CAR LOAN CALCULATOR USA 2013…

If you’re looking for a new or used vehicle, and you plan to ge

t financing to make your purchase, chances are that you’ll use a car loan calculator to find out exactly how much car you’ll be able to afford and to figure out what your monthly payments will be. Using one of these tools will be greatly beneficial as you begin making what might be the most important purchase of the year (or of several years).

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Here’s how a car loan calculator works: you put in the information, press a button, and the system returns a breakdown of the “hidden” terms of the loan that results. In order to get going, you first need to know some information.

Purchase price: This is the amount on the sticker, or the amount you come up with once you haggle with the dealer (or private owner, if this is a private purchase). Down Payment: how much are you going to put down on the purchase price? A larger down payment means a smaller amount financed, which is a good thing for you. The less you have to finance, the less interest you’ll pay. Interest rate: this is the amount you’ll pay on top of what you’re financing that is the “usage fee” to the bank or other lender for borrowing their money. The lower the better, of course. Term: This is the length of the loan, in months or years. It’s generally easier to figure things out in months, because it is possible to have a term that isn’t an exact round number.

You may find a car loan calculator that allows you to figure in sales tax, and title and license fees as well. It just depends on whether you’ll be financing these charges as well, or if they all get rolled into the price of the vehicle you’re buying.

Once you get all of the information entered into the car loan calculator, it’s time to figure out the results. Some of these calculators will simply indicate what your monthly payment will be. Others will come back with a total amortization schedule for the life of the loan, showing how much principal (the financed amount) is paid off with each payment, as well as how much money is being paid in interest. This can all be useful as you decide whether to go with a shorter term (which means higher payments but less interest paid) or a longer term (lower payment amounts, but more expensive in terms of interest). You can play with the terms a little until you find a combination that works well for you.

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When you’re financing a vehicle, a car loan calculator can really come in handy. Find one, use it, and make the most of what it tells you!