotiate a discount) unless you could write it off as an expense
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