Finance
Get a Free Online Car Loan Approval - Good or Bad Credit, That’s Okay, We Can Get You Accepted! Keffer Chrysler Jeep, in Charlotte, North Carolina, helps people with all credit situations. Most people need a car loan to finance their new or used car purchase. The finance experts at Keffer Chrysler Jeep in Charlotte, NC, help people with all types of special finance needs drive their dream car home. Request a free, secure credit approval today, regardless of where you are in the car buying process! Keffer Chrysler Jeep works only with trusted lenders to bring you low rates and flexible terms. Use this easy, guaranteed secure auto loan application and get started with buying a car today!
Lease vs. Buy
Deciding whether to lease or buy a car depends on your situation. When you buy a car, you pay for the whole vehicle. You will usually make a down payment, pay the sales tax separately, or roll the tax into your auto loan and pay an interest rate. You usually will make your first payment a month after you sign your contract. Buying is great if you like to keep your cars for a long period of time and have a need to drive unlimited miles.
When you lease, you pay only for what you use. You do not have to put money down. You typically only pay sales tax on your monthly payments, and are charged with a money factor that is similar to the interest rate on a loan. You make your first payment at the time you sign your contract.
Learn from our trained finance staff about financing your next vehicle.
We make your auto buying experience stress-free. Our staff, online or onsite, stands ready to help you!
Finance Tips
How Much Can I Afford?
Consider your financing options and review your budget before buying a Chrysler, Jeep car or truck. Clearly, affordable monthly payments are the goal, with "affordable" being the key word. When you purchase a vehicle from Keffer Chrysler Jeep, you may be required to make a down payment. The amount of the down payment usually depends on which vehicle you buy and the type of financing available to you. Some lenders may require a down payment of up to 20% of the vehicle purchase price or more; others may not ask for a down payment at all. A good way to figure out what payments are affordable is to look at your current take home pay and see how much is left after you pay all your bills, and then make a careful estimate of your monthly new car budget. Car budget estimates should include your monthly payment, the cost of driving (gasoline, maintenance, parking, tolls, and so on) and your auto insurance premium. If all those costs add up to as much or less than you’re left over take home pay, congratulations! You can afford a new car. Maintenance and repair costs can be kept at a minimum by getting regular service checkups, as required by warranty, or by carrying a vehicle service agreement with Keffer Chrysler Jeep.
Four factors that will determine your monthly payments
Amount of the loan - The Chrysler, Jeep car's purchase price and the financing charges for your loan will determine the amount of the loan. The smaller your loan amount the lower your monthly payments will be. Making a down payment on the vehicle will bring down the purchase price and should decrease you monthly payments because the loan amount is lower. Length of the loan - Typical auto loan lengths have terms of 2, 3 or 4 years. In recent years some lenders have been offering longer terms in order to minimize monthly payments. Many lenders in North Carolina now offer 60-month (5 year) financing programs. While lengthening the loan term will give you smaller monthly payments, it won’t reduce the total amount of your loan. Interest rate - Almost all auto loans carry fixed interest rates. The fixed interest rate is set in advance and remains the same throughout the loan. As a result, the monthly installment payments are the same each month. Lowering your fixed interest rate can yield lower monthly payments. Type of loan - A growing number of lenders are offering more flexible auto loan plans that help reduce the term length of the loan or reduce monthly payments with a variable-rate auto loan. The interest rate a buyer pays rises and falls depending on the fluctuation of interest rates in the marketplace. The changes typically do not increase or lower the monthly payment; instead, the length of the loan is shortened or extended--if interest rates fall, the buyer makes fewer payments; if they rise, the buyer makes more payments. Because the borrower assumes the risk of fluctuating interest rates, variable-rate loans may start out with interest rates lower than those for fixed-rate loans. There is no way to predict whether this type of loan will be better for you than a fixed-rate loan, so buyer beware!
Under a balloon loan, a buyer can reduce his monthly payments by agreeing to pay one final payment for the balance of the loan. There are usually 3 options available to him when the final payment is due. He can pay off the balance and keep the car, he can refinance the loan, or he may be able to return the vehicle to the dealer. If he does return the car to the dealer, it will have to meet mileage and normal wear and tear requirements similar to a lease.
Finance Terms
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
The interest rate you agree to for the duration of your auto loan with your chosen lender is the annual percentage rate.
Captive Finance Company
A financing company or lender that is associated or affiliated with the vehicle manufacturer, often times captive finance companies will have the most competitive interest rates for auto loans and offer special finance options for particular Chrysler, Jeep models.
Loan Collateral
The assets you own are your collateral for your auto loan. Collateral is often your home or another vehicle you own. The collateral is a security measure for the lender in the event the borrower defaults on their car loan. When purchasing or leasing a vehicle, the vehicle itself is stipulated as the collateral for the loan.
Credit Report
Your personal credit history is recorded by different credit bureaus and is a detailed report of your credit behavior for the past 10 years. This report is used by the lending institutions to determine your credit worthiness for consideration of a loan, as well as for determining your eligibility for lower interest rates and greater loan amounts.
Down Payment
The money you pay up front toward the purchase price of a Chrysler, Jeep is your down payment. Often the value of your trade-in vehicle can be used as a down payment. The down payment can be cash or trade-in allowance, or both, and usually represents the difference between the loan and the purchase price. Larger down payments will decrease your auto loan amount and typically yield lower monthly payments on your loan.
Equity
The value of the car minus any money that is stilled owed on the car. Equity represents the amount of the car or truck that you own outright. In the case of a leased vehicle, if you do not purchase the vehicle at the end of your lease agreement term, you have no equity in the vehicle since you were simply renting it for the specified period of time.
Installment Loan
A loan that is paid back in monthly increments. Interest
The charge that you pay for the privilege of borrowing money and repaying it over time.
Lien
A lien is a claim of ownership generated from a debt. A lien will be held on the vehicle's title until the loan is satisfied or the lease term has ended and the vehicle has been purchased outright. The lien is cleared and titled is transferred to the owner of the vehicle when the loan payments are finished. This is a security measure that lenders take in case the borrower defaults on the auto loan.
Loan Term
The length of time within which you agree to repay the loan. A loan term of 24 months means that you agree to pay off the loan within 2 years.
Monthly Payments
The amount of money the borrower pays towards their loan every month is considered the monthly payment. When leasing a car or truck, the monthly payment is called the "rent charge" for the vehicle.
Pre-Qualifying
When you apply for a loan or financing for a specified amount and do not make a commitment to take the loan, this is called a pre-qualified loan. The lender has agreed to make the loan and the borrower simply has to decide whether to buy the car.
Principal
Loan amounts consist of two parts: The amount of money you would like to borrow and the interest on that amount. The principal is the amount of money that you would like to borrow, not including the interest.
Total Cost
The entire amount you have agreed to pay to the lender for the specified contract, including all charges, fees, registration, taxes, and interest. The all-inclusive amount must be disclosed prior to signing the agreement, according to federal regulations.