72 Month Car Loan Comparison Guide

Comparing one 72 month car loan to another will help you find the best loan terms and help you decide if a longer loan is the right thing for you. These loans commit you to 6 years of repayment, so you want to be sure you consider all the options and make a careful decision before you enter into such a lengthy commitment.

In order to make a good comparison between loans and lenders, you need to see all the different options that exist for you.

Look at online lenders and find a site that gives you several different offers to examine. Get at least 1 offer from a local bank or credit union. Many people dismiss local institutions, but they often offer a better rate and superior terns to online or huge national lenders.

Have the terms you can get from other lenders in hand before you go to a dealer to negotiate a price or loan terms so that you have a great comparison for any deal they may offer.

The most obvious comparison to make between 72-month car loans is to compare interest rates.

Undoubtedly you are considering a longer loan because the additional length means smaller monthly payments for you. However, the interest rate also affects the size of your monthly payment. Compare the rates closely, since they can vary as much as 2 percentage points between lenders.

Because longer loans are riskier for lenders, you will find more variation in interest rates than you will with shorter-term auto loans.

Pay close attention to closing fees, origination fees, processing fees, etc. Before you enter into a contract, the lender needs to provide you with a full disclosure of any fees. While lenders usually wrap these fees into the loan, additional fees raise the payment you've been trying to lower.

Make sure you are clear on exactly what you're paying in fees from each lender, and find the one with the best combination of interest rate and fees.

Particularly if you are obtaining a 72-month car loan, you will want to be sure and find a loan that has no penalty for prepayment.

Prepayment on a loan means that you pay extra money toward principle. The term is also used to describe paying off the entire remaining balance of a loan in advance of the actual due date.

Since long term loans require higher interest rates and cost you more over the length of the loan, you want to be able to pay down the principle balance on the loan as quickly as possible, and you don't want to pay a penalty for doing so. Any loan that charges a penalty for prepayment is likely not a great deal.

A final consideration to make when comparing 72-month car loans is the quality of the lender. Do research online and in financial publications to find out the stability of the lenders you are considering. See if they have been around for a number of years and if they are solid and safe.

You will want to know their reputation for making negative reports to credit bureaus and you'll want to consider how easy it is to make payments. Find out their record for customer service and see if they offer online payments and payments by phone.

You could be in a relationship with this lender for 6 years, and you want to make sure you are happy with your financial partner.