I have a 2007 Caliber that I absolutely love, but my car payment is $390 a month. My husband & I are possibly getting ready to go though bankruptcy, but with a 6 month old, I cant afford to not have a car. I would like to find something more affordable, but still reliable. I still owe about $19,800 on this car, and it is financed through a bank.

We cant afford to just go out & buy a cheap car, but I know that our credit is really bad right now. Does anyone have any advice on how or if I could get out of this loan & get another loan with less payments each month?

Thanks

Those lower end toyotos and jettas are like around $200 per month. I would probably trade the car in and get a good used car

Since the car is worth about $10,000 less than you owe, you're probably going to have trouble finding a better deal. You'd need to find a car worth less than $8,000 to even reduce the principle, and it would probably be hard to find a bank willing to do that. I'd almost recommend getting out of the loan through the bankruptcy and toughing it out until you could afford a used car.

There are credit counseling centers that are sometimes a good option. If you want to reduce your payments, they can sometimes act as a middleman between you and your creditor and work out a deal that lowers your payments.

However, I don't know your full financial situation and I'm no lawyer. I'd recommend sitting down with a professional and discussing your options at full length. Bankruptcy seems like taboo, and your credit will be badly damaged, but the law was made to help people, and it will give you some power with your current creditors.

Sometimes you can work out a reduced loan through bankruptcy. If the bank repossessed your car and took it to auction, they'd get maybe $8000-$9000 and spend a couple hundred doing it. If you tell the bank you can afford a $12,000 loan and $275 a month, they might be willing to work with you.

I hope this information helps you, and I encourage you to go to either a counseling service or finance professional for better information.

That's good advice. I have a 2007 Toyota Yaris and I pay $200 a month financed at low interest through a community credit union. I'm sure you could get a good trade in especially because your car is still relatively new. I'm not sure how long you've been paying for your car, but a trade in would be like a good down payment. Good luck.

Oops forgot to mention that the Yaris also gets 30-35 MPG. ... GREAT gas mileage. The Toyota Prius is about like the yaris, only it's hybrid, so it gets even a bit better gas mileage than that. Both are great cars.

i agree...trading it in would bea good idea