Posted in Auto industry, Buying a car, Car Ownership Costs, Car purchase, Consumer issues, Costs, Depreciation, Money, Money Finesse, Surveys on February 21st, 2007
A car is probably going to be your biggest expense outside of the purchase or rental of your home. Paying too much for a car through purchase price or financing can leave you in the hole if the vehicle is totalled in an accident or stolen. An insurance company is going to pay only the value of your car, not the exorbitant balance left on your finance interest. Another concern is retaining good re-sale or trade value if you plan on replacing your vehicle every few years.
Toyota Prius
Consumer Reports list the top 10 best cars for holding value and the bottom 10. Not surprisingly, all of the top 10 are imports. 9 of the bottom 10 are American made models.
Check out the list.
Posted in Bankrate dot com, Buying a car, Car purchase, Consumer issues, Money, Money Finesse, Purchasing, Rebates on February 15th, 2007
You’ve decided to buy a car. You know what you can afford for a monthly payment, you have figured in all the other costs such as insurance and you are ready to make that car loan committment. The dealer is offering you a rebate or a lower interest rate – which is the better deal?
That depends on several factors such as the size of the rebate, the price of the car and what interest rates are available. A rebate will lower the total loan amount but a lower interest rate will give you lower monthly payments for the life of the loan.
Bankrate.com has a nifty little calculator to help you decide which is the better deal for you. Just plug in the price of the car, the interest rates with and without rebate, the amount of the rebate and the length of the loan. Bankrate’s calculator will tell you the better option and how much it will save you.
