Have You Crunched Your Car and Crunched Your Credit Rating?
Are you one of these unfortunates that not only have crunched your car, but as your credit rating is crunched as well, you feel resigned to taking the bus - or walking...
With the high street banks being very cautious about lending even to another bank, let along a poor individual that has a few blemishes on his credit history, how does anybody get around this apparent impasse? And it's no good just nipping down to your local used-car lot and hoping you can bluff it - as we are all just a number on acomputer these days when it comes to getting credit.
The last thing you want is a used car salesman sneering at you from behind his computer screen, and saying "Sorry - You've got a bad credit history!" Well, first of all, keep an eye on your credit record.
There are so many things you can do these days in all innocence that will put those dreaded black marks on your 'credit file in the sky'.
Just by applying for a check on yourself can leave a mark on your file, let alone if you inadvertently miss a payment on one of your credit cards, or even worse, a late mortgage payment.
What is more, if you have no credit history at all - that is even worse.
And that can easily happen if you, like me, frequently work on both sides of 'The Pond'.
Just an aside, did you know that if you have a bad credit history in the UK, if you work in the States, and take out a small, well-managed loan over there, your credit history with the UK won't get matched up! They are totally independent of each other.
Now, back to basics.
If you need a new set of wheels, and you have any doubt whatsoever about your credit rating then the first thing you must do is carry out a self-check using either Experian or Equifax.
If the result is less than perfect, don't worry, you now need to look on the web for firms that specialise in providing car loans where you have a few (or even a lot of) issues on your credit scoring.
Speak to a number of these companies, have a figure in your mind that you want to borrow, and get quotes from them.
Accept the best offer (and don't forget, the lowest monthly repayment may not end up with the best long term deal for you).
Once you have this agreement in writing ,look for a car dealer that handles the car you want, and also is affiliated to the credit company in some way.
Doing it this way, you can go the dealership, and really strike a hard bargain with the salesmen, knowing full well you have the funds to close the deal...
With the high street banks being very cautious about lending even to another bank, let along a poor individual that has a few blemishes on his credit history, how does anybody get around this apparent impasse? And it's no good just nipping down to your local used-car lot and hoping you can bluff it - as we are all just a number on acomputer these days when it comes to getting credit.
The last thing you want is a used car salesman sneering at you from behind his computer screen, and saying "Sorry - You've got a bad credit history!" Well, first of all, keep an eye on your credit record.
There are so many things you can do these days in all innocence that will put those dreaded black marks on your 'credit file in the sky'.
Just by applying for a check on yourself can leave a mark on your file, let alone if you inadvertently miss a payment on one of your credit cards, or even worse, a late mortgage payment.
What is more, if you have no credit history at all - that is even worse.
And that can easily happen if you, like me, frequently work on both sides of 'The Pond'.
Just an aside, did you know that if you have a bad credit history in the UK, if you work in the States, and take out a small, well-managed loan over there, your credit history with the UK won't get matched up! They are totally independent of each other.
Now, back to basics.
If you need a new set of wheels, and you have any doubt whatsoever about your credit rating then the first thing you must do is carry out a self-check using either Experian or Equifax.
If the result is less than perfect, don't worry, you now need to look on the web for firms that specialise in providing car loans where you have a few (or even a lot of) issues on your credit scoring.
Speak to a number of these companies, have a figure in your mind that you want to borrow, and get quotes from them.
Accept the best offer (and don't forget, the lowest monthly repayment may not end up with the best long term deal for you).
Once you have this agreement in writing ,look for a car dealer that handles the car you want, and also is affiliated to the credit company in some way.
Doing it this way, you can go the dealership, and really strike a hard bargain with the salesmen, knowing full well you have the funds to close the deal...
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