Violet has a lot of company. Lots of people are 'upside-down' in their auto
loans. That means that they owe more than the car is worth. In fact, about 30%
of all new cars financed include an upside-down trade-in. The average amount
added to the new car loan was nearly $3,800.
The problem can be painful. When you owe more than your vehicle is worth the
dealer and lender holds most of the cards. They know that you'd have a hard time
selling your car 'by owner' since that would require coming up with a lot of
money.
Plus, the lender is going to want a higher interest rate on the new loan. That's
because the loan is for more than the car is worth. If they did have to
repossess they would be far short of the outstanding loan balance.
Finally, the extra debt means that you'll be upside-down for a longer period of
time in your new vehicle.
Auto loans have changed to mask the problem. Today the average car loan is over
five years. And, it is getting longer.
So let's look at Violet's situation. She's big-time upside-down in her Yukon.
Plus she's struggling with the hefty monthly payments. And, she'd like to get
into something less expensive like a minivan.
Check out her present loan. Using a auto financing calculator on Bankrate.com
she probably has a note with a 10% interest rate. Three years of payments of
$838 would pay off a note of $26,000.
Could she trade for a minivan and roll the unpaid $13,000 onto her new loan? Not
very likely. At least not with a reasonable payment.
Suppose that she found a $20,000 minivan. She'd be financing $33,000. The van
will lose approximately 35% in the first two years (source: Bankrate.com). So
two years from now the finance company is going to have a $13,000 van as
collateral for a $30,000 loan! They won't do that for 10% interest. The risk is
simply too great.
Violet has gone beyond the point where she can reasonably roll the balance onto
a new loan. And, even if she could find financing she'd be upside-down in her
minivan until it rusted away!
Can Violet reduce her payment? To do that she'd need to lower her interest rate
or increase the length of the loan or both.
In Violet's case, she's probably not going to get a lower interest rate. In part
because only half of the loan is collateralized (i.e. the vehicle is only worth
half the amount that's owed on it).
But she might be able to extend the life of the loan. If she were to go to six
years the payment would drop to $481 per month. The best way to do that is to
approach her current lender. They might let her do that for two reasons. They'll
collect twice as much in interest ($8,680 vs. $4,202) and they don't want to
repossess Violet's SUV and take the loss.
A second possible solution would be to use a different source to raise money to
pay off the vehicle loan. Two possibilities are either a homeowner's line of
credit or a 401k loan.
In both cases she'll get a reasonable interest rate. Possibly lower than her
current 10%. She'll also be able to extend the loan beyond the current three
year period which will also lower her payments. Before borrowing against her
home or her 401k, Violet needs to find out about those types of loans so she
understands the risks involved.
What can we all learn from Violet's experience? A number of valuable lessons.
Longer auto loans can be dangerous. Violet points out why: circumstances change.
New car loans can last up to 72 months. No one can reasonably predict job,
health and family circumstances six years into the future.
Car payments that are too high for your budget can be very expensive. If you
struggle to make the car payments you'll probably shift other expenses to your
credit card. And, that can be very expensive debt. Up to 30%!
Rolling over debt from your current vehicle onto your next car is dangerous.
Especially if it's more than a about 10% of your new car price.
Hopefully Violet will be able to ride out this rough stretch of road and will
stay right-side-up in future vehicles.
Gary Foreman is a former financial planner and purchasing manager who currently
edits The Dollar Stretcher website <www.stretcher.com>
and newsletters. You'll find hundreds of free articles to help stretch your day
and your dollar!