Before you go to purchase a car, it's a good idea to review your Credit Report and Credit Score. Car dealers are notorious for pushing consumers to higher-priced loans and lenders even though they qualify for better rates. Checking your report and score and making sure you know what lending rate you qualify for can save you thousands of dollars on your electric vehicle purchase or lease. Don't skip this step - getting a better interest rate is where most of the savings on a car purchase or lease are to be found. The services below make it pretty easy.
If there's an error on your report that you can get corrected, or you can bump your score by paying down some credit cards, the lower interest rate that you'll qualify for because of the increase in your credit score could save you tens to hundreds of dollars per month on your car payment. Over the term of the loan or lease, that can add up to several thousand dollars.
There is only one site that will give you free access to all three of your credit reports as mandated under federal law. That site is AnnualCreditReport.com. There are a lot of other sites that look like or pretend to offer the same service, and some are even run by one of the big three credit bureaus. But don't be fooled. This is the real one, operated by Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. What this site will not give you for free is your credit score, which is available for free on some of the other sites listed below.
Annual Credit Report
This is a reputable site which will give you access to two of your credit scores, from TransUnion and Equifax. It also gives you a summary of your credit report and has a credit score calculator which can help you manage or create a plan to increase your credit score.
Credit Karma
Credit Sesame is another reputable credit management site. It will give you access to your TransUnion score. Like Credit Karma, it will give you a summary of your credit report and has a credit score calculator.
Credit Sesame
Several credit unions and finance firms give customers free access to a credit score. USAA and Ally Financial are two that provide this service. You can also purchase your FICO score direct from Fair Isaac. There are other credit monitoring services that will give you access to your score for a one-time or monthly fee. Be aware that the score you can purchase as a consumer may be different than the score used by a car dealer's finance department, which may be lower (less credit-worthy). The dealer may try to use this to steer you to higher-cost financing. To protect yourself against this technique, get pre-qualified by your bank or credit union. Shop around. Car financing is a competitive market, and a half point difference in rates translates to several hundred to a couple thousand dollars depending on the price of the car and the term of the loan.
It's a really good idea to get pre-qualified by your bank or credit union before heading down to a dealership. Your bank or credit union will often show you your credit score as part of their credit application process. It's worth the extra effort to see if you bank or credit union has better rates than you'll get through a dealership. At very least, you'll have a competitive bid and baseline to compare to when you get a quote from the dealer. Getting a lower interest rate from your bank or credit union is common and this small amount of effort can save you thousands of dollars. It's worth the extra effort, and often makes the financing process faster and easier.
