Citi Auto Financial CITI FINANCING Fleeced. Huge Interest Rate. Enormous Financing Charges Columbus Ohio
In august of 2007 I was told by the car lot Bobb Chev after applying for a car that Citi Financial Auto had approved me to purchase a car that costs 18,000 and some change. I was completely excited because I had never purchased a nice newer car before. I was a first time car buyer. The car payment seemed afforadable.. However... After the LITERAL flurry of paperwork I signed I drove my shiney car home and looked over the paperwork to find a 15.9% interest rate and a whopping $10,000 dollar finance charge. The interest rate I could swallow because I did in fact have poor credit at the time. But the ten grand finance charge that was listed in one little tiny box on one of the multiple pieces of paper that was sent to me in a literal flurry of rushed paper work I am upset over. I have been stewing for a year and a half because of this.
Why? Because my credit was in the mid 500's and I couldnt get anything done. Since then I have done tons of work on my credit and haven't missed one payment and now my lowest credit rating is 621, which isnt high. But its huge progress for me. So now I am applying for refinancing. Tried one place and was denied and have one more hope. Otherwise I am stuck paying Citi Financial Auto 28,000+ on a car that shouldn't have even been 18k.
I was unaware of what was happening to me when signing the paper work and what it all meant. It was only after some investigation and financial research on my part that I understood what was going on. I feel stupid. I feel fleeced. I'm not sure which I feel more. If I can't get the car refinanced I am stuck paying 400 a month until august 2013. Heart Breaking. I am trying to do the right thing and not skip out on my obligations. I did sign the contract. I AM paying it to my dismay.To this day I have never been a single day late on the payment.Ugh. I just hope that other people aren't as foolish as I was and take my story for a good learning lesson. Pay close attention when signing anything. Don't let yourself be rushed.
K in ohio
Columbus, Ohio
U.S.A.
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Robert
Irvine,California,
U.S.A.
No RipOff Here...
#2Consumer Comment
Tue, February 03, 2009
You had a Credit Score in the Mid-500's and still got an interest rate of 15.9%. You should be on your knees thanking Citi, as most people in your situation would be lucky if they got a 20% rate.
It is not Citi's fault that you didn't understand what you were signing. You should have done all of your "research" BEFORE you bought the car. You knew enough to know your credit was not the greatest, yet you still went for the 18K car. What were you expecting 5%, 2%, or heck even 0% interest. In fact you may even be thinking that they should have paid you to take the car. Contrary to what you may think, banks are not non-profit organizations. They are taking a risk in letting you borrow almost 20K. If you look at an amortization table at the end of your loan you indeed will be paying a total of about 10K in interest. So they are not charging you anything extra or did not even appear to be hidden.