4 financial ‘experts’ who could steer you wrong

None of us knows everything we need to know about money, so we may turn to experts for help. But some money professionals who offer advice are not qualified to do so — nor are they required to put our interests ahead of theirs.

Be cautious when accepting advice from the following sources.

The dealership about how long your auto loan should be

The dealership wants to sell you a car. To make the payments more affordable, you may be offered a loan that lasts six, seven or even eight years.

Longer loans can get you smaller monthly payments, but they cost more overall, since you’ll pay more interest. You’ll also likely spend several years “upside down,” or owing more than your vehicle is worth. As the car ages, you could easily face big repair bills while still making payments. If you needed to sell the car, you would have to come up with money to pay off the loan. Alternatively, you could roll the negative equity into your next car purchase, but that would make your next loan even more expensive.

Limit your auto loans to a maximum of five years for new cars or three years for used cars. A 20% down payment can help you avoid negative equity, as well. Consider getting pre-approved for a loan from your local credit union or bank or an online lender. That can help you withstand the dealership trying to pressure you into expensive financing.

Mortgage pros about how much house you can afford

Good mortgage brokers or loan officers can be invaluable in helping you navigate a complicated process and understand the guidelines that lenders use to determine how big of a loan you can qualify for. But they can’t tell you how big of a loan you can comfortably afford. Neither can your real estate agent, for that matter.

True affordability will depend on a lot of factors that aren’t captured in your application, including when you want to retire and how much you want to save for other goals such as a child’s education.

There’s also your comfort level. Some people are fine borrowing the maximum, because they believe their finances will only get better. Others prefer to borrow more conservatively.

Use online calculators to estimate how much to save for retirement and other goals. Then include those figures in your monthly