Hello all. I have scoured the internets but have not found anything that really helps to answer my particular questions. With the incredible wide range of people on this board, I hope that a few of you might have a better understanding of finance, credit, and how it applies to my situation.
Background info:
I finally graduated college last spring, and have been working full time since then at a steady job. My girlfriend and I have lived together for the past 4+ years, and she recently purchased a home a few months ago.
My current car has been having a bunch of random issues lately that are costly to fix and not worth it, in my opinion. To fix the major issues, it would cost around 1/3 to 1/2 of what the car is worth. Even then, something else will probably come up in the near future that would need to be addressed.
I have started looking at new cars. I understand that a new car will take a large depreciation hit right away, and I am comfortable with that. I have found the exact make/model/configuration that I would like, and have secured a good price (invoice cost + $300, from an employee friends/family plan set up by the manufacturer).
I applied for a loan with my credit union that I have joined recently, about three months ago. The credit union was not able to qualify me for the full amount that I would need to borrow. Here is where my questions begin:
- I have 2 people that are willing to cosign for me. My girlfriend (soon to be wife), and a family member.
- My girlfriend just purchased on a house a few months ago, so we are unsure if it would be advantageous to have her as a cosigner.
- My family member has nearly perfect credit (800+), plenty of assets, and 30+ years of credit history. The issue here is that her primary residence is in Washington DC (I would be buying the car in Chicago, and the car would be staying in Chicago).
- Will a having a cosigner increase the dollar amount that I am qualified for? (A rep at the credit union told me that a cosigner would only lower my interest rate, not qualify me for a higher dollar amount)
- Is it difficult/impossible to have a cosigner that is from out of state? (A finance rep at the dealership implied that there would be complications with having an out of state cosigner in regards to proper titling, registration, etc., and suggested that I have my girlfriend cosign for me instead)
- Will recently purchasing a house have a positive or negative affect on my girlfriend's credit?
Finally, I am assuming that a few of you out there are thinking that the credit union did not qualify me for the full amount because I cannot afford the payments (I would think this too if I were reading this scenario for the first time). I agree that if my first year's salary stayed constant for the future, and I was living on my own, that it would be a stretch to make payments. However, my field of work has quickly rising payouts that increase as the months/years go on. With my salary, plus my girlfriend's salary, minus what we have to pay for mortgage, bills, etc. there is easily enough money to make this happen.
Any advice would be appreciated!
