Buying a New Car

How to get a great deal on your new car

Buying a new car can be an exciting yet stressful experience - especially once you visit the dealership and realize that your dream car is not always a reality. You want to get a good car for a decent price and reasonable financing. Here are some tips and tricks for getting your new car for the best price:

• Selecting a car - Have an idea of what type of car you want before you go to the dealership. Browse online and check out the prices of new vehicles. Customers who are unsure of what they want are at risk for being talked into buying something more expensive than they had planned. First-time car buyers should make sure they can pay off their vehicles in 48 months or less. If this isn't possible, then choose a cheaper vehicle.

• When to buy new cars - There are two times a year when it is best to buy new vehicles. The first is in December - there seems to be a lull in car buying around the holidays, so dealers will cut their prices. The second is between July and October because dealers are reducing prices to get rid of their current vehicles to make room for newer models.
• Collect vehicle price quotes - If you don't have an idea of the value of new cars, then you'll end up overpaying. Go online and collect free price quotes for new cars from websites such as Cars.com, Autos.com and Edmunds.com. Once the dealers see the lower quotes, they'll be forced to give you a better deal or they know you'll be taking your business elsewhere. Comparison shop to scope out the competition - once you see what various dealers are asking for your car, you'll be able to get it at a fair price.
• Collect financing quotes - Most people don't realize that the dealer is not the only person that can finance their new car. Browse the Internet and collect auto financing quotes from companies such as Capital One Auto Finance and HSBC Auto Finance. Once approved online for a low rate, you can negotiate with the dealer, or simply finance the vehicle through a financial institution, using the interest rate you were given online.
• Know your credit score - Your credit score is your most important statistic for buying a new car because it controls how high your interest rate will be. If you walk into the dealership not knowing your credit score then you could be facing an extremely high rate. Don't finance at the dealership if you have bad credit - get financing online or at a credit union instead.
• Building a credit history - Many first-time buyers face the problem of not having any credit history. To solve this problem, you'll have to obtain a credit card and build up good credit history. Just use it for regular expenses and pay off the bill on time each month. You may want to put off buying a new car for six months until you've built some credit, and then you can apply for loans and financing at a lower interest rate.
• Know the value of your trade-in - Look through the Kelley Blue Book to estimate the value of your used car to make sure that the dealer offers you enough for your trade-in. Never trade in a vehicle that you still owe payments on, because there is no guarantee that the dealer will pay off your loan in time, and you could get charged late fees.

It used to be we could depend on the reputation and reliability of North American cars to meet our standards - but could it be the times are changing? Here in the U.S., overseas models are continuing to rise in popularity. Find out why!

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