Imagine driving out of a car dealership in your own brand-new vehicle – what a great feeling! Buying a car is always an exhilarating event, but you need to come up with enough funds before you can get the vehicle you want. We are here to help you get the best loan and buy your dream car in five easy steps.

Start Managing Your Credit

Don’t think about applying without reviewing your credit first. You can look for free credit reports and use it to your advantage. Bad credit can damage your car loan rate; find a way to improve your credit ratings right away. You can start doing this by paying your bills on time, not going over your credit limits, correcting errors on your credit report and avoiding consolidating your accounts.

Set Your Spending Budget

Are you a diligent budgeter? If you’re not, now is your chance to start. Save money by tracking your finances. Knowing where it goes can help you with your budget. Start calculating how much your car payment might affect your budget. You can use an online car payment calculator like this one to make the job easier.

Think About the Future

Look at the big picture. Will the low cost you’re tempted to apply for pile up in the future? Affordable down payments may seem appealing, but that can mean the money you owe in the future will be greater than the vehicle’s worth! Compute your loan first by running details through a calculator.

Think about Insurance

You may consider life insurance and disability insurance when applying for your new car loan. These aren’t strict requirements, but they can help assure the lender that if something happens to you, you could still pay for your loan.

Prepayment Penalties – Buyer Beware!

Always read the fine print! It helps to stay calm and avoid rushing in, because you might end up with loans that require you to make extra payments or penalties. Avoid getting caught in the auto loan prepayment penalty track by asking us for help. We can help you assess your credit, work out a payment plan, and advise you regarding which financing option suits you best.

Do you want to find the best car financing option? Visit our finance options section to find out more. Call us today at 1300 887 967 for more details.

1) Ask to see the car in person.

If the seller agrees to your request, then chances are high that you are going to find a noteworthy vehicle. In a large way, this shows proof that the person selling is confident in the condition of the car and the price he is selling it at.

However, if the seller turns you down for whatever reason, it might be best to skip him in particular. There are numerous possibilities as to why someone selling a car would not want you to see the car in person. It could be possible that he does not want you to see the condition that the car is currently in. Or perhaps he could be looking for someone to con, which is a worse scenario. Of course, none of these are facts just yet, but are you really willing to take that chance?

Asking to see a car before you purchase it is pretty basic in the rule books of buying cars. This is particularly a greater factor in purchasing a used vehicle. Rarely will anyone buy a brand new vehicle from anywhere else but a dealership. But believe it or not, there are still those who fail to realise this truth. Keep in mind that the seller does not necessarily have a coherent dominating factor over you; it’s you who has the buying power, so take advantage of that fact. Don’t be intimidated and don’t be fooled by fraudulent people. Always be conscious of the people you meet by taking the necessary precautions.

2) Buying from a dealership is not a guarantee

You might be surprised at how well car dealerships have adapted to the internet. A great number of them already have an online presence where you can browse, set up, customise and even finance a car. Trips to the dealership and a physical test drive are things that can already be skipped if the buyer prefers not to practice the more traditional methods of purchasing an automobile. However, this can be a really bad idea  for dealerships sometimes negate the guarantees that they claim to offer. Again, it would be best to mix your online shopping with some actual physical checking. Scour the pages of the internet in search for the car that fits your idea and find a dealership that offers the best deal for that vehicle. Finally, when everything is all set and the only thing left to do is the sale itself, take time to visit the dealership before signing anything. You wouldn’t want to make a deposit for your dream vehicle only to find out that the last model was sold to someone else already.

Such a misfortune does happen, and the dealership will most likely make it difficult for you to get your money back in the way that they will most probably persuade you to buy a different model instead. It’s great that the internet offers us so much assistance, but don’t neglect more traditional methods when it comes to purchasing the car you desire.

3) Look out for warning signs

Finding a deal that is too good to be true might turn out to be just that! If you encounter any of these elements while in the process of purchasing, veer away from the seller as soon as you can.

• Price offered is way under the market value of the car
• Seller keeps linking you to different websites to get the transaction done
• Seller does not want to meet you in person

Buying a car online is still a relatively safe endeavor. But it is always better to do your due diligence and be on the safe side!

Changes to Federal legislation will amend HP agreements to be a fully taxable supply. For these agreements, the supply of credit will now be taxable instead of input taxed.

Previously, GST was only payable on the purchase price of the Asset being financed. From 1 July 2012 GST is payable on the purchase price of the asset plus all term charges (interest) and fees.

 As of 1 July, 2012, businesses using Cash accounting and financing assets by way of a HP agreement, can claim GST charged on the purchase price of the asset financed plus GST on the interest in exactly the same way they do using the Accruals accounting method: up-front, when they lodge their next BAS. As hirers will be able to claim the GST on the interest upfront, it will provide an immediate cash flow benefit. It will exceed the cash flow benefit of equipment loans given that the GST credit is higher for hire purchase agreements, because the GST applies to the credit as well as the asset.

Early payout or variation to a HP agreement will also involve a GST adjustment.

HP Agreements funded prior to July 1, 2012 will continue unaffected unless they are re-financed to form a new agreement.