Trying to buy a car can be difficult no matter what your circumstances. But if you have bad credit, you might think it would be impossible to get the money you need to make a purchase. Thankfully, this isn't the case. Even with bad credit, you can still get a car. You just probably won't be able to get financing for the car.
So, what are you to do? Instead, of getting financing to buy a new car, you can buy a used car straight out. Just use the money you would've spent as a down payment to buy the used car outright. One problem with buying a car using financing, especially if your credit is less than ideal, is that you're likely to be hit with astronomical interest rates. This means you'll end up paying considerably more for the car than if you put the full amount down from the start. Much of the time, dealerships take advantage of people with poor credit, effectively just worsening their financial situation.
But if you've saved your pennies for a down payment and don't want to be hit with interest charges, go to a dealer that lets you buy a car on the spot. You won't have to make any monthly payments, either, which can be kinder to your pocketbook in the long run.
You might think that your options for cars will be severely limited if you make a purchase this way. But rest assured, they won't be. Sure, you're not going to be able to get a brand new car or model, but you'll be able to get a nice car, that runs great, with low mileage for under ten grand. That's really a pretty good deal, when you think about it.
If you're having trouble coming up with the down payment amount, pretend that you have a car payment for a few months. Typically, car payments for a car that's about $10,000 will be around $350 a month. If you were planning on using financing to buy a car, you would have had to make these payments, so just save the money you would have used to make those payments in your bank account. Once you've built up enough to buy a car, go get it.
If you have any extra cash on hand after buying the car, save it for potential repairs and regular maintenance. That way you'll always be ahead of the game and won't find yourself in a sticky spot again and scrambling to find a car you can afford.
Remember to check the car out thoroughly before you buy it. While high mileage isn’t always a death sentence, keep it in mind, especially in terms of how much you're willing to spend on preventative maintenance.