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What To Do After They’re Burning Gas

A Roll of the Dice

You knew it was crap shoot but you rolled the car anyway. Now you're having trouble finding a lender who will buy it. What do you do?

The typical approach is to call the customer and blame the bank. "They want more down" or "I was hoping to get you a better rate but the bank just doesn't believe in you as much as I do."

A better approach is to call and ask the lender for help. Yes, you heard me right. Believe it or not, lenders are interested in maintaining a strong relationship with you, provided this action isn't par for the course. And it may not result in success but they could provide you with ideas you never thought about.

Case Study

It was a thin deal to start with but it put the dealership over the top in units for the month. And since the bonuses were paid out a week later, the sales manager needed this deal to stick. All four lenders including the captive and the customer's credit union turned down the deal. Each one said the customer didn't have enough high balance history, time on the job or income. Calls to the credit union were futile, even at the suggestion of more money down. The finance manager had a pretty good relationship with the captive lender so he made a call to the supervisor. He began by apologizing and admitted they had gotten excited about the bonuses and made a mistake. Still, no amount of restructuring made the deal look any better, except to ask for more money than the customer had to give. Then came the big surprise: The lender agreed to buy the deal in exchange for commission on the points and a promise that the dealership would control its enthusiasm in the future. Later, the lender told the dealer principal he bought the deal because the finance manager had been honest with him in the past, and he'd sent over some really good deals lately. Success with lenders often begins with honesty. Next there's humility and a willingness to ask for help.

If you have success stories with lenders, please share them by clicking here.