Hello. I know that these types of questions are not well regarded, but I need to be honest and we all made mistakes sometimes. And did mine in 2023-2024.
Question is. My credit it is destroyed. 440. With recent lates payments. Almost a repossession (I paid and got it back). My lease finish next week.
Looking a for ev deal. 24 months lease (doing movements to solve my credit in this 2 years. ) the cheapest. I live in South Florida and the public transportation here it is almost zero. And I need a vehicle to work.
Anyone (broker) could be help me with that. I know the interest it is going to be really high. But it is a consequence and penalty for having/making bad decisions.
Please don’t judge me because I am already having a bad time,
Problem here is finding a lender thats willing to approve you, most of these lenders have a score that are allowed to work with. Its gonna be hard, best bet getting a used car that you can pay it out right, and focus on building your credit. Unless you have someone to co-sign for you. Goodluck
It’s not that sexiest option, but this is the way. Get a $7,000 car and pay $5,000 of it cash and finance the rest just as a credit building exercise.
A new lease should not even be a consideration. A new anything should not even be a consideration. The amount of money that you will deploy merely to service the interest rate will be brutal.
This. Even if you end up with a bargain deal at $200 a month, the upfront fees and interest are going to cost you far more than a purchase and you’ll be in the same situation where 2-3 years from now you’re left trying to jump into another lease.
If you’re actively working muster every bit of cash you can spare and put it towards something reliable and 10-15 years old. Get it inspected ahead of purchasing it to avoid any major mechanical hurdles and consider going directly to a private party and not a dealer. A used Honda/Toyota will cover you for a few years and if you can find something ugly but mechanically sound (paint damage, minor fender benders) you’ll get away with it. Then once you’ve started to rehab your credit score and have more income to cover such expenses worry about the car.
Care to share what type of car you are leasing and what are the payments?
I was going to ask if you can extend the lease but since it ends next week, it might be too short of a notice.
As others have said, focus on rebuilding your credit by making payments on time. It is going to take some time (a few years), but that’s the only way you are going to be able to get approved for a loan or a lease in the future. Not sure what the minimum FICO score is required by some lenders (620+), but that should be your North Star (what your score should be).
for scores like that I get them approved on the used Bolt EVs because they’re only like $15k car and can get qualified for $4k federal rebate point of sale that acts as “cash down”.
Not only is it a new battery, GM extended the battery warranty, too. So all of the important stuff is warrantied for a long time. And Bolts are very efficient so it costs pennies to run.
I’m kind of entertained by many of these answers. For perspective- I am a current finance director, in a new car dealership.
Just this week I had a couple with a 780 credit score that I couldn’t get bought, why? Their DTI (debt to income) was absolute trash, like so bad, that they miss one paycheck and they were going to be needing to file bankruptcy. Now also this week, I had no problem getting a couple with a 490 and a 586 on a new WRX lease with Subaru Chase- a little shocking as Chase in general can be pretty strict.
Many folks on here mentioned he should buy a cash car and focus on rebuilding his credit. I only agree if the damage you made to your credit has you buried in bad debt (credit cards, late payments on other loans-that aren’t current, etc).
Now if his debts are current, his monthly cash flow is comfortable, and he’s about to work on building a nest egg again, then a cheap lease is a fast way to build up his auto credit again. If he doesn’t take out an auto loan/lease, that portion of his credit will be garbage till he gets some positive activity on it again.
My advise? Hit up a Nissan, Kia, or Hyundai dealership if you want an EV, and go for a lease special. Your payment is likely to be 2x what a tier one buyer would be, but it would get you rolling again over the next 24-40 months. Also consider a non-EV through anything from Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge, or VW. The manufacturers I mentioned all have captive leasing companies that are primed and ready for bad credit buyers. Lease this vehicle- don’t buy it. If you have a lot of debt, and your income isn’t high enough to offset it, you will have a hard time getting bought. Be transparent with the dealership. Don’t pepper your credit at 5 dealers too. Select one or two tops.
This is exactly what we’re hoping the OP avoids. A cheap $300 lease becoming a $600 one. An extra $300/mo is also nearly $11k after 36 months.
That’s why I suggested a $7k car but only finance $2k of it. Rebuild the credit but do it with a minimal amount of interest cost given the inevitably high rate.
