USAA Bank provides personal loans at competitive rates that can be used for almost any purpose. But is possible to require the loan as a USAA auto loan. Members can borrow between $2,500 and $20,000, and repayment terms range between one and seven years, depending on the amount you borrow.
For 12- to 36-month terms, you must apply for a $2,500 loan or larger. To receive a 48-month term, you must apply for a $5,000 loan or larger. Financing for 60-month, 72-month and 84-month terms requires a financed amount of at least $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000, respectively.
Membership at USAA is required to apply for a USAA auto loan. Here’s who USAA says it serves:
- Anyone serving in the U.S. Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines, Navy, National Guard, and Reserves.
- Former military members who have retired or been honourably discharged.
- Widows, widowers, and former spouses (who have not remarried) of USAA members who joined USAA before or during the marriage, and children of members.
- Cadets and midshipmen at U.S. service academies, in advanced ROTC or on ROTC scholarship, and officer candidates within 24 months of commissioning.
Table of Contents
USAA Auto Loan at a Glance
| Credit building | No pre-qualify option. Reports payments to three credit bureaus. |
| Loan amounts | $5,000 to $150,000. |
| Loan terms | 12 to 84 months; 72-month loans only available on loans of $15,000 or more, and 84-month loans are only available on loans of $25,000 or more for model years 2020–2022. |
| Affordability | APRs are low among lenders targeting good-credit borrowers. No origination or prepayment fees.Rate discount for autopayments. |
| Loan flexibility | Offers a small range of loan amounts. Allows changes to the payment date. Funds loans the next business day.Does not offer direct payment to creditors for debt consolidation loans.Available in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. |
| Transparency | Rates aren’t listed on website.Offers FAQ that answers some borrower questions. |
| Customer experience | Offers limited customer contact channels and hours. Offers mobile app to manage loan. Provides financial education. |
Where USAA stands out
Fast funding: USAA offers a fully online process and says it will fund a loan within one business day after an application is approved. Fast funding is common among lenders, but some of USAA’s bank competitors may require an in-person visit to close a loan or take up to a week to deposit the funds in your account.
Option to add a co-signer: Borrowers can add a co-signer to their application to help them qualify for the loan and potentially receive a lower rate. Though a co-signer does not have access to the loan proceeds, that person can be held responsible for missed payments.
Autopay discount: USAA auto loan offers a discount of 0.25% on its annual percentage rate to borrowers who set up automatic payments. This discount encourages borrowers to pay on time and can be as high as 0.50% for some lenders.
Mobile app: USAA has a mobile app where members can estimate monthly personal loan payments and transfer funds between accounts.
>>> You might also like: Bank of America Auto Loans: You need to see this!
Where USAA falls short
No soft credit check: Unlike most online lenders and some banks, USAA auto loan does not offer the option to pre-qualify. Pre-qualifying lets you see your potential loan amounts, rates and terms without affecting your credit score.
Limited range of loan amounts: USAA offers only medium-sized loans. This could leave out borrowers on both sides, including applicants who need a smaller loan for an emergency repair or applicants who need a larger loan to cover a home improvement project.
Limited customer service hours: Customer service support for personal loans is available only Monday through Friday during business hours. Though few lenders offer 24-hour assistance to customers, most offer extended hours of some kind, whether it’s more weekday hours or additional support on the weekends.
No direct payment to creditors: If borrowers want to consolidate credit card or other high-interest debt, they will need to send the funds themselves. USAA does not send money directly to creditors, which is a feature offered by some other banks.
>>> Check this out: Capital One Auto Finance: A Complete Guide
What to know about USAA
In October 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency fined USAA Bank $85 million after it failed to provide satisfactory risk management programs and violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and the Military Lending Act.
According to a recently released 2019 OCC report, USAA failed to provide relevant protections to military reservists, wrongfully repossessed vehicles, filed incorrect affidavits in default judgment cases, and used “remotely created checks to collect past due amounts for members who were covered, borrowers.”
The bank is now working on providing remediation in the form of payments, changed fee structures, and corrected disclosures, according to a statement on its website.
Conclusion
In this post we’ve discussed and deep dive into the USAA auto loan. We hope this can be helpful for the choice of your next loan. If you want to compare more in-depth, you can read the other reviews we wrote.
DONE!
