Hi all! I’m currently looking to purchase a used car and would love any suggestions for reputable dealerships nearby that assist individuals with credit issues. While I’m not solely focused on buy here pay here options, I’m open to exploring them. It’s important to me to find a place with honest sales staff who won’t deceive me, and where the cars are reliable and won’t cause problems shortly after buying. I’ve heard some concerning tales about unreliable dealerships, so I want to ensure I choose a legitimate one. Any tips or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Mixed results here. Found my current car at a smaller independent lot that worked with my credit, but I hit 6 different places first. Big chain dealerships basically laughed me out when they saw my score.
Call ahead and ask if they work with credit challenges before driving over. Some places are upfront, others waste your whole afternoon just to say no.
Bring your own mechanic or someone who knows cars. Almost bought one that looked decent but had transmission issues that would’ve cost thousands. Salesperson kept saying it was “just a minor noise” but my buddy caught it immediately.
Not sure where you’re located, but avoid those highway lots with spinning signs and “guaranteed approval” banners. Learned that the hard way on my first purchase. Interest was brutal and the car died three months later.
Skip hunting individual dealerships and get pre-approved financing first. Credit unions are your best shot even with bad credit - they’ll beat dealer rates by 5-10%. Navy Federal, PenFed, and local credit unions have programs for members with credit issues. With pre-approval, you can shop anywhere with cash buyer power and dodge their markup games. If you’re stuck with dealer financing, get quotes from multiple places and negotiate car price separately from financing. Dealers love bundling everything to hide their profit margins. Also consider a cosigner if possible - it’ll cut your interest rate in half and open way more options than limiting yourself to bad credit specialists.
Subprime auto lending has tightened up big time. Even those “guaranteed approval” lots are way pickier now. You’re looking at 15-25% APR rates, and that’s at legit dealers.
CarMax and Carvana have started working with more subprime lenders. Not the cheapest option, but they won’t vanish on you like some sketchy lots might.
Timing’s huge here. Hit them end of month or end of quarter - dealers and their finance guys are hungry to close deals. I’ve watched people get approved in December after getting shot down for the same car in July.
They’ll push extended warranties and gap insurance hard since that’s where they make their money on bad credit deals. Some of it’s actually worth considering given how upside-down you’ll be on the loan. Just don’t sign anything same day - take it home and read everything first. 