Things Not to Do When Buying a Car

Are you looking for a new car? How can you cut the high-interest rates on car loans? To get the best deal on your new car, there are a few things that you should never do when you visit a car dealership.

You cannot beat the enemy without understanding and knowing what game they are playing. A car salesperson is just an employee who wants to do the best for his/her organization and hence will go to any lengths to make sure they reach their sales objectives. They do not have bad intentions. So, next time you visit a car dealership keep the below-mentioned things in mind.

Here are the 5 things not to do when buying a car.

1. Let your emotions take control

People working at the car dealership are trained to keep you in an emotional space for as long as possible. Meaning, they don’t want you to change your decision to buy a car or already think of paying the monthly payments.

Secondly, do not give out personal information to the car salesmen. They might ask you questions like Who are you buying this car for? How are you related to that person? Or How much monthly payment you can afford?

2. Not interviewing someone who already has your desired car model

In today’s world, every little information a buyer needs is available online. Either on forums or blogs. And this is great as you get to consume more information without doing much work. But this can also backfire sometimes. Do not accept everything that the internet has to say about a particular car. Talk to a few people who already own the same model and get their first-hand opinion.

3. Not reading the terms and conditions properly

While purchasing a car, when you sign that document, you are signing a legal contract meticulously prepared by the car dealer(to favor them more than you). In the contract, look for things like add-ons, extras and extended warranties. Do you want the additional packages the car dealer is offering? If no, then either ask them to give you a new contract or walk away from the showroom.

4. Not knowing your Credit Score

The interest you pay on the car loan is inversely proportional to your credit score. The higher your credit score, the lower the interest you pay. Period. And, not knowing your credit score will lead you to make bad decisions as you don’t know where you are at, yet.

Knowing your credit score is only going to benefit you. I am not asking you to tell share credit score with the car dealer(in the initial stages of the sale). It will help you–by putting you in a position where you can predict the interest rate– later when its time to talk money.

5. Visit the car dealership with your spouse/partner

Visiting a car dealership with your spouse or partner can turn out to be a disaster. It gives the dealer a chance to know you as a person and also bring your spouse into the decision making process.

They also get vital information about you(the potential buyer) as you and your partner talk and share your opinions in front of the car salesperson. Once the salesperson knows that your partner likes a particular car and wants it at all cost, they will make it hard to negotiate down the price.

Summary

Most people are not aware of how a car dealership works. They think buying a car is like buying groceries. You pay what the price tag tells you to pay. This is not true. Car dealers are notoriously famous for the negotiations.

By keeping the above-mentioned things in mind, you can place yourself in a prime position to negotiate until you settle for a price set by you.