Car Finance Online

Car finance pre-approval is an option when you apply online for car finance. Lenders will conditionally approve you for a specific level of borrowing for a limited time – typically between one and three months in duration. Getting pre-approved for a car loan has some advantages.

Firstly, it allows you to shop within a specific price range with confidence. Secondly, you can approach and haggle with salespeople safe in the knowledge that funds are available – so you might even be able to negotiate a bigger discount.

Your credit score typically defines what interest rate you’ll pay, but you can still apply for a bad credit car loan if your score is below average. As a rule, borrowers with a better credit history get offered lower car finance interest rates, but repaying a car loan on time will see your rating improve. That’s also true for newer borrowers.

Having no history can be like having a less-than-ideal record. Many first-time vehicle buyers use a guarantor car loan for that reason, but it’s faster to build a good score if you can qualify for a loan yourself.

Savvy partners with lenders that consider car finance applications with earnings as low as $26,000 – but the more you earn, the more borrowing power you’ll have.

You can. Although, depending on how much you’ll use your car for work and the nature of your business, you might still want to stick with a consumer car loan.

Commercial car finance agreements typically require you to use your vehicle for business at least half the time, but that’s not the case with a standard car loan – and you can still claim loan costs at tax time. The commercial equivalent of a car loan is a chattel mortgage. It works pretty much the same day-to-day, and you get excellent tax and GST benefits.

Many online vehicle finance lenders offer the option of using a balloon payment. Also referred to as a residual, it’s when you pay a percentage of your car finance at the end of the term rather than as part of your monthly repayments.

While using a balloon payment reduces what you need to find each month, it also results in you paying more interest across the term – because you don’t pay the balance down to zero. When the remainder becomes due, you can either pay it in full or refinance the residual – which extends the length of your vehicle finance.

Most car finance loans get secured in one way or another against the vehicle you buy, making fully comprehensive car insurance a necessity. It protects the lender’s interest in your car just in case it ever becomes damaged or needs to be written off in the event of an accident or theft.