Three years ago, 28-year-old Blaisey Arnold walked into a local car dealership and took the keys to an $84,000 Chevy Tahoe.
But this month, wedding photographer and mother shared a video on TikTok describing how she was forced to sell her dream car.
Despite paying $1,400 a month in payments totaling more than $50,000, he still owes a balance of $74,000 to the lender: GM Financial.
Not only did he not make a down payment, but he said he traded in a previous car that he had fallen into negative equity on.
Negative equity occurs when a driver owes more on their car loan than the vehicle is now worth.
Sometimes a dealer or lender may offer to roll over the balance of an existing auto loan to a new one, making it more expensive.
Blaisey Arnold, 28, spent three years paying $1,400 to pay off an $84,000 loan he took out to buy a Chevy Tahoe.
Pictured is Arnold’s $84,000 Chevrolet Tahoe, which was financed by GM Financial.
While transferring debt to a new loan may seem convenient, it can be very dangerous and dealers have been known to failure to adequately inform buyers They will remain responsible for the remaining balance.
“Honestly, I’m surprised that I paid $50,000 for this car and I only paid $10,000,” Arnold said.
She told DailyMail.com that she was given the loan the same day she visited the dealership, and that it had an APR of 10.2 percent.
‘I didn’t go with my husband and as a woman I feel like they took advantage of me. “They knew she really wanted the car and that she was alone,” she said.
The $84,000 loan was provided to her by GM Financial, the financial services arm of General Motors and the only lender that approved her that day.
“The dealership told me they could take me out with the car in an hour.” “He didn’t act like it was something I should be worried about,” she said.
GM Financial told DailyMail.com they were unable to discuss Arnold’s loan and passed up the opportunity to comment.
TO 2021 Consumer Reports Study found that lenders are increasingly able to take advantage of the vulnerable, especially those with lower credit scores. These loans earn them more interest and they can ultimately get the cars back.
Auto loans are becoming a major source of stress for car-obsessed Americans and are leaving a growing number of them with runaway debt.
Last year, auto debt in the United States reached a record $1.6 trillion, equivalent to an average of more than $13,000 per household.
In February, the Federal Reserve released data showing that Americans were falling behind on their car payments at the highest rate since 2010.
In recent years, the cost of car ownership has skyrocketed. Not only are automakers charging more for new cars, but used cars are also getting more expensive.
In the two years after January 2020, used cars and trucks increased more than 50 percent in price, according to figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Arnold said the sting taught him a lesson and he has since told his followers that he is trying to get rid of the Tahoe.
“I’m getting older and understanding more about life and having a family and the things you have to pay for and the cost of living,” he said.
“I’m done with any type of loan and now I plan to pay it all off.”