How to Finance Your Dream: the Auto Loan
Contributed by Boo Roberts
What is an auto loan?
An auto loan is a loan you can take out through a financial institution to finance the purchase of your vehicle. You can get an auto loan through your local bank. You can get an auto loan through a car dealership. You can get an auto loan through your credit union where you work. That is a great way, because then you can get the money taken out of your paycheck each week and you don't even miss it. You can even try and get an auto loan from a relative, but I wouldn't recommend it. They say never borrow money from friends and family.
How do you get an auto loan?
Generally speaking, you get an auto loan by filling out an auto loan application. This is much like a credit card application, where they ask for all sorts of information. If you decide to finance through the dealership where you are hoping to get your car, they will probably try to tack on all sorts of fees into the full amount of your auto loan. They could add the sales tax, or the gas guzzling tax, or even the fees for registering and insuring your car.
I wouldn't get a loan again through a car dealership, some of them are really shady. They will sneak anything into the final numbers. That's why you need to make sure you know what you are doing when you go to get an auto loan.
