Buying a Car the Right Way

Learn the right order of steps for buying a car, why the monthly payment question is a trap, and the four places a deal can hide money.

Learn how to budget for a car from its total cost of ownership, how the loan term changes the interest you pay, and why a down payment helps.

Learn how to research a car before you buy: free recall checks, NMVTIS title history, the FTC Buyers Guide, odometer disclosure, the test drive, and an independent inspection.

Learn why depreciation is often the biggest cost of a car's first few years, how to research a model's future value yourself, and how fast depreciation and long loans can leave you owing more than the car is worth.

Learn what J.D. Power, Black Book and Kelley Blue Book are, the different kinds of value each guide publishes, and how to use them as a range when you trade in or buy a car.

Learn how lenders figure loan-to-value on a car, what goes into the amount financed, how lender limits work, and why the book sheet a dealer sends the lender must match the real car.

Learn what an auto loan pre-approval is and isn't, how credit scores treat several auto loan inquiries, how to compare offers, and how to use a pre-approval at the dealership.

Learn how dealer-arranged financing works, what buy rates, contract rates and dealer reserve mean, how markups have been limited, and what fair lending law says about how you're charged.

Learn what the out-the-door price includes, how to get written quotes from several dealers, where extra charges hide, and why you agree on price before any credit application.

Learn how the same monthly payment can hide a longer term, a higher rate or packed add-ons, and how to compare offers using the Truth in Lending numbers instead of the payment.

Learn what GAP, service contracts, prepaid maintenance, tire and wheel coverage and product bundles are, how they raise your loan, and your options to compare, negotiate, decline or cancel them.

Learn how to find your payoff and your trade's value, collect written offers, negotiate the trade after the price, and compare offers after your state's sales tax rules.

Learn how to read a car contract's Truth in Lending box and itemization, what to do about spot delivery and yo-yo financing, the truth about cooling-off periods, lemon law basics, and where to complain.