Site MapHelpFeedbackCase Studies
Case Studies
(See related pages)

Financing Sue’s Hyundai Excel

After shopping around, Sue Wallace decided on the car of her choice, a used Hyundai Excel. The dealer quoted her a total price of $8,000. Sue decided to use $2,000 of her savings as a down payment and borrow $6,000. The salesperson wrote this information on a sales contract that Sue took with her when she set out to find financing.

When Sue applied for a loan, she discussed loan terms with the bank lending officer. The officer told her that the bank’s policy was to lend only 80 percent of the total price of a used car. Sue showed the officer her copy of the sales contract, indicating that she had agreed to make a $2,000, or 25 percent, down payment on the $8,000 car, so this requirement caused her no problem. Although the bank was willing to make 48-month loans at an annual percentage rate of 15 percent on used cars, Sue chose a 36-month repayment schedule. She believed she could afford the higher payments, and she knew she would not have to pay as much interest if she paid off the loan at a faster rate. The bank lending officer provided Sue with a copy of the Truth-in-Lending Disclosure Statement shown here.

Truth-in-Lending Disclosure Statement (Loans)

Annual Percentage RateFinance ChargeAmount FinancedTotal of Payments 36
The cost of your credit as a yearly rate.
15%
The dollar amount the credit will cost you.
$1,487.64
The amount of credit provided to you or on your behalf.
$6,000.00
The amount you will have paid after you have made all payments as scheduled.
$7,487.64

You have the right to receive at this time an itemization of the Amount Financed.

_X_ I want an itemization.
___ I do not want an itemization.

Your payment schedule will be:

Number of PaymentsAmount of PaymentsWhen Payments Are Due
36$207.991st of each month

Sue decided to compare the APR she had been offered with the APR offered by another bank, but the 20 percent APR of the second bank (bank B) was more expensive than the 15 percent APR of the first bank (bank A). Here is her comparison of the two loans:

Bank A
15% APR
Bank B
20% APR
Amount Financed $6,000.00$6,000.00
Finance Charge$1,487.64$2,027.28
Total of Payments$7,487.64$8,027.28
Monthly Payments$207.99$222.98

The 5 percent difference in the APRs of the two banks meant Sue would have to pay $15 extra every month if she got her loan from the second bank. Of course, she got the loan from the first bank.

Questions

  1. What is perhaps the most important item shown on the disclosure statement? Why?
  2. What is included in the finance charge?
  3. What amount will Sue receive from the bank?
  4. Should Sue borrow from bank A or bank B? Why?







Personal FinanceOnline Learning Center

Home > Chapter 7 > Case Studies