Please Define "Well Qualified" Buyers

[Cannonball]

This is in reference to the 0% 36 and 72 month CC financing offers. I'm sure there will be some changes by tomorrow but I'm more interested in experience of people qualifying or not from certain credit scores, debt to income ratios, etc.

Looking for a quantitative answer here but the thread title leads towards connotative one's as well!

 

[surfingcrna]

My experience with that term has always been related to credit score, and they use the lowest of the three. Even a credit score over 800 didn't get me well qualified.

 

[79 300]

I don't know what the number is now, but about 5 years ago you needed 720 minimum to qualify for the best rates or offers, at least that is what a dealer told me.

 

[robe2388]

I'm pretty sure anything over 700 is well qualified, but then again I've been told car companies look for more than just your regular credit score. Supposedly they have their own system that if I was to guess would be your past car loans and lease history and such, but that's just a guess.

 

[habu987]

From my understanding, the general rule of thumb is that 720 or above makes you well qualified.

That being said, it all depends on which credit score they're pulling. There are approximately 30 different FICO score versions (~10 each for Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax), and then there are the non-FICO scores such as the Vantage scores. On top of that, some financial organizations create their own proprietary credit score based in part on data from the big three credit bureaus.

For my lease, they pulled my Equifax FICO score. Equifax currently has the FICO Score 8, FICO Score 5, Auto Score 8, Auto Score 5, Bankcard Score 8, Bankcard Score 5, FICO Score 9, Auto Score 9, and Bankcard Score 9. My Equifax Auto Score 8 is the closest number to the one they pulled, so I presume that's they one they pulled for me, unless they have their own proprietary score based on Equifax data.

 

[Cannonball]

From my understanding, the general rule of thumb is that 720 or above makes you well qualified.

That being said, it all depends on which credit score they're pulling. There are approximately 30 different FICO score versions (~10 each for Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax), and then there are the non-FICO scores such as the Vantage scores. On top of that, some financial organizations create their own proprietary credit score based in part on data from the big three credit bureaus.

For my lease, they pulled my Equifax FICO score. Equifax currently has the FICO Score 8, FICO Score 5, Auto Score 8, Auto Score 5, Bankcard Score 8, Bankcard Score 5, FICO Score 9, Auto Score 9, and Bankcard Score 9. My Equifax Auto Score 8 is the closest number to the one they pulled, so I presume that's they one they pulled for me, unless they have their own proprietary score based on Equifax data.

@habu987 I remember seeing that you leased your longhorn. I've been following edmunds forums which I saw you posted in as well to get CC's prime MF and residuals for term, mileage, location and model. From experience, being well qualified, how close to the posted MF did Koons' finance dept get for you? That forum is a great bit of industry insight but if dealers are blowing the banks numbers up for profit it's futile ever knowing what could have been.

 

[da_Vinci_of_sorts]

720 and above will get you the best rates. This said, interest rates are rising and 3.4% is about as low as they will go at the moment. If you are seeing something lower, this usually means forfeiting rebates. When you do this you are essentially paying cash up front to offset the money the bank would've made over time.

 

[Cannonball]

The current 36 mo @ 0% has no rebate/infective exclusions that are shown or that I am aware of. Mind you this is for a limited non etorque.

 

[habu987]

@habu987 I remember seeing that you leased your longhorn. I've been following edmunds forums which I saw you posted in as well to get CC's prime MF and residuals for term, mileage, location and model. From experience, being well qualified, how close to the posted MF did Koons' finance dept get for you? That forum is a great bit of industry insight but if dealers are blowing the banks numbers up for profit it's futile ever knowing what could have been.

They padded it. Posted MF was .00109, I got .00151 from Koons.

 

[Cannonball]

They padded it. Posted MF was .00109, I got .00151 from Koons.

Yikes 1.75% additional... They aren't helping make the higher trims lease friendly.

 

[Cannonball]

Yikes 1.75% additional... They aren't helping make the higher trims lease friendly.

*1% ... Dyslexia kicked in there with 4200 vs 2400!

 

[habu987]

Ye

*1% ... Dyslexia kicked in there with 4200 vs 2400!

Yeah, not great, but still within the margins as far as I'm concerned. If it had been a 1.5% spread or more, that's where I'd have really started negotiating.