Applying for a car loan seems like a ‘cake walk’ with credit unions. In addition to low interest rates and less paperwork, these lending institutions offer various benefits to make the deal more profitable for the clients. However, a loan comes along with a huge responsibility of repaying the borrowed amount with added interest.

If you are looking for efficient ways to save some money on interest and pay your loan before time, you may consider the following points.

Round up your payment – To shorten your loan term and save money on interest, you can round up your payments. For example, if your monthly loan payment is $384, consider paying $400. This may look a small amount in the beginning but it can help to reduce your loan period several months than expected. Apart from this, a round payment is easy to calculate and you do not feel overburdened by paying a little extra from your pocket.

Pay after every 2 weeks- You may strike a deal with your credit union to allow biweekly payments, instead of paying at the end of every month. This will offer the following benefits:

• Since you will pay more often, less interest will be added on your money
• You will be able to pay extra amount every year
• Tenure of your loan payment will reduce

Pay extra at least once a year - If you cannot afford to pay biweekly payments, you can pay at least one extra payment every year. This can be done by adding a certain additional amount, say for instance $30, which may become equivalent to one month's payment. This will help you to stay ahead in your repayments and shorten the mortgage period.

Avoid skipping a payment- Option of not paying a payment may seem lucrative at first, but it does not provide any long term benefits. It will eventually extend your loan period for months and increase the rate of interest. Therefore, you must not skip a payment until and unless there is an extreme urgency to do so.

Save extra bucks – In order to pay your loan quickly, you can always save some extra money. If you have a part time job or any other source that gives you money, try to put it towards repaying your loan. Even if you collect $100 every month, you’ll be able to save $1200 every year.

Refinance your loan – A credit union may offer extremely low rates on auto loans, which can lower your repayment amount and decrease the loan period to almost half. Eventually decreasing the overall cost of your car loan.

Pay bill online – Credit unions offer discounts on signing up for paperless statements, as it saves the time of the lender as well as the payer. 

Some of the advantages offered by paperless billing procedure are–

• There are no checks to write
• No paper statements filling up your mailbox
• You get timely payment reminders
• 24 hours access to your account
• You can pay from anywhere at any time
• Security of your data
• Provision for automatic payments

Paying your auto loan early gives incredible benefits. You can save a lot of money and utilize it to upgrade your home, pay off other debts, save for your retirement etc.

We, at Greater Central Texas Federal Credit Union, offer affordable car loans with minimal rate of interests.  You can either choose from unsecured or secured car loans. Our staff will assist you with the loan application and all the paperwork involved in the process.

For more details, you can call us at (254) 690 – 2274 or visit our office at 3305 E. Elms Rd., Killeen, TX  76542.

Everyone wants to get a home loan with the least interest rate so that it is easier to repay the amount. However, the actual cost of the loan depends on various factors. You need to compare quotes from different credit unions in Killeen, TX to know the best home loan rate that you can get.

Below are some factors that can help in determining the rate of interest that you can get on a home loan:

• Tenure of the loan: Your loan term is one of the deciding factors when it comes to determining the rate of interest. You will generally have a lower rate of interest if you opt for a shorter loan term. However, the monthly payments are higher in this case and you need to plan your budget accordingly.

• Location of the property: Credit unions have a specified criteria for determining the rate of interest depending on the location of your property. For instance, if your home is situated in an earthquake or flood prone area, you may need to make higher interest payments. The rates may also differ for properties in rural and urban areas.

• Credit score: The credit score helps the lender get an idea about your ability to repay the home loan. It is determined after checking the details of your payment history of all the loans and credit card bills. Therefore, it is important to examine all your debts and ensure that you have a decent credit score before applying for a home loan.

• Type of interest rate: There are two broad classifications of the interest rate that you may get on your home loan - fixed and variable rate of interest. While the rate of interest does not change throughout the loan term in the first case, it fluctuates according to the market scenario in the second instance. You can initially get a lower rate of interest if you opt for variable rate but it may increase afterwards.

• Down payment: A higher down payment towards the home purchase can fetch you a lower rate of interest. This will lessen the amount of money you need to borrow which, in turn, will reduce the risk for the lender. So, make an effort to give at least 20% of your home’s value as down payment.

For affordable home loans in Killeen, consider Greater Central Texas Federal Credit Union. For details about the loan plans, you can call us at (254) 690 – 2274 or visit 3305 E Elms Rd, Killeen, TX 76542.