I honestly have no idea about how to get a vehicle loan. I currently have a vehicle loan through SECU, but my parents arranged it and are paying it to help my credit.

Random questions:

What are good interest rates? I have no idea how these work.

What is APR?

How old is too old for SECU to loan out for a vehicle?

Any other help would be appreciated, thanks.

11/26/2007 11:47:10 AM

Go up there they are usually very helpful.

SECU is definitely the cheapest rate you are going to find so see if you can get one there first!

11/26/2007 11:51:15 AM

Ditto, they will give you a VERY competetive rate.

APR varies. Ask the loan officer. Just walk in to a branch and ask to talk to someone about a vehicle loan, they're very helpful.

There is not an age limit. I asked about this once. If I recall (it's been 3 years since I asked about it) if the car is 3 years old or less, they will do up to a 60 month loan. Older than that, max is a 48 month loan. They go by book value, which can be dicey on an older car, but no set age limit. At the time they didn't use NADA or Kelley's, they used the "chrome blue book" which I guess is a bank-specific or -centric publication. Want to say they'll loan up to 110% of their blue book but I'm not sure if that's quite right. I didn't end up going with them because their blue book value limit was below the price of the car I was interested in, but their rate was pretty killer. I want to say 4.75%, but again, this was 3 years ago.

11/26/2007 11:57:44 AM

6.25-6.50 depending on if the car is new, used, and if u do automatic drafting.

car has to be 4-5 years or newer

loans from 48-60 months

will give you $300 bonus if u get the car at Enterprise

bring 3 check stubs, license, and insurance info.

get approved for the loan, then the dealership will treat you like a cash buyer.

11/26/2007 12:05:50 PM

See here's where the confusion starts:

Quote :

"There is not an age limit. I asked about this once. If I recall (it's been 3 years since I asked about it) if the car is 3 years old or less, they will do up to a 60 month loan. Older than that, max is a 48 month loan. They go by book value, which can be dicey on an older car, but no set age limit."

followed by:

Quote :

"car has to be 4-5 years or newer"

11/26/2007 12:10:51 PM

on older cars the loan is different. they have sevearal types of loans, some for older cars and some arent. some are car loans, some are just personal loans.

go to their website and read

11/26/2007 12:13:52 PM

go to the secu website and it will explain everything, you can even calculate your payment. older vehicles will just have a slightly higher APR. I've had loans from secu on vehicles that were 10+ years old. usually the folks there are really helpful.

11/26/2007 12:43:57 PM

call or go in. say "i'm stupid, help." They will help you.

11/26/2007 1:26:49 PM

http://www.ncsecu.org/Loans/NewVehicle.html
http://www.ncsecu.org/Loans/UsedVehicle.html

Quote :

"# Terms up to 60 months available for 2002-2007 models # Terms up to 48 months available for models prior to 2002"

I usually go buy the car with a small down payment and tell the dealer financing people that they shouldn't waste my time unless they can beat 6.25% or whatever the credit union rate is. Then I go to the credit union, do all the paperwork, and have them cut a check made out to the dealership. Head back to the dealership, drop off the check, now you're free and clear. I've never had to spend more than 1 hour at a NCSECU branch to get this all done. (Just don't show up at 4:30pm on a Friday.)

I have also done car loans through their call center. Same process, just a little more drawn out since you have to do it all over the phone and via mail.

-- Dave

11/26/2007 1:52:59 PM

I met with them today. They said the standard rate was 6.27% (or something simliar, I don't remember). They said the maximum financing would be for 4 years. I have to fill out a form to get pre-approved. Then they'd inspect the vehicle.

11/26/2007 4:09:25 PM

I have used them before. I prefer capital one auto finance. They were formally peoplefirst.com, and they simply preapproved me for a loan up to X value, and sent me a blank check. The problems I have with SECU occured after when I was attempting to get cheaper insurance on a sports car when I was younger. Long story, but basically they fought me tooth and nail over switching from a $500 deductable to a $1000 deductable when it amounted to close to $200 a MONTH in savings. I decided not to use them on the next purchase.

It was really silly, because the $500 difference in deductable SECU was worried about was made up in insurance payments in less than 3 months.

Peoplefirst didnt care.

11/26/2007 4:20:56 PM

Capital One does not care about anything, but their rates are way higher.

11/26/2007 4:59:15 PM

I'd suggest you sit down with Wikipedia for a few minutes to answer your question about APR and any other loan topics that might be confusing.

Then go talk to a loan officer at SECU for your other questions. You don't even need an appointment. Just walk in and tell the lady at the desk that you'd like to talk to someone about a car loan. They'll be happy to help.

Finally, shop around for better rates by calling other banks or checking their websites.

