By Robbie T. James

Getting your car financing through a dealership can give you some additional leverage over the price you pay for your vehicle. On the other hand, it also gives the dealer the same leverage to potentially work against you. When you walk through the door of the car dealership for bad credit financing, you are walking into a real-life negotiation situation, the outcome of which will have a big impact on your wallet.

Here are 5 tips for navigating car dealership bad credit financing in a way that give you an excellent chance of coming out ahead:

1. Prepare yourself before you walk through the door: Knowledge is power. When it comes to auto financing at a dealership, you have to keep your wits about you the entire time you are on the lot. Just how you carry yourself – how you walk, how you hold your head, how you look into the salesperson’s eyes – tells them volumes about how demanding you will be of a good deal.

A great way to bolster your confidence to get the best-possible financing deal is to do your homework first. The key items you should research before you set foot into the dealership are: your current credit score (check with all three of the Big Three scoring agencies), the price you should willing to pay for the car, and the interest rate you should expect to pay.

2. Remember that there is always an angle: Think about it: a dealership has to make money. Otherwise, they would just fold up shop and go home. No matter how much of a good deal you believe you got on the price of your car, you are not done until you have met with the financing manager and have penned your John (or Jane) Hancock a financing contract. For example, if your car is being offered at a price below the amount the dealer paid, the dealer is likely getting a rebate from the manufacturer. Either that, or the dealer believes they can charge you a huge interest rate on the car and make their money that way.

3. Write down everything the salesperson said before you meet with the financing manager: Make sure you get the final, agreed-upon price of the car in writing before you leave the salesperson’s side. You want to make sure there is no wiggle room on the price once you have shaken his or her hand. Now, as you walk yourself into the financing manager’s office, you are playing part two of the game: the financing part. It is important to have all of the facts straight so that, between the two of them, the dealership personnel don’t try to sweeten their end of the deal while leaving you in the dust.

4. Try the flinch technique: When you are negotiating the interest rate for your car, you will be offered an initial interest rate figure by the finance person. Make sure you flinch when you first see the figure. In case you have never heard of this, the flinch technique in negotiations simply means acting like the amount is so high as to be surprising or dismaying, making you flinch with an audible “Ooooooh.” Doing this is going to make them want to come up with a lower number fast.

5. Always negotiate for a lower interest rate: No matter what your credit score, remember that the dealership will use your low FICO score to try to get you to agree to a higher interest rate. That is just not the way you want to play ball. Do not let them take advantage of you, given your bad-credit status. Hold strong and always ask for a much lower rate than you think you can qualify for. Ask and ye shall receive. (Or at least, ye shall receive a better rate than they initially offered you.) And, this could save you thousands down the road.

Getting bad credit financing at the car dealership is a great option. For one, it’s a handy thing to have a one-stop-shop auto purchase experience. Just make sure to keep your senses about you and remember that it isn’t over until you’ve signed the contract and driven off the lot with your car.

About the Author: Get access to a list of car dealerships that offer bad credit financing at:

Best-Car-Financing-Deals.com

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Source:

isnare.com

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