A car salesman claims one of his customers quit her job the day after financing a Chevrolet Traverse. Does this mean the deal is off?
In a TikTok that’s generated over 9,600 views as of this writing, Mike P (@mikepirozzz) shares the aftermath of what happens if you quit your job during the financing approval period.
What Happens If I Quit My Job While the Bank Is Approving My Auto Loan?
Mike says he sold a Chevrolet Traverse to a lady who had some credit issues, but everything else was approved.
“The credit was a little of an issue, but she had everything she needed—her current paycheck stub, proof of address, driver’s license, all of that,” he begins.
The woman ultimately got approved for the financing and just needed final verification from the bank. Everything required for approval was there, so the deal proceeded, and she got the car. After a few days passed, Mike’s boss noticed that the transaction funds were stagnant.
“We can’t verify her employment,” the boss said. “We sent you the paycheck stubs,” Mike replied. Then the news of the woman quitting her job was revealed. “We called there, they said she doesn’t work there,” the boss said.
This confused Mike, as her pay stubs were in hand. His boss asked him to call the woman. After a brief update on how she likes the Traverse, Mike popped the question.
“Hey, who do we need to call to verify your employment?” Mike asked. “I quit,” she replied. Mike was baffled. “When did you quit?” he asked. “I quit the day after I got the car,” she informed him.
She said she didn’t like her current job and wanted to get a new one. The salesman pointed out that the bank was trying to verify her employment for the loan.
“If we can’t verify your employment, you can’t have the car,” he says he told her. “Well, I had a job,” she retorted. “You had a job. You need to have a job. Current employment, not previous employer,” Mike explained.
The woman became frustrated.
“The bank is the one who is paying the dealer, and they are giving you a loan. Right now, you are all alone. You don’t have a bank that will finance you, and we can’t give you the car. You have to bring the car back, or you need to find somebody—husband, boyfriend, family member—to co-sign on the vehicle,” he says he explained.
“I don’t have a cosigner,” she replied. Mike wanted to say, “Well, you don’t have a car then,” but he chose to stay nice. The woman ended the call, and Mike updated his boss, who asked him to get the car back.
Before doing this, Mike tried again to solve the problem by calling the woman once more. “What do you want?” the woman answered. “I want you to have a cosigner, or I want the car back,” Mike stated.
The woman hung up, and Mike sent one final message via text. “You need to return the car today, or we need a cosigner. We want your business. We appreciate your business, but right now, if you don’t have that, we can’t do business,” he says he wrote.
Out of the blue, her father called him. Mike asked whether he would like to be a cosigner on the vehicle, as they were unable to verify her employment.
“She don’t have a job?” the father replied.
“Sir, I’m just explaining what the banks are telling me,” Mike shared.
“I’ll call you back,” the father responded.
Moments went by, and the father informed Mike that he isn’t signing for her. The next day, the Chevy Traverse was back at the dealership, and the woman was requesting a refund of her deposit. The dealership gave back the down payment.
“If you are going to buy a car and the bank requires you to have a job, and you decide to quit your job, [and] you don’t have a job in between, they are not going to finance you,” he concludes.
Why Would You Quit Your Job Mid-Financing?
Many people who watched Mike’s post suggested that her actions weren’t exactly common sense.
“Yeah how you going to commit to paying a loan without money coming in? Kinda common sense,” one said.
“It amazes me how some people go through life,” another added.
“Quit after they verify employment. Boom fixed that,” a third commented.
Others didn’t understand how she had been approved before fully verifying her employment.
“Don’t you think they should have verified employment before they approved her for a loan and given her the car?!?!” one said.
“Why would you release a car without having the financing 100%, sounds like someone at the dealership screwed up,” commented a second.
Can You Get a Car Loan Without A Job?
While getting approved for a car loan without employment can be more challenging, it’s not impossible.
To get approved for a car loan, proof of income is required, SoFi reports. However, being in between jobs, self-employed, or relying on other sources of income outside of a nine to five can present challenges when getting a bank loan.
Lenders verify income through pay stubs, tax returns, bank statements, employer letters, and W-2 or 1099 forms, according to RefiJet.
The main thing banks are looking for is a consistent source of income, which doesn’t necessarily have to mean a salaried job, Chase reports. Ultimately, banks prefer consistent income because they can assume the customer will make timely car payments.
Without this, prospective car buyers may need to get a cosigner, leverage strong credit scores, cash out on auto refinancing, or verify other sources of income, according to SoFi.
These alternative sources of income can include rental income, Social Security, investment dividends, pensions, alimony or other support payments, and stock shares.
Getting approved without income can lead to stricter loan terms, as lenders may view it as a financing risk.
Alternative ways to avoid bank financing are paying cash or utilizing dealer financing, Chase reports.
So while getting a loan without a job is not impossible; there are more hoops to jump through to get approved.
Motor1 contacted Mike via TikTok, and he declined to comment.