Many consumers will find that an auto loan calculator is one of the more useful tools that is available to them in the vehicle buying process for assisting them in making some of the critical decisions required both before purchasing a new or used car. These calculators (you can find nearly any iteration of calculators, there is even one for
student auto loans.) can serve to facilitate in deciding a number of things - from helping you determine whether you want to buy or lease to showing the advantages of an early loan payoff. This article will discuss three different versions of the auto loan calculator.
Everyone knows (or should know given the fact that a simple interest loan is the most prevalent form of a vehicle lending contract) that you can save money by paying off your loan early. That's because these types of loans contain a provision that doesn't penalize borrowers for an early loan payoff. The basic step of paying a few dollars more each month toward the loan principle can pay off big time in the long run. This type of auto loan calculator is called an early payoff calculator.
Here's how the early payoff auto loan calculator works: simply enter the loan term, the original loan amount and the interest rate. You then enter the number of remaining months and the additional monthly payment that you're prepared to spend. When you hit the "calculate" button, this particular auto loan calculator will then compute the scheduled monthly payment, the accelerated payment, the total amount you would pay both with and without the accelerated schedule as well as the total savings in dollars.
But this particular auto loan calculator doesn't stop there. It also shows you, on a graph, the amount of scheduled interest paid, the accelerated interest paid, the scheduled principal balance and the accelerated principal balance over the life of the loan. As an added bonus, you can also view the amortization schedule by year or by month and view as well as print the report.
A second type of auto loan calculator is the buy versus lease calculator. By entering the term and the interest rate fees as well as the depreciation/residual amount and the security deposit, you can compare the net vehicle cost to you over a comparable period to see which ownership/use scenario is a better deal in the long run (keep in mind that even though lease payments are traditionally lower than buy payments, a lease could cost you more money over the loan term).