So I am trying to get an idea of what my monthly payments will be when my car arrives at the end of August, but my dealer can't get me solid numbers for a couple of weeks?

What is everyone else paying for either a lease or a finance? And how much did you have to put down?

 

The payment amount is not "one size fits all". You need to answer a few questions.

For a loan:

1. How much cash can you put down? The more you put down the lower the payment can be.

2. What interest rate can you qualify for? This is a factor of your credit history and the current credit market. Since you have the time, check other sources besides the dealer (credit union, bank, etc.).

3. How many months do you want to finance? The longer the term of the loan, the lower the payment amount. The downside to a long loan is that you will be "upside down" (owe more than the car is worth) for a longer time. If you have a six year note and trade the car at three years, you could be in for a nasty surprise.

Once you can answer these questions, just plug the numbers into a Payment Calculator. It will tell you your payment amount.

For a lease:

You will need to know the residual value. This is the value of the car at the end of the lease period. Then you can do a rough payment approximation by reducing the amount financed by the residual value and then plugging the numbers into the payment calculator. The term and interest rates are treated just like a loan. (A lease is just a loan where you don't own the car at the end of the term.)

Remember, these are approximations and that available interest rates are constantly changing.

Dave