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How to Buy a Used Car
Popularity of
High-Quality Used Rental Cars Accelerating Among American Car Buyers
“Zero-percent financing.” “Thousands in cash back.”
Thought to be one-hit wonders a few years ago, these phrases
continue to top the charts in today’s automobile market. They may be
music to new car buyers’ ears, but the volume is drowning out
awareness of the best deal – high-quality used automobiles.
According to experts at Kelley Blue Book, in three years a
new car could lose between 60 and 75 percent of its value. In fact,
the two-minute drive off the lot can cost some owners up to 15
percent of their new vehicle’s value. With that kind of
depreciation, it’s no wonder that Americans purchase more than 40
million used vehicles every year.
Imagine if you could find an automobile that you knew had been
well maintained the first years of its life – the oil changed when
recommended; brakes, tires and other parts inspected regularly;
exterior and interior cleaned regularly. And what if that 1- to
3-year-old vehicle also came with a 12-month/12,000-mile warranty
and a seven day repurchase policy? Actually, this requires no
imagination at all.
Consumers have access to literally tens of thousands of
low-mileage, late-model, high quality used vehicles via car rental
companies. In 2004, American motorists purchased 1.5 million used
rental vehicles. These vehicles – while driven by multiple motorists
– receive a lot of TLC, and the financial benefits are many: lower
prices, less depreciation, and lower insurance, financing, licensing
and registration costs.
“The truth is that rental cars represent some of the best buys in
today’s market,” said Tim Walsh, senior vice president of Enterprise
Car Sales, a division of Enterprise Rent A-Car. “Having
well-maintained and reliable vehicles is the life-blood of the
rental car business, so these vehicles receive proper inspections
and extra care and attention. We also offer a seven-day repurchase
policy on our vehicles.”
For more information and additional tips on pricing and buying
used vehicles, visit Kelley Blue Book (www.kbb.com)
and NADA (www.nada.com).
Article re-printed with permission from Enterprise Car Sales.
Free Credit Report
Texans are now able to get a
FREE copy of their credit report every 12 months from each of the
three national credit bureaus—Experian, Trans-Union and Equifax – by
visiting
www.annualcreditreport.com or calling 1-877-322-8228.
Free credit reports were mandated by the Fair and Accurate Credit
Transactions Act of 2003 to help reduce the fast-growing crime of
identity theft. It is smart to check your credit before applying for
a vehicle or mortgage loan, since information in your credit report
helps determine your interest rate.
Once you have a copy of your credit report, review it and look
for incorrect names and addresses, accounts that do not belong to
you, or accounts incorrectly listed as open or delinquent, or
bankruptcies, charge-offs, or judgments that do not belong to you.
If you would like to improve your credit rating, then perhaps you
should enroll in AFCU’s Credit Builder Program.
The Asset Recovery department developed the Credit Builder
Program for our members to establish a secure future. The program
assists a person that may have experienced financial difficulties,
and correct current or past credit problems by establishing a
step-by-step process. It is never too late to start improving your
credit. If you have questions about how you can improve your credit
or the Credit Builder Program, contact the Asset Recovery department
at 210-554-8770.
Identity Theft Brohcure
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