Are you a Credit Challenged Person? Here's What Not To Do!

If your human and you speak English you've undoubtedly hear the term "sub-prime" at some time over the last twelve months. For those of you still in doubt "sub-prime" basically lumps all those folks who have blemishes on their credit reports into one large, sprawling category of people. According to the experts, supposedly less than half of us fall into this category. I'm not one to argue with the experts but I will tell you that far more than half of potential car buyers fall into the sub-prime sector of the credit world.

This isn't always a big deal. Like I said before this is one large category. Those in the upper echelon of the sub-prime world usually won't have much of struggle finding financing for their new vehicle purchase as long as they have stable employment, a down payment, and decent residence history. You might be this person if your worst sin is paying late on a couple of credit cards now and then. Unfortunately for me, even this customer is becoming more and more difficult to find.

More and more of us seem to be having difficulty meeting our obligations lately. Which isn't necessarily the end of the world. If your local dealer is any good at all he or she will have multiple financing options available to provide loans for the majority of folks that come on the lot. What most customers don't understand however is that these programs are very expensive for both them and the dealer. These programs also sometimes seem to require more information and documentation than a Top-Secret clearance from the U.S. Government. Unlike horse-shoes and hand grenades almost isn't going to cut it either. Which is why often times an otherwise qualified buyer gets turned away.

It is how you respond to this rejection Mr. or Ms. Customer that will ultimately decide your fate. If you graciously accept the bad news and go home to start compiling the necessary information and politely keep your salesperson in the loop during this process, your dealer is likely to go to the ends of the earth to obtain financing for your desired vehicle. I can say this with some authority because I have personally gone to great lengths to get folks approved who really had no business getting a loan other than the simple fact they worked just as hard if not harder than I did to enable me to help them.

Upon hearing the word "no" most folks transform into what I like to call Mr. and Mrs. Entitled. They become indignant, they shout, they accuse me of wasting their time, and they demand an approval as if we can just arbitrarily change the bank's decision. Keep in mind, these folks are typically people who have never paid anyone for anything ever. Life, however, has dealt them a bad hand and because of whatever situation they find themselves in (usually one of their own creation) they feel they deserve a car because they need one. It is completely beyond this type of person's comprehension that the stock holders of the lending institutions they applied to couldn't care less about what their needs or wants are. You have to remember folks when you apply for a car loan you are asking someone for their own hard-won, cold, hard cash. Sure, they might get to hold the car as collateral but your vehicle isn't going to cover their payroll or pay their stockholders' dividends if you don't make your payments. If you've never written a good check in your life there is very little reason for someone to take a chance on you. If you couple this with the mentality of a five year old in a toy store, most of us normal folks will slam the door in your face and won't lose a moment's sleep about it either.

If your credit challenged you now know how important it is to have a good attitude when visiting your local car lot. You also need to be realistic. If you know you've rarely gotten the urge to pay a bill you should know that you are not going to be allowed to purchase your dream car either. Most automobile loans are based on a car's book value, or percentage of said book value. I'll be the first to tell you that most cars older than ten years don't have much of a value, no matter what your dealer may tell you otherwise. Most cars with more than 7o or 80 thousand miles on the odometer also don't hold much of a book value. So your dreams of that ten year old Mustang or Camaro or Corvette are not going to be coming true if your credit isn't the best. On the flip side of that coin, if you make $1600.00 a month, you are not going to be qualifying anytime soon for a thirty or forty thousand dollar car. You'll have a hard enough time getting approved for a twenty thousand dollar car.

I know this probably sounds like a typical line from a salesperson but in these situations we probably are better qualified than you are to determine what vehicles will give you the best chance of winning an approval. If your credit challenged, tell your salesperson this up front. We're going to probably figure it out on our own but it will save everyone time if you come clean at hello. Nothing shouts "get me financed" like a customer who is all to willing to pay full sticker for the first car they test drive. If your really unlucky you may actually get financed and end up like the customer in my Shopping... post. Be honest with your salesperson. He or she wants to help you. Chances are, he or she won't be getting paid unless they are able to successfully help you. Couple this financial motivator with a good attitude and honesty from you and your likely to find yourself driving sooner than you think.

This post was inspired by a young lady who attempted to purchase a vehicle at my store today. She was informed she would be better qualified with a co-buyer and politely sent on her way. After speaking with her salesperson via phone no less than six times in the first hour after she left she finally got to me. Her first words to me were "Aren't you going to help me get a car?" After replying that I could only do that if she found a qualified co-buyer she responded with "Aren't you supposed to call my family to ask them for me?" I of course informed her that I could not and would not be doing any such thing and she proceeded to spend the next two minutes colorfully telling me that I didn't deserve her business anyways before hanging up.

She was right. I don't deserve her type of business. No one does.

Welcome to My First Decade of Car Sales!

Hello and welcome to my blog! My name is Chad Pifer and I am the guy that allows attorneys to feel good about themselves. That's right, I sell used cars. I've been doing this for quite some time now and believe it or not I love what I do. I've been working for car dealers since 1995 and I've been selling cars since 1998.

