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Local auto loan market strong, dealers assert

GREENE/COLUMBIA — While the recent meltdown on Wall Street has created ripple effects throughout many aspects of the middle-class economy, auto dealerships in the area make no bones about explaining that it does not include the average buyer’s ability to secure an auto loan for a new vehicle.

They are essentially in agreement, in fact, that the current market not only still has a strongly viable auto loan backing, but that it favors getting even more of a good deal than is normally available.

Whether these purchasing incentives are a direct result of the economic downturn and a manner of offsetting it or not, they do represent a breath of fresh air in what some perceive as an increasingly stagnant economy.

Of any inability to access loans because of the Wall Street meltdown, Catskill’s Lacy Ford-Lincoln-Mercury-Subaru General Manager Dan Lacy said Friday that it is not present here, if it exists.

“We haven’t felt it,” said Lacy. “We’re not having a problem. Everybody’s talking negative, and everybody thinks that they can’t get a loan — and it’s false.

“When people are credit-worthy,” said Lacy, “we have no problem getting a loan for them. And right now is probably the best time to buy a new automobile.

“I’ve been doing this my entire life,” he said, “and I have never seen incentives like they are now, and I’m not just saying that.”

At Hudson’s Village Dodge, Vice President Peter Backlund also confirmed that the meltdown has not dried up auto loans.

“They’re definitely still available,” Backlund said. “There’s no problem getting a loan for a new car. ... We have four or five different banks, and everybody’s still in the business.”

Backlund, like Lacy, said that in a look back over the years, the incentives are at a high point.

“I’ve never seen a better opportunity to buy a new car,” he said. “The rebates are outrageous. They’re doing everything they can. ... Financing’s definitely available. Rates are good.

“If you have got good credit, you still get a good rating,” he said.

Backlund noted that even those with less than great credit still have strong opportunity to achieve a loan. “Those banks are still in the business, too,” he said.

Backlund also said that given the economy, there is obviously a certain amount of worry by the purchasing public for any type of expenditure, large or small, but that auto financiers and dealerships are working at their end to help turn that around.

“People are scared,” Backlund said, “There’s a lot going on, there’s no doubt about that, but these guys are doing their part.

“Obviously, gas (prices) came down,” he added, “but we’ve been doing pretty good all along with the minivans and the crossovers, where you’ve got the higher mileage, but still seat seven people.”

Similarly, at Catskill Buick-Pontiac-GMC and Cadillac, the Wall Street meltdown has not brought business to a halt.

General Manager Joe Romeo, in fact, was twice unable to get away to the phone because of the press of business, but was, however, able to call across reassurance that loans are “absolutely” still available, and, like the others, noted that it is a good time to buy.

Further proof that the meltdown did not overly disrupt auto financing is evidenced from Kinderhook Toyota’s sales consultant Tim Smith.

“I tend to think things are going pretty well,” said Smith, and noted that financing is not a problem.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “I’ve had those inquiries from customers (regarding its availability), and it’s not something we’re seeing here.

“Toyota’s offering some great incentives right now,” Smith said, “and we’re not having any problem getting anybody financed. ... The banks are in business to loan money.”

So while the economy itself may have sluggish turns to it — with the financial blow that melted Wall Street its most visible effect — there are some aspects of the monetary world that have apparently escaped relatively unscathed, or at least not severely diminished, and — according to the folks that should know — auto financing is one of them.

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