Dealership Financing Scams to Avoid

If you don't know how much of a pain a dealership can be when you try to buy a car there, ask your parents or someone who has been there, done that. The whole process can make you puke.

To make sure you don't lose your lunch or any unnecessary patience or funds, here are some dealership financial scams to avoid like the plague.

Basic Financing Scams

Since financial scams are many at dealerships, so I'm just covering some basics here. For example, often as soon as you walk in, you are almost always invited to fill out a credit app to see if your credit is good and if so, how much you are approved for.

Hogwash.

The main two issues with this that are irritating are covered below. Print these out and make sure you understand them, doing some library and other research, if you need to BEFORE you do to a dealership.

Issue #1: You Need to Take Charge of Your Own Financing

Take charge of your financing yourself before you walk in there. You should already know how your credit rating is. If not, head to the bank, credit union or other financial entity, and find out what that means and how you can find out yourself from now on.

You need to know what terms like "credit bureau" and "credit score" mean. So look them up and learn them. Then head to one of the top credit bureaus and find out how to get a copy of your credit bureau to see how you are doing. It's is important that you monitor this all your life. Ignorance will not save you here. This is equally if not more important than your Social Security Number and birth certificate.

Each time someone pulls your credit bureau (i.e. sends an application in that you have signed), it is one point against you. So you do not want to apply all over town. Wait until you find THE car you want, and then - and only then - complete an application IF you agree on a price for the vehicle first. Otherwise walk away. There are millions of vehicles around. And with help form the web, you can find a car in a click today.

Issue #2: Focus Only on the Vehicle to Get a Price

You are there to see if the dealership has a vehicle you want first. Then if and only if the price is right - then you can sit down and talk financing. The deal needs to be made focused on the vehicle, not the financing (i.e. not the payment and money down, trade in, etc).

Do not let these people bully you. And do not let them con you. Their goal is to get the most money they can, even if you have little and are crippled, raising 15 children, are a widow, etc. They do not care. This is so important, let me repeat that: they do NOT care.

You goal is to get what they call a mini-deal, a deal where they get the price they paid for the car plus a small commission that is reasonable. Period.