There are lots of different routes you can take when shopping for an auto loan, especially if you have bad credit. But you should always be careful about what you are signing when you are looking for a new loan. You don’t want to accidentally wind up damaging your credit further because you didn’t fully understand your loan.

Always read the fine print. The most important thing you can do is to read over everything before signing an auto loan contract. Make sure you understand all the terms and conditions of a loan before you agree to one, because it can be very easy to get caught up in the moment when you’re ready to sign and get your new vehicle. And if you don’t understand something, that’s ok, just ask! At creditcapitol.com, we want to work together to help you get into a car and an auto loan that you can afford. We want you to feel like you can count on our respect, which means we aren’t out to confuse you into signing up for something that isn’t right for you.

Know your credit score. Another key factor for getting a good auto loan is to look up your credit score and know what you can expect when you come to the dealership. If you know your credit score ahead of time, you know there won’t be any surprises. This can help you to decide ahead of time what you can afford, so that you don’t let yourself fall in love with a car that won’t work for you.

Get shorter term loans. Shorter term loans are great for your credit score! As we explained in 8 Missteps to Bad Credit, accounts that have stayed open for a long time show up on your credit score as credit that you have difficulty paying back. Short term loans impact your credit score much less, and timely payments also help to keep your score down. Your best bet is to aim for a 3-5 year loan. And at creditcapitol.com there are no fees if you pay off your loan early!

Always make sure that you come prepared. Know what you can afford to pay for a car every month and how long you can afford to pay it. Keep in mind that all of the monthly expenses you have for car, including your payments, gas, etc. should be no more than twenty percent of your income. It can be really tempting to go for the first car that you fall in love with, but you should know what your limit is ahead of time and stick to it.

Calculate your loan. You can use our handy loan calculator available at the bottom of this page to do this. If you know what you can afford and how much the car you are interested in costs, then you can try out different loan lengths and APRs to see what’s right for you. With our loan calculator you can be certain of how short you should keep your loan and what APR range is manageable for you.

At creditcapitol.com we know it can be hard to find an auto loan when you’ve had problems with bad credit. We want to work with you and help you find the price that works best for you. Right now rates for bad credit loans have never been so low, and we hope you will consider us when shopping for your new auto loan.