Thinking about buying a car? When it comes to payment, you will have two options—take a car loan or pay by cash. The second option is fairly out-of-reach for most of us. In a situation like this, looking at auto financing options will be a good decision before you go to a car dealer or a private seller. But where can you find auto loans?
There are traditional lenders such as your local bank. You can also opt for an online lender or go to an aggregator website that will give you a list of lenders based on various criteria such as your credit score. It is important to find the right lender so that you have the perfect auto financing option that fits all your requirements and is easy for you to pay back as well.
- Bank of America: Whether you are looking for auto financing options for a car purchased from a private seller or a lease buyout, Bank of America has various provisions. For a new car, it currently offers an interest rate of around 3.39%. For a used car purchased from a dealer, the interest rate is around 4.09%. If you are looking for refinancing options, the interest rate offered by this bank starts at about 4.39%. One of the best things about Bank of America is that they have no limitations on loans for higher-mileage and older cars. The only downside is that there are no financing options if you are purchasing a car from an independent dealer.
- U.S. Bank: With this bank, you find the perfect combination of competitive interest rates, loan options, and consumer-friendly information. The bank offers every type of auto financing option including loans for a used car purchased from a private seller. But you may not get the best rates if you are planning to buy an older and cheaper car. Also, this is not an ideal option if you are planning for lease buyout. If you buy a fuel-efficient EPA-certified vehicle, you will be eligible for a special “green car” discount program. With this program, U.S.Bank offers low-interest rates. Also, the auto-loan process is very detailed, so there are no hassles throughout the application and approval process.
- CarsDirect: Known as a popular car-buying service, CarsDirect is also a portal for finding the right auto financing options. Right from loan calculators to trade-in-value calculators and helpful article on car buying and car loans, you will find everything here. This aggregator website lets you apply for a loan without any restrictions on the minimum or maximum amount. You can easily apply for smaller-dollar car loans. If you have an older car or a used car, you do not have to worry. Simply go to CarsDirect and apply for a loan. You will also find refinancing options on this site. Irrespective of your credit score, you are assured to find the right auto financing option for your car.
- LightStream: If you have good to fairly good credit score, LightStream is one of the most perfect options for your auto financing requirements. This bank offers car loans between $10,000 and $24,999. The rates start from around 3.34% APR. You can take the loan for 24 months to 36 months. The loan processing is quite fast, and even the turnaround process is pretty quick. You can apply for secured as well as unsecured loans based on your credit score. LightStream offers $100 guarantee if you are not satisfied with their service. You have to be extremely careful about your credit report as a slight issue can lead to disqualification for a loan by LightStream.
- MyAutoLoan: This is another aggregator website to find lenders for all types of car loans. Here, you can also apply for lease buyouts. The website has an interest-rate estimator that will calculate how much you should pay for your car loan. The estimator uses criteria such as your location, credit score, and loan type to calculate your interest rate. The site also has calculators to estimate your payment plans and the type of loan you can apply for. There is a quick turnaround on the pre-approval process. So, you do not have to wait for loan approval and there is no application fee either. You can apply for every loan offer that comes your way without thinking about additional costs. You can use this website only if your minimum monthly income is around $1800 or your minimum annual income is $21,600.
