Posted by Steve White on Feb 08, 2012
Parking a car in a garage can certainly reduce the risk of theft and vandalism. As such, it seems logical that insurance companies should offer discounts to clients who use a garage to store their vehicles. Unfortunately, most insurers do not see a correlation between insurance premium and parking a car in a garage.
Insurance premiums are set based on the amount of risk that insurance companies have to take when they offer policies to their clients. It has been discovered over the years that the chances of policyholders filing a claim do not differ much whether their vehicles are parked in the garage or driveway. Therefore, insurance companies do not see any reason to give lower rates to clients who park their cars in a garage. Instead, they offer discounts to car owners who have a good driving record, safety and anti-theft devices, and good credit history.
Parking in a garage matters more if you own a classic car. In fact, some leading providers of classic car insurance only offer policies to car owners who can show proof that they are storing their cars in a lockable garage. Nonetheless, this does not mean that they will give you lower premiums. Classic car insurance usually does not cost as much as insurance for cars that are used on a daily basis, and it is affordable enough even if it does not come with a discount. Most insurers offer low premiums to classic car owners because they consider them low-risk customers.
Posted by Steve White on Jan 30, 2012
Dietrich Hatlapa sought the assistance of top-flight researchers, some of which were his former colleagues from ING Baring Securities, and he started to conduct detailed analysis on the classic car market. Together with former Baring head of research, Bruce Johnson, he found that there were indeed clear patterns in the market.
Hatlapa, who now resides in England and Spain, said that he was initially amazed to find that there was so little transparency in the classic car market, and investors and collectors had to make buying decisions mostly based on opinion and hunch. By creating the HAGI index, he has made it possible for classic car owners to get a clearer idea of the financial potential of their investments.
In the beginning, HAGI established the size of the market for the top 100 historic car models, which amounted to 10.1 billion to 12.3 billion pounds in 2008. The total turnover for the sales of these cars that year was more than 1.07 billion pounds. In comparison, the tradable part of the fine wine market was 3 billion pounds in 2010. Initially, the index covered 38 cars from 18 marques, but now, the number has risen to 50, all of which have a minimum value of 100,000 pounds, among other criteria.
By monitoring the HAGI index, experts came to the realization that a rare Ferrari, Bugatti, or Jaguar in top condition will gain more value during a downturn than most other assets, including wine, fine art, and even gold. The index also revealed that the movement of the classic car market is completely independent of other investment areas, and it provides information on how the market will move in the future.
Posted by Steve White on Jan 27, 2012
Widely regarded as the greatest investor in the world, Warren Buffet has been known for making excellent investment decisions, such as buying into Coca-Cola and American Express. However, he did make a mistake when he was given the opportunity to dabble in the classic car market. In the year 1980, he was offered the Harrah Collection, which consisted of a total of 1,400 classic cars of the finest quality, including a 1913 Pierce-Arrow, 1932 Rolls-Royce Salamanca, and 1932 Bugatti Coupe. He could have owned the collection for less than a million dollars, but he passed. Several years later, a small portion of the collection was sold at an auction for $69 million.
This shows the unpredictability of the classic car market, and experts have failed for many years to analyze and track its movements. Unlike commodities such as gold and wine, no independent market index has been available to enable investors to understand the machinations of the classic car market, until a few years ago.
In 2007, a banker by the name of Dietrich Hatlapa wanted to expand his small collection of classic cars by acquiring a 1960 Porsche RS60 Spyder. However, he was disappointed and astonished to discover that no credible historic price-performance information existed at that time to provide guidance for his investment, and he had no way to compare his intended purchase with other assets. As such, he decided to develop the first authoritative independent classic car index by establishing a research organization called the Historic Automobile Group International, or HAGI.
Posted by Steve White on Jan 20, 2012
It is not easy to get financing for a classic car. Most auto loan providers only offer financing for ordinary cars, because they are unable to determine the values of classic cars accurately. The only companies that are willing to offer classic car loans are lenders that have extensive knowledge about classic cars and specialized classic car financing companies. If you want to get best loan rates and terms, it is recommended that you get financing from a lender that specializes in classic car financing.
Choice Motor Credit is a reliable company that offers hassle-free financing for classic cars. It provides private short-term equity loans for a wide range of collector cars, including vintage cars, classic cars, muscle cars, hot rods, exotic cars, and others. The amount of loan offered by the company can range from $10,000 to $500,000 for a single vehicle. This classic car loan provider has very simple lending requirements, and it usually gives out loans without requiring credit checks, financial statements, verification of bank accounts, or tax returns.
The loans that are provided by Choice Motor Credit are specially designed to make it easier for you to free up equity in the car that you currently own, allowing you to get the financing you need to purchase a new car. Whether you need equity loans for several classic cars or car collections, or you are restoring or customizing classic cars, Choice Motor Credit has the right classic car loan program for you.
Posted by Steve White on Jan 09, 2012
Since classic cars are mostly more expensive than ordinary cars, most owners are required to pay higher insurance premiums. However, there are ways for you to reduce the cost of your classic car insurance. Insurance companies in every state offers certain insurance discounts for car owners, and you can take advantage of these discounts to save a substantial amount of money.
1) Safe Driver Discount – If you have a good driving record, it means that there is a lower chance that you will get involved in accidents. Most insurance companies will be willing to give lower insurance premiums to safe drivers.
2) Multi-Car or Multi-Policy Discount – You can also avail of classic car insurance discounts if you purchase policies for more than one car from the same insurance provider. Getting other types of policies, such as home and health policies, from one insurer can also reduce your classic car insurance premium significantly.
3) Safety Features – If you have safety features in your classic car, such as anti-lock brakes and anti-theft system, you may also be eligible for insurance discounts.
4) Higher Deductible – Another way to lower your classic car insurance premium is to request for a higher deductible. Getting a higher deductible means that you have to pay more out of your own pocket when your classic car is damaged in an accident.
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