Finance Tips

Though almost everybody knows how balloon loans work, it is always smart to reexamine the concept so as to have the variables implied fresh to analyze how they work on car loans.
Thus, we will give a short explanation on balloon loans and then, we’ll analyze how balloon loans can help you afford a car purchase and in which situations it is advisable to resort to car balloon loans.

Balloon loans explained

A balloon loan is a loan that has monthly payments that are not set up to repay the loan in full when the loan repayment program ends. Instead, when the loan schedule has ended, the borrower has to make a balloon payment which is larger than the rest of the payments and cancels the whole loan’s principal so until then, the loan isn’t fully paid off.

Balloon loans help keep the monthly payments low as they usually include interests only or maybe a small portion of the balance. Thus, when the final balloon payment is due, the balance of the loan usually equals the loan’s principal or is well close to it. This particularity makes balloon loans useful for certain situations or when the purpose is to eventually sell whatever has been bought with the loan’s money.

Consequences on Car Loans

Balloon loans are a good alternative when you can’t afford the monthly payments on a regular car loan. The affordability of balloon car loans’ monthly payments is excellent and lets almost anyone to obtain finance to purchase a car. However, the problem comes when you need to make that balloon payment at the end of the repayment program. If you can’t afford it, you’ll loose the vehicle and damage your credit.

Why do we say that car loans of the balloon type can be advantageous then? Because, if used correctly, the cost to you can equal almost nothing. If you are one of those who likes to change cars every now and then (i.e. every five years at most), balloon loans can be an excellent tool for you. By using balloon loans you can get a car, use it for five years owning it and paying monthly payments even lower than rent installments.

The idea is quite simple: You purchase a vehicle with a balloon car loan, you use your car for up to 75% of the loan’s repayment schedule and then you put it for sale. Hopefully, before the balloon payment is due, you’ll have completed the sale and canceled the loan in full. Then, you can take another balloon loan to purchase your new vehicle. It’s cheap and viable, the only problem is that you have to make sure that the car is sold before the balloon payment is due or else, you’ll have to obtain the money to cancel the loan or refinance it.

What would you say if I tell you that credit cards could be beneficial for you in some situations? While many will advise you stay away from credit cards, there are specific situations where getting a credit card is highly recommendable, if you are struggling with your monthly bills, something no unusual nowadays because of the world economic state, then consider apply for a credit card with zero APR on balance transfers.

Credit cards providers are very active offering promotions and uncountable bonus that you can get just by using your ones, after all their business is all about you using them. However, after a while our human nature is exposed and we realize that we are carrying to much debt, we crossed the line and it is time to do something about it, if we do not do it, then we will pay a higher monthly interest rate that, sooner or later will be impossible to pay with the well know consequences, poor credit score or bad credit records for example.

Zero APR balance transfer credit card then, are a good alternative if we are planning getting control of our finance, as you can see 0% interest rate sounds too good from the beginning, while this is undoubtedly true there are still some aspects to be analyzed and, we have listed them for easy research.

1.- A zero APR for a period of time of 1-2 months is not useful at all, then you need to apply with a credit card provider offering you a zero APR for a span of time as long as possible.

2.- It could be obvious but if you have to pay any fee for balance transfer, then “0% APR balance transfer” is not true, just make sure that you pay nothing, zero, nada for these kind of transactions.

3.- After the introductory period of time with 0% APR (as long as…) you will start paying the regular APR, then the one offering the lower regular APR got some extra points in your credit card providers list.

4.- Are you allowed to transfer the entire balance of your high interest credit card, or just a part of it? you will not get all the benefits if you can transfer just some part of your balance.

5.- Are the purchases made with your credit card 0% APR? it is on your best interest having zero APR on your purchases as well and, as a bonus, a good reward program would work very good.

6.- Are you going to pay on time? if you fail making your payments on the due date, you will be charged the regular interest rate, instead of the zero APR introductory rate offered.

To sum up, consumers having credit cards debt have an option with 0% APR cards, they just need to be sure they are getting a zero APR for as long as possible, that there is no payment for balance transfer and that they can transfer the total balance and not just part of it, then getting a low regular interest rate after the introductory span of time offer is highly recommendable, and as usual, understand that by paying on time it is the only way to keep the zero APR offer while building good credit history.