What is best financing rate now?

[Tuba]

. They said they never got any Rate Beat request from me. So I emailed them my pre-approval letter again from my local CU.

I was told the same thing. I submitted the rate beat documentation yesterday 08/21/2018 at 5pm and I have not heard anything. So I called at 2pm and they told me to resubmit...resubmitted at 2 still did not hear anything till 5.. resubmitted again using Gmail account as it maybe my yahoo email is having issues.


Is it me or we all agree that, it has been a challenge to get written approval letters from Credit Unions with APR and month terms ? I found it very frustrating that I submit my application and they say you are approved but will not give you the terms until you show us the purchase and sale with us as a Lien holder..

 

[Chak]

DCU didn't give me a confirmation letter either, however they approved my loan through phone. They told me to submit MVPA with VIN on it to issue check for Tesla.

Tesla DA initially asked me for pre-approval letter from the bank. After emailing him what I heard from DCU, he's fine with no pre-approval letter.

 

[CrazyCoconut]

I was told the same thing. I submitted the rate beat documentation yesterday 08/21/2018 at 5pm and I have not heard anything. So I called at 2pm and they told me to resubmit...resubmitted at 2 still did not hear anything till 5.. resubmitted again using Gmail account as it maybe my yahoo email is having issues.


Is it me or we all agree that, it has been a challenge to get written approval letters from Credit Unions with APR and month terms ? I found it very frustrating that I submit my application and they say you are approved but will not give you the terms until you show us the purchase and sale with us as a Lien holder..

Maybe that's the common factor. I'm also using an yahoo email. Perhaps I should try using my Gmail instead?

Do you have their phone number? I can't find it anywhere.

I applied in person at my local CU and had to specifically ask my loan officer to include the terms information in the approval letter.

 

[Tuba]

LS phone number 866-635-1330 when I called they already received my documentation. Rep. put me on hold and before he came back I already saw my rate beat approved.I would like to thank everyone on this website and forum for the help and I will draft my story here financing from Boston. (FICO 829 financing only 55% of purchase price)

I received a credit union pre-approval for %2.49 APR at 84 months. I was looking for long term low rate to have comfortable cash flow with the option to prepay if needed thus reducing the total interest paid..With current rising interest rates I see low probability for this.
The credit union only sent me a preapproval with no rate terms info. I asked them to send it in email they were nice to send. (NOT LOCAL credit union I will update the credit union name later)
Sent that to lightstream and they approved the rate beat %2.39 for 84 months unsecured loan. Very happy and pleased with lightstream.

For those who are in the Boston area here is my credit union hunting experience:

I applied to Boston City credit union they have %2.75 APR for 84 months but they refused to put anything in writing and I can comfortably say they were rude. Very disappointed that we give out all our financial information and credit and some of those credit unions don't even give a conditional written approval. They said I will find out the rate when I have the purchase and sale with them as the lien holder and they can only verbally guarantee the rate.

Others Financing options I considered:
https://www.memberspluscu. org/rates/ 84 months at 2.99%
Quincy credit union 72 months at 2.24%
everence 72 months at 3%

Good luck everyone!

 

[CrazyCoconut]

LS phone number 866-635-1330 when I called they already received my documentation. Rep. put me on hold and before he came back I already saw my rate beat approved.I would like to thank everyone on this website and forum for the help and I will draft my story here financing from Boston. (FICO 829 financing only 55% of purchase price)

I received a credit union pre-approval for %2.49 APR at 84 months. I was looking for long term low rate to have comfortable cash flow with the option to prepay if needed thus reducing the total interest paid..With current rising interest rates I see low probability for this.
The credit union only sent me a preapproval with no rate terms info. I asked them to send it in email they were nice to send. (NOT LOCAL credit union I will update the credit union name later)
Sent that to lightstream and they approved the rate beat %2.39 for 84 months unsecured loan. Very happy and pleased with lightstream.

For those who are in the Boston area here is my credit union hunting experience:

I applied to Boston City credit union they have %2.75 APR for 84 months but they refused to put anything in writing and I can comfortably say they were rude. Very disappointed that we give out all our financial information and credit and some of those credit unions don't even give a conditional written approval. They said I will find out the rate when I have the purchase and sale with them as the lien holder and they can only verbally guarantee the rate.

Others Financing options I considered:
https://www.memberspluscu. org/rates/ 84 months at 2.99%
Quincy credit union 72 months at 2.24%
everence 72 months at 3%

Good luck everyone!

Thanks for sharing! I was literally on the phone with them when my rate beat approval finally came in

 

[robt_sf]

Used a credit union for my last car purchase so went down that route again. If you are buying a Tesla and live / work in either San Francisco or San Mateo Counties SF Federal Credit Union is hands down the best in terms of rates and service. Painless application process & has dealt with Tesla multiple times so knows the drill. I know I could beat with Lightstream but with a branch less than a mile from my house can't be beat!

San Francisco Federal Credit Union

FYI 2.49 for up to 59 Months / 2.24 up to 47 months. Not too bad.

 

[EVGhost3]

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences.
I am now searching for a good rate. I have a question however. When you got your call to secure a loan, how did you determine what amount you owe? My tesla account is saying $61000. But I don’t see any breakdown of my configuration and don’t see anywhere the amount I’ve paid already which is $3500 for reservation and configuration. This will help me figure out my loan amount.

 

[CrazyCoconut]

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences.
I am now searching for a good rate. I have a question however. When you got your call to secure a loan, how did you determine what amount you owe? My tesla account is saying $61000. But I don’t see any breakdown of my configuration and don’t see anywhere the amount I’ve paid already which is $3500 for reservation and configuration. This will help me figure out my loan amount.

Your Tesla account should have a detailed breakdown of costs. Not sure what to tell you if you don't have that. Maybe call customer service?

