Car Buying Questions

Specific Credit Information
Supplied to Dealerships

What SPECIFIC credit information in the form of NUMBERS(dollar balances: bank accounts, credit cards, medical bills, student loans, etc.) are actually seen and used by car dealership financial officers and sales reps to determine loan approvals.

I am curious.

I have two particular friends who applied for loans/credit at the same dealership for the same make and model vehicle(but a few months apart).

One friend received immediate approval and was told, "What ever it is you're doing keep doing it."

The other friend was told that he was carrying too much debt to be approved.

Both are college graduates and well paid professionals who make about the same income, have about the same amount of debt, and are very good(excellent) at paying their bills (credit balances, student loans, etc.)on time.

More then knowing some of the possible reasons for the approval outcomes. I would like to know just what NUMBER BALANCES do they KNOW?

Does the dealership just receive a fico score and a list of status phrases(good standing, poor standing, deliquent, etc.) and recent potential creditors that have checked their credit reports?

I understand that creditor inquires can negatively impact credit risk. Again, what NUMBER are SEEN.

Thank you.

Answer:

When I pull someones credit report I am able to see the limits, current balance and amount of their monthly payment for all credit cards/revolving accounts that report to the specific credit bureau that I pull.

In addition, I see original loan amounts, current balance and monthly payments for installment loans (auto loans, mortgage loans, student loans, etc.).

For both the above, I will also see any delinquencies they've had in the past or if the have always been current on the account.

I also am able to see any tax liens, judgments, collections, chargeoffs, medical collections, etc. and the amount that is trying to be collected or was written off.

Things like monthly insurance payments, rent, utilities, etc. do not report monthly and therefore there is no accessible information, unless the account is delinquent and some action has been taken by the company that is owed money to report it to the credit bureaus.

Some lenders have rent factors and insurance payments that they will automatically calculate and apply towards a customers total monthly debt, or out go.

As for a customers monthly income or even bank account balances those do not show on the credit reports and that information is obtained from the customer on the credit application.

Summary

Things like a monthly electric bill do not show, cell phone bills do not show, etc. Unless delinquent.

Auto loans, mortgages, credit cards, student loans, etc. typically do show...It all comes down to the company that is loaning the money and whether or not they report it.

I think I covered all the different accounts and balances in question. if I didn't, then please let me know and I'll see what else I can add.

If you were interested in learning more about credit criteria for loan approval, check out my Auto Loans page and check under loan structure (Ability) and/or my FICO Score page for a complete breakdown of credit tiers and what lenders consider when categorizing customers.

Hope this helped,
Justin