I'm about to take my wife's Accord into carmax to get it appraised. We are looking to trade it in and get a more kid friendly vehicle. I haven't bought a car in a while and was wondering how I should go about getting financing. Should I just handle it through carmax/dealership? Swing by my bank or a credit union first? Or is it easy to get a quote/qualified online?

PenFed and Lightstream have had some good reviews from people for online lending.

If you have a credit union, you might also check with them to get pre-approved.

A lot of dealers are offering 0% now, so that may be something you're interested in. Would need to run the numbers to make sure it's worth the increased sale price vs. financing incentives

Brazos Valley CU has promo rate of 1.89% for up to 72 mos. on new cars.

Edit: my experience with them was a good one. Fast, easy, done.

Most Credit Unions rate match. So find the cheapest you can even if you don't qualify for that particular CU. Then ask ones that you do qualify for.

Also don't be afraid to use the stealership financing if it gets you a better price. Then, refi the auto loan with the CU.

Capital One Auto Navigator to get pre-approved without impact to your credit score. I ended up getting a better rate with TD Auto Finance, but it was nice to have something to compare the offer to.

Auto Navigator