Sunday March 28 2010
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Our thanks to consumer advocate Clark Howard for the following alerts to help safeguard our hard earned money:
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Honda rolls out leases that are a real deal
More than any other two automakers, Honda and Toyota trade customers back and forth all the time. Together, they account for about 26 or 27 percent of the entire car market. The real beneficiary of Toyota’s troubles would naturally be Honda.
Here’s why: Toyota faced a huge drop in market share following their sudden acceleration issues. So they responded by dramatically lowering prices. Practically overnight, Toyotas became so much cheaper when someone went looking for a car and compared the Honda Accord vs. the Toyota Camry (or the Honda CRV vs. the Toyota Rav 4 or the Honda Odyssey vs. the Toyota Sienna).
The Japanese nameplate’s deep discounting worked. Toyota’s market share has now climbed back up to where it was before their fall! And the flip side of the equation is that Honda sales have declined by an enormous amount.
So now Honda is rolling out all kinds of sales — including amazing leases — as part of their Really Big Thing sales event. Visit Honda.com for further details.
Typically, a lease is a flawed, defective way to get into a car. But these new Honda leases are so heavily subsidized that they are a real deal. One key bit of advice: Stick to leasing terms of 36,000 miles over three years. Any longer than that and you’re doing yourself financial harm.
Look for a ripple effect among other Japanese brands like Nissan, as they seek to offer matching deals over the next week or two.
In spite of these Honda deals, if your car runs just fine, resist the temptation to get into a new car and keep driving what you’ve already got.
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Student loans to come directly from government in July
Applying for student loans this summer? Here’s a heads-up for you.
Until recently, certain politically-favored banks were given subsidies to originate student loans, which were subsequently handed off to the government to manage. This system cost American taxpayers an enormous amount of money. Come July however, these bank subsidies end, and the banks will no longer be the “middle man.” You’ll soon obtain your loans directly from the federal government. This will mean a radical change in how you borrow for student loans going forward.
But will the U.S. government really be ready to assume the reins in July? Time will tell. If you’re depending on student loan money to pay for the upcoming fall semester, you may want get your ducks in a row now — or wait several weeks past the July transition if you can — so you don’t get caught in the inevitable chaos during the changeover.
And what’s going to happen to the money that was going to the bank subsidies? It will now be earmarked for lower income students to help make their education more affordable.