
Refinancing your home has been a common practice for years. Every time interest rates drop, there’s a new opportunity to lower your mortgage payment or speed up the repayment process or squeeze a little more out of your home’s equity. But refi for your car? That’s not something you hear about every day, and certainly not something you see pushed in commercials.
That may be changing. According to CNW Research, auto loan refinancing is predicted to grow to 14.1% of existing contracts in 2014, a 12% percentage increase since 2012, and a 228% increase since 2009. The same forces that have kept mortgage rates low have also kept car loan rates low, and the increasing durability of cars across the spectrum has made refinancing your car more feasible.
The appropriately-named CarRefinance.com has just released a list of the top ten most refinanced vehicles:
- Nissan Altima
- Ram 1500
- Honda Accord
- Toyota Camry
- Dodge Charger
- Ford F-150
- Toyota Corolla
- Chevrolet Impala
- Chrysler 300
- Honda Civic
The list appears to me to be a cross-section of average vehicles — not exactly economy cars, but not luxury vehicles, either (except perhaps the Chrysler 300). Have you looked into refinancing your car? Have you gone through with it? What has the experience been like for you?
Ben Martin is the CEO of THE FATHER LIFE. He lives with his wife and five children in the Rochester, NY, area.