I need some quick financial advice conserning the Prius

Sorry Slair-But they won't give you the title until the whole amount due is paid. And then it could take a few weeks or so to get the title once you do pay, but you'd have to check with Toyota on that.

 

we financed through tfs originally. well, setf which is a little different because they're owned by jm family. when i refi'd for an insanely lower interest rate, they would not send us the title clearance until i sent in a payment for the $100 difference between the refi loan and the principal left.

[in wisconsin, you get the title in hand with a lienholder listed as an interested party, and cannot sell the car until you've settled with your lienholder and gotten a title clearance]

if you're selling the car, they no longer have collateral if you quit paying on it. so they really don't like that.

sorry

next time protect yourself with a reasonable down payment or making extra principal payments early on in the loan term. this is a hard time to be learning hard lessons in finance.

 

You either come up with the difference, or you convince the buyer to accept responsibility for the full amount, and to trust you to reimburse him. Owing more than a car is worth (which happens any time you buy on credit with a down payment less than the initial depreciation) is one reason I always advice against buying a car on credit. In fact, I advise against buying anything on credit, other than a house which you will live in until it's paid off, and even then you need insurance against job loss or disability.

If you have sufficient credit you may be able to borrow the $5K from a bank. Debt is a real trap, and once it's got its teeth into you it does not let go.