11/26/2007 5:02:12 PM

God, call the call center for SECU man, 15 minutes on the phone and you will have a loan pre-approval. You will just need basic info like how long you have lived at your address and your employement/salary. if its less than 2 years we will need to know where you lived prior/worked prior.

if you get pre-approved, they give you a 6 digit # to reference for your loan.

go to the dealer and haggle... get the price low as you can... to save you that $.

then, once all is delt with and you have them draw up a bill of sale, just have the dealer call the SECU call center, get a loan officer on the phone, give them your 6 digit loan #, say "I am at the dealer, I am going to send you this, this and this... what fax and to whose attention?"

the loan officer gets it.. 5 minutes later calls you back and sets up the payment arrangement.. when do you want the due date to be, do you want it to come out automatically from your checking for a lower rate? you should.. saves SECU and you money.

the loan officer then send via fax a letter to the dealer saying all is good and we are sending them a check via fedex and they can let you leave with your car.

You then get the loan packet in the mail from us a few days later, just sign and mail it back in the pre-paid envelope and enjoy your car.

seriously that easy, any questions call the call center. I used to be a team leader there, way too easy a process.

11/27/2007 1:15:20 AM

Quote :

"Random questions: What are good interest rates? I have no idea how these work. What is APR? How old is too old for SECU to loan out for a vehicle? Any other help would be appreciated, thanks."

A good rate is arguable, some new cars with dealer incentives have 0-4% right now, if you are buying used SECU I imagine would be hard to beat.

APR - annual % rate
APY= annual % yield

I see those intermixed sometimes, not sure why... the rate is what your loan is going to be amortized off of, Int = Prin (loan amount) x Rate (.0625/365) x Term. They Yield is considered more like the TRUE cost of lending.. taking into account all factors of the loan, fees, etc - you will note SECU just has the rate, not a yield on the site for autos, but we do for mortgages b/c we have some fees for those. There could be a lot more detailed answer, but thats good enough to answer the question...

I did an auto loan for a 60's something car... I think you are covered.

11/27/2007 1:21:31 AM

O, final point, SECU offers GAP protection... for $135 I THINK??? Dealers usually charge $300+... be sure and ask about it with your loan officer as some of them are slack and will not even offer it. if you are getting a used auto I would think about it, especially if its a high loan to value.

11/27/2007 1:23:17 AM

We have 2 vehicle loans with secu, and they are very easy to work with. when I bought a new truck a couple of years ago, the salesman at Capital Ford in Wilmington didn't even try to get me to use their financing because he said there was no way they could touch secu's rates.

11/27/2007 7:32:41 AM

n/m

[Edited on November 27, 2007 at 8:15 AM. Reason : .]

11/27/2007 8:12:53 AM

So what is the deal with having a relative or something work for the state?
I checked on their website, but didn't find anything like that. Is it even a requirement anymore?

11/27/2007 8:34:34 AM

Most dealers actually can beat credit union rates on the basis that big banks offer special deals through their dealer financing arms.

For instance, I could secure a 60 month dealer loan @3.5% while a CU could at best offer me ~5%.

The catch with dealer financing is that its heavily dependent on your personal credit whereas a CU would be more willing to take a risk with credit ratings that aren't optimal.

11/27/2007 10:29:13 AM

Santa - like I said, that may be the case for new autos and good credit, but when there are not incentives, you are buying used OR you happen to have not ideal credit then I would find SECU hard to beat.

11/27/2007 11:25:05 AM

kostya, you do have to be eligible - if you have an immediate family member who is a member you are eligible. If your parents maybe are not memebers but are eligible just have them open a $25 share account and then you can join....

see this link:

MEMBERSHIPhttp://www.ncsecu.org/AboutSECU/MembershipEligibility.html

11/27/2007 11:27:17 AM

I wasn't addressing you, I was addressing the guy who bought a new truck.

11/27/2007 11:36:09 AM

The easiest way to qualify as a college student, if you don't have an immediate family member who is a member, is to get some kind of paying job through the university. I worked with the Undergraduate Tutorial Center in order to qualify.

11/27/2007 11:37:13 AM

slightly off topic...but what Auto Manufacturers had recently or have currently 0% APR on new cars?

I know the domestic makes are usually the ones who do it, but I was looking for a list of ones that offered/offer it.

11/27/2007 2:45:24 PM

^ check edmunds under rebates... they have them all listed in one place for each brand.

^^ so.. you told the guy who was told by the dealer they could not beat SECU's rate that most dealerships can... sorry, did not catch that. AND most credit unions give the members the same rate regardless of your credit score, commercial banks are more likely to adjust the rate based off that.

11/27/2007 2:50:18 PM