
Ready to trade in your car near Springfield, Callaway, and Panama City, FL, but still have an auto loan? If so, we at VW of Panama City want to help! We put together this overview to guide you through the steps in the process.
As you learn more about how to trade in a car when you still have a loan below, don’t hesitate to contact one of our friendly associates with any questions.
To begin, you may be wondering, “how soon can you trade in a financed car?” In most cases, you can trade in a car for another one even if you’re still paying off your loan. The first step, though, is to figure out whether you have positive or negative equity in the vehicle, which will impact the rest of the process.
The difference between the amount you have left on your car loan and the total value of your car determines the type of equity you have.
What is Positive Equity?
Positive equity means you have less money left on your car loan than the total value of the vehicle. When you trade in your car in this case, you can often apply it towards the down payment on your next ride.
What is Negative Equity?
On the other hand, if you have negative equity, this means your vehicle is worth less than the amount you still owe on the car loan. In this case, you can either:
The third option is to wait until you’ve paid off the loan before moving forward with a trade-in. Especially if you recently purchased a new car, it’s a good rule of thumb to wait at least a year before trading it in.
Since new cars depreciate significantly in the first year or so, you may find that you have positive equity after you wait, even if you haven’t yet paid off the loan in full.
If you’re still paying off your car loan, you’ll want to gather some important items before heading to the dealership to trade it in. Make sure you have all the information about your car loan, including how much you have left on it and your account number.
Along with that, grab your keys, any extra equipment, and your:
Additionally, if you’ve valued your trade-in online, you can bring along that information too.
Many times, trading in your current set of wheels is a quick and efficient way to reduce the monthly payments on your next car. That’s because you can apply the value of your trade-in towards the down payment.
The bigger a down payment you provide, the less you need to finance with an auto loan. In turn, this means you’ll likely have lower monthly payments because you’ll have a smaller car loan to pay off.
Now that you know a bit more about how to trade-in a car with a loan, it’s time to start the process. Contact us at VW of Panama City to find out how to trade in your car near Springfield, Callaway, and Panama City, Florida!
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