Car Funding Advice
Friday, April 30th, 2010Buying the auto overall
If you possess financial resources to spare, buying a auto outright might be a cost efficient option as you’ll not be be making any interest payments – the retail price you bargain for is the price you pay. You also have the convenience of owning the car outright from the beginning but it will be a enormous capital outlay with no long term protection.
Hire purchase HP
This has long been the traditional way of financing a automobile and is often set up through a dealer. You can, of course approach car finance companies direct and it will certainly be advantageous to get a broad range of quotations. In principle you are simply leasing a car which comes with a “right to buy” – but consider you do not own the vehicle until every repayment is made. HP contracts can be quite adaptable and the rates comparatively competitively priced but not as good as a personal loan from the bank and the monthly payments will be greater than a PCP. As you can imagine if you do not keep up with the installments then the car can be repossessed.
Personal (car loan)
Quite simply you already have the finances for a auto loaned to you by a bank or building society before you venture on to the car dealer. You buy the auto outright and the repayments are made to the loan company. Remember it pays to research prices. One of the plus points is that the loan is not guaranteed against the vehicle so it‟s yours to sell when you wish and generally personal loan rates are quite favourable. If, however, your credit rating is not so good the monthly payments may be quite high.
Car leasing
With a car lease you will usually pay a month-to-month sum over a two to four year term and at the end of the agreement you simply give the vehicle back. Think of it as a (very) lengthened car hire as the car never belongs to you although some leasing some leasing companies will give you the option to buy the car at the end of the term. This alternative generally only requires a small downpayment and at the end of the lease you just walk away (usually into another new car). Some people however, may not like the notion of never acquiring ownership and there will be a mileage limit on the lease with costs levied for exceeding beyond it.
Personal Contract Plans PCP
A Personal Contract Plan (or PCP), is a equivalent process to hire purchase but you don‟t buy the car at the end
of the term. Instead the manufacturer/dealer works out how much the car will be worth at the end of the term and you pay off the variation, plus interest, known as the “balloon payment” Minimum Guaranteed Future Value (MGFV). At the end of the term you can decide to purchase the car outright, leave or use the difference as a deposit on your next motor vehicle. PCP‟s offer lower monthly payments with routine maintenance charges often incorporated and they also have some versatility in that if the car is worth more than the expected value you can sell it on; if it‟s worth less you can hand it back to the car finance company. Again there will be a mileage limit that needs to be followed and although the monthly payments will be lower a PCP can work out more expensive than HP over the full lifetime of the loan.
Some other important things to take into account:
Always request for the “total amount payable” to be made clear. This is the total cost to acquire the car after all interest payments and further fees are included. Also be aware of additional charges – such as
management and paperwork fees that can be added to the total bundle and enhance the car finance company‟s profits.
Most importantly be wary of taking on more credit than you can actually find the money for. It is never a good idea to extend your mortgage to finance a automobile as you will end up paying far more in the long term. Always think about what you can easily manage on your finances. Most car dealers and finance companies will provide an web-based car loan calculator so you can determine the affordability and it‟s always best to build in a comfortable “affordability cushion” in case your circumstances change.