Pelagic Blog

What customers ask when financing a semi truck?

Written by Greg Minsky | Jul 28, 2020 5:00:26 PM

If you would  like to learn more about these 10 questions click here.

I've been financing used commercial trucks for over 20 years and the questions are almost always the same.

1) What's my rate?

2) Can I payoff the financing early?

3) Do i need a CDL?

4) I have bad credit can i still get approved?

Here are some of questions we typically have if you tell us you have challenging or bad credit:

  • Why do you think your credit is bad? We need a basic idea. If you had a few late payments with your creditors, or if it’s something more serious like a bankruptcy. You would be surprised how many people we’ve spoken to that think they have bad credit because they were late on a credit card payment 3 years ago. If we can figure this out early one, we can pre-qualify you for our better credit tiered programs!
  • Have you had a previous repossession? Some programs have limitations on previous repossessions, and some of our programs won’t have an issue with a previous repossession, even if it was last month!
  • Have you had a previous bankruptcy or are you currently in a bankruptcy? We have many programs that allow for previous bankruptcies, even if it was last month, however if you’re currently in a bankruptcy we can’t help 
  • until it’s fully discharged.
  • Do you have any open tax liens? Depending on the type of tax lien, how much the tax lien is for, and if you’re in a payment plan we can still possibly work around this. So we’ll go into more details on the tax lien if you have one to best qualify you for a program.
  • Do you have any Child Support payments that are in arrears, or overdue? This is a touchy subject, and we understand that and try our best to be sensitive with it. In most cases financing is not possible if an applicant is past due on child support payments. Before you give up, however, it’s always best to call our office and speak to one of our advisors directly. There are mo

5) How old a truck can i get financed?

6) How long does it take to finan

ce a truck?

7) Will this affect my credit report?

8) What is the down payment to finance a commercial truck?

Probably the biggest hurdle for clients who are buying a truck is the down payment. The down payment for these trucks can vary, from just making your first months payment all the way to 50% down. The more we know about your credit and work history w

ill help us determine best finance options for you and  your business.

9) What is your minimum credit score?

10) Do you work with first time buyers?

Have you been a company driver for a couple of years? Are you ready to be an Owner Operator. We try to make your first experience as smooth and simple as possible. We have a wide variety of programs for first time buyers with good and bad credit.

Here are some of our pr

e-qualifying questions we typically have if you tell us you’re a first time buyer:

  • Are you currently a company driver right now? We like to understand where the client is coming from, what their current income situation is. This will help us determine what your budget might be for a down payment and what your goals are. Our goal is to make this a reality for you!
  • How long have you had your CDL for? Some of our programs require the application to have CDL experience and some of our programs don’t require you to have a CDL at all.
  • What experience do you have in the industry? Some of our programs require you to have experience in the trucking industry if you don’t have long enough CDL experience. Even if you’ve worked in dispatch or other positions in the trucking industry may qualify you for experience depending on the program you are qualifying for.
    Download our Ebook which helps you understand the questions a lender will ask.