Buying a car with no credit
 

I'm 18 right now and have pretty much no credit (though I did apply for some credit cards yesterday to start building it right away) and I want to buy a new car. I have a steady job with a solid income and I live at home so I can definately afford it, but I'm afraid that I'll either get rejected for financing or be forced to pay some ridiculous interest rates. Any advice? I don't have a lot of money saved up so buying a old used car for cash isn't the best option for me. Thanks!

First of all a new car loan has a cheaper loan rate than a used car loan. Secondly, when I bought my first car (a used car loan from Chevrolet) I had to get my dad to co-sign it before it was approved.

the only other option is: save up cash, or use a line of credit. You don't have a line of credit do you?

I used to buy cheap used cars for $1-2K until a year ago when I decided to get a loan and buy something semi-worthwhile. I was 22 with no credit (nothing bad, nothing good), and this seems to be worse than having bad credit. I ended up having to convince a relative to co-sign on the loan to even be offered a loan.

I hate to say it, but without a co-signer, or any credit you are looking at buying something extremely cheap in cash, or getting stuck with some outrageous rate that a dealership MIGHT offer you.

good luck!

Just be careful about building your credit - you're trying to show that you've got a good handle, and applying for 15 credit cards at a time is NOT neccesarily the best way to go about it. Only finance what you can afford, and most places will want at least a full year of established credit history to consider giving a decent APR.

There are a couple of new car dealerships in my area that have "fresh-start" and first time buyer special credit programs and more and more they're attempting to target younger people to establish loyalty.

Call around to your local dealerships, especially if there is one that isn't necessarily a vendor dealership, and see if they have any of these programs that you qualify for would be my suggestion.

If you are truly interested in getting a new car, get your mother or father to co-sign the loan, because you won't get a good APR otherwise having no credit. When I bought my first car myself I was 24 working at a large computer company making good money but had never had any sort of credit and I couldn't get a rate that was lower than 10% until I got my father to co-sign on the car with me.

Also make sure to not get too many credit cards. One or two is more than enough to build good credit.

Im using a line of credit for my next car....just need to get my ass to the bank!

get ONE card, the one with the highest limit and lowest apr. Then, make sure you pay it on time every month or when ever the bill is due. The car loan you will most likely have to get a co-sign. Once the car is paid off though you won't need a co-sign if you choose to buy a different car.

Wierd I got a Credit Card and never missed a payment yet and they still will not give me a loan, but all the people I know have shit credit so they can't co-sign!

Your best bet is to get a credit card, a savings account, and a checking account. I did all this and my grandpa cosigned with me. i got a 1.9 apr on my truck. Be warned though, paying for a vehicle is a bitch.