The day that you are finally able to head out the door to buy your first new car, financing in hand, ideal car in mind is one that you have worked hard for, and saved up for, and eagerly anticipated. It is a day that you should be able to remember with pride, and fondness. However, if you are not careful, it could turn out to be a day that you remember with chagrin, sadness, and anger. This could be the day that you get ripped off so thoroughly, you will be forced to spend years trying to dig out of the debt that incurs.
In no way does this article intend to imply that all car dealers are out to scam the average new car buyer. And certainly, this information is only intended to inform you of the possible fraudulent "deals" out there, not to frighten you into forever owning used cars.With that said, let's get to the issue at hand. A few things that you should keep in mind while you shop for, negotiate for, and put the money down on your new car.
New car deal scams and rip offs. Car dealership sales representatives without scruples will tell you lies with straight faces, and you might just believe them if you are not armed with the truth ahead of time. Below are listed some of the more common line that dishonest sales people have used to scam new car buyers. And the ways that you can avoid being taken in by these tactics.
"Because your credit history is not so good, you just won't qualify for the lower interest rates".If you know your credit history, and credit score, you won't fall for this trick. Even if you do have poor credit, you can still qualify for reasonable interest rates. You are entitled to a free copy of your credit report once every year, your bank will be more than happy to tell you how to obtain one.
"I'm practically giving you this car, this price is miles under the manufacturer's suggested retail price!"It is illegal for any dealer not to have the MSRP sticker in the window of any car, so if the car you are considering does not have that sticker, and the price the dealer is offering seems too good to be true, it might be a rip off. What some dealers will not tell you, is that the car manufacturers will offer incentives and discounts on certain makes and models, in order to sell them quicker. So it is the manufacturer that is reducing the price, and probably a lot more substantially than the sales person is letting on.
" I can put you in this car, right now, for only $150 dollars a month!"( Or any price that seems ridiculously low)This isn't exactly a scam, but it is something to figure out and think about carefully before you agree to it. The way that not-so-honest sales people accomplish this feat, is to give you really low monthly payments, extremely high interest rates, and a whopping end of payment term final amount.
All of the above maneuvers are tricky to pull on an eager new car buyer. Especially if that car buyer has just a little bit of fore knowledge. Like you.
Introduction - Today it was announced that Panama is opening a new cruise ship port and terminal in Colon on the Atlantic side. The port will open in Dec. 2008. At the present time there is a cruise terminal in Colon to receive ships for a day stop only. Ships generally not passing through the canal will stop at Colon disembarking passengers for tours, shopping trips etc. The ships will generally pull in during the morning and leave at dinnertime. Colon is the second largest duty free zone in the world second to Hong Kong. It is simple for one to take a tour from Colon to the Panama Canal.
Royal Caribbean Enchantment of the Seas - Royal Caribbean has announced that it will be deploying one of its modern ships by the name of Enchantment of the Seas. This cruise ship is 80,000 tons and was built in 1997 and refurbished in 1999 and again in 2005. It is not a flag ship of the line, yet still quite a respectable cruise liner. The boat was stretched out when refurbished in 2005 and is now 990 feet long, roughly as long as an aircraft carrier. The ship carries 2446 passengers and has a crew of 760. There are 6 hot tubs, three swimming pools, a rock climbing wall, spa, gym, full beauty salon, jogging track, and of course it has a rock-climbing wall. How can you cruise without a rock-climbing wall? There is a casino, 10 bars, and the ship has 11 decks extending above the water. This is no slouch of a boat. The itinerary of the boat will be Columbia, Aruba and Curacao with 17 such one-week cruises planned during the first season.
Discussion - Okay so now Panama is going to become a cruise port. The major ports in the general region, broadly speaking, are Miami, and Ft. Lauderdale. Many people in Central and South America have difficulty getting visas to go to America. To take a cruise starting or terminating in the USA one must obtain a visa to go to the USA unless they are able to travel to the country without a visa. Most of the countries are not this way with Argentina being the exception.
The visa process involves waking up early in the morning to go stand online at the USA Embassy waiting to go in for an interview. Numerous documents are required, reasons for the trip, why you are not a risk for overstaying the visa etc. There are fees involved, which are about $165 a person. Many people do not wish to go through this process. Many others are willing to go through the process but are unable to get the visa for various reasons.
Additionally people have been complaining about the treatment they get from USA immigration being unpleasant when they arrive and depart America. This has been hurting the cruise industry in the USA in a big way. Check cruise prices and it is common to see discounts of 50% most of the time from the USA ports of departure. This will give the cruise companies a chance to recover a market they have been missing out on in recent years which is the Central and South American market. It will also give Panama a chance to gain some tourism dollars. People taking cruises frequently come in a day or two before the cruise and stay a day or two after the cruise to see the local attractions.
The word we got was that the other cruise lines would follow suit and begin originating cruises from Panama as well. One could expect to see a bustling cruise port like Miami in the near future is what we were told to expect. We welcome the cruise industry and see it as having a positive effect.
Remember this port is not designed to attract the USA tourist dollar. While some USA tourists will come here the overwhelming majority of the cruisers will be from Central and South America. It is cheaper and easier for the USA resident to take a cruise departing from: Los Angeles, New Orleans, Houston, Tampa, New York, Orlando, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, or Puerto Rico. This is not going to give the USA some sort of leverage to use on Panama to get them to do what they want like weaken banking laws etc. If the Caymans Islands or the Bahamas did not comply with the USA regarding bank or corporate laws the USA could make like very difficult for anyone cruising to these destinations with lots of searching, long delays clearing customs and immigration etc. Places like the Caymans and Bahamas have heavy cruise and tourism industries that provide many more jobs than the banking industry. If you have ever been to the Caymans not many locals work in the banking sector. The new cruise port in Panama has no applicability to the USA since the passengers will not be subject to USA immigration and customs since the cruise boat will not be originating, terminating or traveling to the USA and the passengers will by and large not be Americans.
We are expecting to see a lot of South and Central American destinations like Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Aruba, Curacao, and Columbia. On longer cruises of 10 days or longer the cruise ships could travel to some of the popular Caribbean destinations like Nassau, Caymans, and Jamaica etc. Panama has very wisely chosen to go after the Central and South American tourism market. Is there going to be a Disney Amusement Park in Panama? Stay tuned.
Both Juble & Robert Thomson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Juble has sinced written about articles on various topics from Cars, south beach diet and Cars. Get Yourself A New Car. Juble's top article generates over 74000 views. to your Favourites.
Robert Thomson has sinced written about articles on various topics from Personal Desktop, Finances and Pets. Smythe Bradley is an expat living in The Republic of Panama. He has published many articles on in panama,. Robert Thomson's top article generates over 450000 views. to your Favourites.