I did a 0% Loan, paid it off, got 5 free years of stock price increases in my view. Sure we were in the buy the most house you can, did not do that, and did not end up upside down in mortgage, after 20% down to save additional PMI, no one can predict the future, the buy the most house you can afford worked for 30 years, due to an average 15% gain in real estate values, know when to hold em and when to fold em, or be an idiot conservative investor like me, Sure stuck with a $600 pe month mortgage including taxes and insurance, never moved up to a grander house, but it is a fine house, and I see similar sf apartments at 1200 a month.
Car Talk Lackey
In regards to cars and mortgages
When I was at the dealership, the senior mechanics . . . such as I was, at the time . . . qualified for killer deals on leasing Mercedes E-class cars. Basically, the manufacturer was kicking in a sizable chunk of money, and the mechanics could have been leasing such a car for chump change, far cheaper than anybody not affiliated with the dealer or manufacturer
We were HEAVILY advised to go that route. I told the big shots straight to their faces, that they can count me out. First of all, I knew I couldnāt afford the insurance, registration, and fuel for such a vehicle. Never mind I lived far from work, and couldnāt have come in under the yearly mileage allowance. Basically, if the car were free, I couldnāt afford those costs I mentioned. They were not amused that I wasnāt being a team player
Several of the mechanics actually did go for those deals. And several of the younger mechanics, who did not yet qualify for such a deal, were rather upset with me. They would have loved to get in on the deal, and were shocked that I wanted no part of it.
Sorry, but that was just too much pressure for a deal which would have been nothing but trouble for me
Now to the mortgages . . .
Several of the mechanics bought their houses, based on the assumption that they would consistently flag x number of hours each paycheck. But that number was really high. Factor in a few slow days, low paying warranty jobs, etc., and you risk not being able to make the mortgage payments. They did this BEFORE the recession of a few years ago. Needless to say, some of these guys lived to regret their greedy decisions
Me, I bought a pretty small and reasonably priced house, with a mortgage I could comfortably afford on my at the time lousy paychecks.
My service advisor sat down and talked with me. He asked me why Iām buying such a small house. I said thatās all Iām comfortable doing, given my financial situation. He said I should be like him. Iām not 100% clear on the details, but I know he took out 2 mortgages to get him into his house.
His greed also clouded his judgement, and he allowed himself to fall prey to some scams, to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars. We even met the scammer early on. We told the service advisor, we had a bad feeling, and he should let this āopportunityā pass. He didnāt and the scammer disappeared, along with the money.
Oh yeah, my service advisor was also leasing a mercedes E-class, because he wanted to appear successful
He had a early model Toyota Tundra, which he kept in immaculate condition, both cosmetically and mechanically. But I suppose that didnāt send the right image to customers . . . ?
I donāt know the answer to that question, but I do know that very few people can actually qualify for that 0% rate, as a result of having crappy credit scores. For those of us who do have stellar credit scores, a 0% car loan is available on certain cars, but for all too many people it is only a fantasy, and they wind-up paying a much higher interest rate.
A hoooooggguh local dealer offers cruises, TVās, iPad, bicycles and other stuff with every purchase of a new car. Goodies added with the deal on inflated car prices. They also āofferā insanely low lease rates on the luxury modelā¦ but Iāve nver found someone who actually paid that low a rate.
I would never deal with this place because I canāt imagine cutting through the hype to get to a reasonable deal. But this place sels more of this brand than any other in the country - if you believe the hoooooggguh hype.
The 2014 Nissan Frontier we bought new the plan was to pay cash ( not bragging because it took years to reach that stage ). We did negotiate price, trade in and reached a deal that was fair. After that the sales manager offered 0% for 3 years and an additional $500.00 off the price but asked that we make 4 payments before paying off the loan. We waited until after Jan. 2015 and paid it off.
Thatās because the salesman got a commission on the financing, too That helped get you a better overall deal.
I havenāt had a car loan in years. But my son has one. I helped him negotiate for the car. We got the price set BEFORE we talked about loan or interest rates. The dealer had some deals on loans though our credit union. Slightly better then if I went to our credit union directly.
Mustangman you are correct but they only received it if four payments were made to the loan. We got 500 they got something so everyone is happy.
Would this dealer be called Fusillo, or something like that . . . ?!
If so, I canāt stand his TV advertisements, or his voice 
In my neck of the woods, there was a Hyundai/Mitsubishi dealership that was owned by Brad Benson (former NY Giants lineman) for several decades, and his commercials offended the intelligence of even a single-celled organism. Upon hearing the first few syllables of his radio commercials, I would change the station immediately. And, needless to say, that dealership was the absolute last place that I would ever consider buying a car.
However, karma is a strange thing. His sonāwho was extremely indulged with the riches that Daddy Dearest reaped from the dealershipāgot himself into increasingly serious problems with the law, culminating in the son intentionally running someone down with his 4x4, while drunk as a skunk. What did the victim do, in order to provoke the vehicular attack? He had told Bensonās son that he shouldnāt drive because he was too intoxicated. So, of course, what would any supposedly sober person do at that point? You run the guy over with your 4x4!
Daddy, of course, tried to minimize his sonās guilt, but his attempts to minimize what could have been vehicular homicide only made him look more and more ridiculous, andāmeanwhileāsales at his dealership cratered as a result of all of the negative publicity.
A few months ago, he sold the dealership, and the new ownersāwith a different corporate nameāare trying to resurrect the greatly diminished business. The only good news is that the man who his son tried to kill did survive, although he will forever be crippled as a result of the sonās attack on him.
That would be the guyā¦ Local TV is loaded with his spots. I hit the mute button often!
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Donāt disagree! And at 0% you didnāt even pay any interest so the 4 payments went to principle. Win-Win! If there was any interest rate at all, then it would have cost you a few bucks.
Thereās no free lunch. Companies donāt go through the expense of originating loans without recouping that money in some way. You pay for it, itās just hidden in some way that makes it not so obviousā¦
I donāt think anyone here considers a zero interest car loan to be a free lunch. Itās simply a business transaction where they get to sell a car to someone who has very good credit, and therefore has a lot of options when it comes to buying a car. Itās not a scam.
The theory is that enough people who qualify for 0 % will find at some point the payments are more of a burden than they care for because most of those type loans are 3 years. They then call and make arrangements for a regular 5 or 6 year loan for lower payments.
Huh? Who said anything about it being a scam? Originating loans is not without expense. I just went through this with a USED car I bought from a dealer. Upon questioning the finance guy, I got him to admit where the cost of their āfreeā financing was coming from and he dropped the sales pitch.
Isnāt commission a percentage? Isnāt any percentage commission on zero percent financing zero? Iām confused again.
Boy, do you have me confused now.
The book keeping re selling a car is obviously similar to the IRSās arithmatic when filing taxes. Some fill in 3 pages of itemized deductions that disappear in a flash on form 1040 while others earn a pittance, have no deductions yet get a rebate 10x the taxes they paid. It has amazed me that the manufacturer can remove $100 from one pocket, give $20 of those dollars to the salesman and another $20 to the sales manager and still another $50 to the dealership yet still slip $120 in his other pocket. I wonder how much those IRS people earn working in the private sector.