This will be my first post of, hopefully, many. I've been sick and tired of old 1st/2nd gen cars and the problems they come with. For example, my first car was an 87 CRX HF, my second car was an 87 RX-7 SE, my third and last car is a 95 Integra LS. They've all come with numerous problems and they're all pretty underpowered (the CRX only made 60 hp)

SO I've just gotten a promotion at work, I'm making double what I used to make and I can finally afford a nice

 

Hmm, well first of all welcome to a great forum with wonderful members who (hopefully all) would be willing to talk to you about this stuff. I don't know how old you are, but I'd say I was in your position when I was around 20. My parents had let me put all my cars in their name, and they finally told me I had to do it myself. I had two options, either get something cheap that I can get a loan for, or have my parents co-sign. You seem to have the same choices.

You have to decide if your pride (not having any help) or your want/need for the car matters more. Of course your dad will be skeptical, you're going from an old Integra LS to a roadster! What parent wouldn't be? But if you convince him to help you, you could have a nice new car. I had my mom co-sign and the car went in my name. That's how you can build your credit.

Whatever you do, I would not recommend taking out a loan yourself. Your interest rate will be insane. Hope I've helped in some way. GL.

 

Well do you have other loans out such as student loans or credit card bills? If so I would recommend paying those off first to build your credit...and theres nothing wrong with having a cosigner as long as you know that you will pay the bills on time

 

...and don't overlook credit unions.

 

if you make enough monthly...try patelco credit union

 

Can you show a stable job for the past 2-3 years and proof of salary that you can afford the payments? If no to the first thats probably why you were denied, banks aren't giving out money easily these days. You'll need a co-signer

 

You need a co-sign so you can establish credit. Get a credit card too while your at it, even if it's a high interest rate. Just be sure to pay it off at the end of the month.

 

OK so I asked my dad, he said yes. Come time to sign, he said no. So I abandoned the co-signed idea as I had nobody else to turn to.

I live by myself, been working for the same company for 3 years and I'm now a 22 year old in management making roughly 40k a year. I've never had a loan/credit card, never bothered for fear of my spending habits getting out of control.

I haven't tried my main bank yet, but I doubt Well's Fargo will approve a loan for me. I thought about credit unions but I don't completely understand how they work, I heard from someone that you had to be in their union? Not sure what they meant by that.

I DO know that one way or another I'm getting this s2k. It's my dream car and it seems to be tailored for everything I've been looking for in a car since I could remember. If I have to save up the entire amount in cash, I will. I'm just growing impatient and my integra isn't going to live much longer.

 

Tried, declined.

 

Have you bought a copy of your credit report, one with the FICO score? If not, I would do it. At your age with almost no credit history, it's possible your score is in the 500s -- that would make it very tough to get a loan, regardless of the lender. Plus, you don't have a long history at your current salary, which is another risk from a lender's standpoint.

Hate to say it, but without a co-signer you may be out of luck for an auto loan. If that's the case, get a credit card, use it responsibly, and pay it off every month to start building your credit.

For lending purposes, credit unions aren't much different than banks. Some are limited to people who meet certain qualifications (work for a particular company, former member of the military, graduate of a certain college, whatever), but many aren't. CUs typically have loan rates that are better than those at banks so it can be worth becoming a member. I'm not a member of USAA Credit Union, but I hear good things about them from friends that are members -- may be worth looking into. And even if you don't qualify for free membership, I believe anyone can join for something like a $10 or $20 one-time fee.

Hope this helps and good luck