Steve Raymon Chevrolet Only interested in sales Smyrna Georgia
I went to this dealership in April 2015 with bad credit but in need of transportation. My sales rep seemed helpful at the time. I was informed that my interest and payments are high due to credit issues. OK that was fine. I also was told, by the lady that I signed my paperwork with, that if I paid my payments on time and kept the car in good condition I would be able to refinance and to apply with Associated Credit Union because they are partial in helping black people. Well, I did everything I was told to do and after two years of on time payments and rebuilding my credit. I applied for a refinance loan with two different lenders. I also tried to trade the vehicle. That's when I found out that I'm paying $550 for a 2015 Sonic LT that retail from $9k-$13k, which means as of now I've paid $13k (in 2years) for this vehicle and still owe $18k and I can't trade or refinance because I owe 197% more than what the vehicle is worth. Sometimes being a good person is very important when selling things to people who may not be able to afford them. No matter how bad an individual's credit may be is it really necessary to put them in a worse situation? On top of that Steve Raymon was emailing me "special offers" that I thought would and could me but I don't quality even for a Steve Raymon deal and was informed that I shouldn't contact them (Steve Raymon Chevrolet) anymore because they couldn't help me!! Needless to say I haven't received any more "special offers" from them. So I'm buying a car 3 times!! Thanks SRC for nothing and more stress!!
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Robert
Irvine,California,
USA
You failed to realize..
#2Consumer Comment
Mon, March 06, 2017
There are a few things you do not understand about auto financing. You are trying to compare your situation NOW with your situation 2 years ago. This is like comparing Apples to Oranges, and that does not work.
Based on the dates you purchased a NEW car with bad credit. It is also very likely that you put down a minimal down payment, have a very long term loan (6+ years), and have a high interest rate (10%+) and allowed them to add on all of the extras such as GAP, Warranty, and probably some maintenance packages. Meaning you already started out owing several thousand dollars than the car was worth at that time, and pretty much everything you should NOT do in purchasing a car.
As the dealer said you are paying a high interest rate due to credit. A majority of the 13K you have paid goes to the Interest payments, if you were to look at the actual amortization It is likely that only a couple thousand dollars has gone to the actual principal. But this is how ALL car loans work. You will ALWAYS pay the most interest in the beginning of a loan. Where with your first few payments only $10-$20 may have actually gone to the Principal. But at the end of the loan, it would switch to only $10-$20 of the payment going to Interest.
Another rule about cars is that they lose value, and you can not judge what a car is worth now as a basis for saying you overpaid. They gave you a price, and you agreed to it. Because for a car that is worth 9K-13K now will probably be worth 6K-8K by the time you have paid it off. This again is just how it is with ANY car and why when you have "bad" credit getting a higher priced new car may not be the best move, because new cars have a much greater rate of depreciation.
One common tactic dealers use is the "Well you can refinance". I am actually surprised because many dealers will tell you that you can refinance in about 6 months. They gave you a more realistic time of 2 years to give you time to build up credit. But that is where it ends, as this is never guaranteed. As if it was they would put it in writing, which I can guarantee you that even if you asked they would refuse to.
But all is not lost. You have built up 2 years of positive history. You may want to try and remove any extra's you have on the car such as a Warranty. It may not be possible due to the time but you may be able to get something. You may also want to look at other refinancing companies. I know that Ca***al O*e used to have a very good refi program even for cars with large amounts of negative equity. But one other piece of advice. Do not fall into the "trap" of refinancing for a lower amount but extending out the length of your loan. If you only have 4 years left(for example) only refinance for 4 years or less. Don't do another 5-6 year loan or you are just going to end up paying more for this car in the end.