Car buyers once paid big down payments, then took only a few years to pay off the remainder of what was owed.
Those were the days.
I recall when a 48-month loan was stretching it,” says Andrew Blazsanyik, executive director-training for Resource Automotive, a finance and insurance firm. “If you had to go beyond that, you couldn’t afford the car.”
He and other attendees of an F&I Management and Technology conference here briefly waxed nostalgically about those days. They spent more time discussing the effects of today’s loans, with extended terms that leave stretch marks.
Jones recalls when 48-month loans were the standard. He says GMAC has seen a steady increase in business going beyond 60 months; primarily 72 months, “but I’ve seen 84 months.”
Seventy-two-month payback terms account for 50%-60% of GMAC vehicle loans, he says. “The West Coast and the Northwest seem to be going to 72 and 84 months at a much more rapid pace than the rest of the country.
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