I'm sure you've probably visited a car dealer at some point in your life. Odds are you've purchased at least one car from a dealer probably not so long ago. Ever wonder about what goes on at the car lot when your not there? Ever talk to a friend and listen to the same old story about how their salesperson kept getting up to go talk to the manager while negotiating for their best price? Ever drive by the local dealers and see rows of salespeople hanging around on the lots, probably laughing, usually animated, and maybe even smoking cigarettes? Ever scratch you head when you stop by six months after the sale to get your vehicle serviced and your salesperson "is no longer with us?"

If your anything like me, these thoughts probably have tickled your brain at some point or other. I used to wonder these things when I was old enough to accompany dad down to the dealer to pick up mom's next car. Car dealers have always seemed fascinating to me, and that fascination has never left even though I earn my living in them now.

Ten years of being on the sales floor at several different dealers have left me with enough stories to fill several books and I'll share some of them with you here. I'll also be giving you a frequent glimpse into the daily life of my industry as time goes on, highlighting not only the good, but the bad, the ugly, and the just plain unbelievable.

Some of my tales may make you laugh, some may make you cry. (Probably not really, after all its just retail.) Some might just tick you off. I only make one promise. I'll always be entertained and you might be too!

Thanks for stopping by and check back soon!

Shopping at your local car dealer. Why?

Yes, I asked the forbidden question. Why do you actually go shopping at your local dealers? Maybe you don't but the amount of people who do would amaze you. You all know the drill. This is supposed to be the second largest investment purchase of your life. Yet so many people show up at car lots with barely a clue as to why they are there.

I'm not speaking of the proverbial tire kickers either. I used to be a proud member of that group and while I visited dealers often, I rarely had any intention of buying. I just like cars and I just like to be around them, especially the ones that I'm in no danger of buying in the immediate future. So I once was the guy my fellow salespeople absolutely despise. I tried not to take up anyone's time but when your a salesperson you rarely can afford the chance to take someone at their word and the "I'm just looking" phrase has had entire books written about it by sales trainers that teach us "I'm just looking" really means "I'm just looking unless you actually can sell me something right now." Of course I didn't know any of that when I was a mere civilian so I religiously used the "I'm just looking" excuse every time someone greeted me at the dealer.

Back to the task at hand; I'm addressing those of you who apparently wake up on any given day and just randomly decide that day is as good as any to go sign up for twenty or thirty grand of debt. You arrive at the dealer and allow yourselves to be led around the lot, truly not knowing what your looking for (even though your salesperson thinks your just being a tough customer) until eventually your salesperson convinces you to at least drive something. Usually at this point you finally exhibit qualities that assures the salesperson you are not the walking dead and you begin to do one of two things. If it's the salesperson's lucky day, you decide the vehicle your driving is acceptable and within an hour or so you'll be driving it home. Rare is the salesperson's lucky day however.

No, typically in the above situation you suddenly morph into the world's wisest automotive critic and you proceed to prove to all those in earshot that it is possible to have just enough information to be dangerous. Keep in mind when your shopping for your vehicle that even the greenest of salespeople have more experience at this than you do. If the average guy talks to ten people a week and five of them test drive and three of them buy, in two weeks he's completed six transactions which is something your not likely to do over the course of ten years. Unless you read this blog you don't know this so you proceed to talk and say things that you must think make salesperson believe you know what your about. At this point, most salespeople will intelligently sit back and let you talk. Then they will repeat whatever you just spewed out back to you and just like that you two have bonded. Better than that, you now believe your salesperson thinks you are an intelligent human being and you feel complimented by him or her.

Because of this bonding and of course because you have exhibited that you are an automotive expert who knows what you want, your salesperson will agree with your rejection of the first vehicle you drove and move up to the next best thing. This process will continue until you express your satisfaction. Once satisfied you will begin to negotiate your price and terms and assuming all is well you will purchase a car. Unfortunately, perhaps as early as the next morning and no later than the time you leave work, you will more than likely be kicking yourself for doing so. I'm not sure why this happens, but almost immediately after buying, you will do all of the research you should have done before shopping. And you will invariably come to the conclusion that you got ripped off and that your salesperson is really some sort of criminal mastermind disguised as a legitimate human being. You will also attempt to get out of your deal and your success in this will be largely determined by how you handle things on your end. At the end of the day, for no other reason than your lack of preparation, you will join the ranks of those people who would rather have a root canal than visit a car dealer.

Folks, you owe it to yourselves to at least do a little research before venturing out into the big, bad world of dealers. You'll come away much more satisfied with your experience and your salesperson will respect you a whole lot more too. Not one of us ever wants to get the "morning after" call from the irate customer who really is only mad at themselves for not doing their homework first. As salespeople, our lives are much simpler and it is much easier to build our client base if our customers are satisfied. I strive for this every day but satisfaction is one of those subjective things that starts with you. If your determined to brazenly visit one dealer without so much as even reading the ads in the Sunday paper you are almost assuring yourself of walking away unhappy. You'll be the poor tortured soul who finds the same car the very next day that appears nicer, has less mileage, and is cheaper than the one you bought today.