 

[hotony13]

Sorry for the late response, but I just had a quick question to follow up. If my uncle applies and is approved for the unsecured loan, does that have any bearing on who he can register the title of the car for? I would be the one driving the car 99% of the time, but to receive the federal tax credit, he needs to have some ownership as well. So basically, could he put both our names on the title?

 

[Runt8]

Sorry for the late response, but I just had a quick question to follow up. If my uncle applies and is approved for the unsecured loan, does that have any bearing on who he can register the title of the car for? I would be the one driving the car 99% of the time, but to receive the federal tax credit, he needs to have some ownership as well. So basically, could he put both our names on the title?

It’s unsecured, so it shouldn’t matter who’s on the title.

 

[gtbuzz]

How do I do an unsecured loan through Lightstream? Do I just select a new auto loan or is it a different option? I didn't seem to see a check box anywhere.

Looking at what other people posted here I should qualify. Unsecured seems the easiest since I would like to lock in a low rate (via match) and only have a broad 3 month delivery window right now. I'm okay with paying on the loan before I have the car.

 

[wbhokie]

Sorry for the late response, but I just had a quick question to follow up. If my uncle applies and is approved for the unsecured loan, does that have any bearing on who he can register the title of the car for? I would be the one driving the car 99% of the time, but to receive the federal tax credit, he needs to have some ownership as well. So basically, could he put both our names on the title?

As Runt8 said, it doesn't matter who applies for the unsecured loan in regards to the title itself. Using an unsecured loan basically just means there is no Lien, and that you are paying "Cash" to the dealer. That being said, when you make the purchase, whoever purchases the vehicle is who would claim the tax credit. So I'm sure you would need his name on some of the paperwork, but I'm not sure if that is the title. On a lease, you don't own it, so you can't claim the credit... the dealer does... so it might be the title, but you obviously don't send the title to the IRS. Good thing to ask Tesla in advance!

Now, since I doubt you are using Lightstream for your actual loan "rate" and are using a rate beat, I'm also assuming that your uncle is applying for the financing elsewhere too? Because they won't rate beat a loan you get approved for with an unsecured financing your uncle gets approved for. Since you didn't mention that I just wanted to be sure you knew that.

 

[dave999z]

How do I do an unsecured loan through Lightstream? Do I just select a new auto loan or is it a different option? I didn't seem to see a check box anywhere.

Looking at what other people posted here I should qualify. Unsecured seems the easiest since I would like to lock in a low rate (via match) and only have a broad 3 month delivery window right now. I'm okay with paying on the loan before I have the car.

You don't do anything in particular. You just apply for a loan. When you get your approval they will tell you if it's unsecured or secured. You don't have to ask for an unsecured loan -- if you qualify, that's what they'll give you.

 

[gtbuzz]

You don't do anything in particular. You just apply for a loan. When you get your approval they will tell you if it's unsecured or secured. You don't have to ask for an unsecured loan -- if you qualify, that's what they'll give you.

Thanks for the info!

 

[hotony13]

As Runt8 said, it doesn't matter who applies for the unsecured loan in regards to the title itself. Using an unsecured loan basically just means there is no Lien, and that you are paying "Cash" to the dealer. That being said, when you make the purchase, whoever purchases the vehicle is who would claim the tax credit. So I'm sure you would need his name on some of the paperwork, but I'm not sure if that is the title. On a lease, you don't own it, so you can't claim the credit... the dealer does... so it might be the title, but you obviously don't send the title to the IRS. Good thing to ask Tesla in advance!

Now, since I doubt you are using Lightstream for your actual loan "rate" and are using a rate beat, I'm also assuming that your uncle is applying for the financing elsewhere too? Because they won't rate beat a loan you get approved for with an unsecured financing your uncle gets approved for. Since you didn't mention that I just wanted to be sure you knew that.

Yeah most definitely. My uncle would be applying for all the loans and their respective rates. That’s really the only way to go about this I believe.

 

[Slumpey326]

I just called up lightstream and was getting over 5 for 84 months and over 4 for 72 months. I have excellent credit, around 800. How are people here getting around 3 for 84 months

 

[gtbuzz]

One more Lightstream question. When applying, I just picked 60 months as the loan term. If I get a qualifying offer from somewhere else for 36 months, will they still match that rate, just on a 36 month term? Conversely, if I ask for 36 months and get a good rate for 60, can I then match and switch to a 60?

 

[SoCalGuy]

One more Lightstream question. When applying, I just picked 60 months as the loan term. If I get a qualifying offer from somewhere else for 36 months, will they still match that rate, just on a 36 month term? Conversely, if I ask for 36 months and get a good rate for 60, can I then match and switch to a 60?

The terms have to match, eg if you apply and get approved for a 60 month loan at LS, they will only rate beat other 60 month approvals. You can always request they re-evaluate your application for a different term but that might be risky.

 

[CrazyCoconut]

I just called up lightstream and was getting over 5 for 84 months and over 4 for 72 months. I have excellent credit, around 800. How are people here getting around 3 for 84 months

That's just the standard LS rates now. Anything lower is from Rate Beat.

 

[voip-ninja]

I just called up lightstream and was getting over 5 for 84 months and over 4 for 72 months. I have excellent credit, around 800. How are people here getting around 3 for 84 months

Where are you seeing anyone getting a rate like that on an 84 month loan?

A couple of credit unions with very specific membership criteria are offering pretty good 60 and 72 month rates but rates overall have gone up quite a bit in the last 60 days and continue to go up.

84 month loan on a car is a bit crazy anyway. I can’t think of any reason anyone should even consider it unless the loan was absurdly low (under 2%).

84 month loan is perfect recipe for being quite upside down unless you made a substantial down payment.