Math Problem Statement

A car dealer offered an end-of-year clearance that was 20% off the MSRP of $33,500. Janice Ng agrees to that price plus additional tax and license fees of $1,885. If she obtains a 3-year loan at an annual interest rate of 5.75% compounded monthly, what is her monthly payment (in dollars)? (Round your answer to the nearest cent.)

Solution

To determine Janice Ng's monthly car payment, we need to break the problem into a few steps:

  1. Calculate the sale price after the discount: The original MSRP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price) is $33,500, and the dealer offers a 20% discount. Let's first calculate the sale price.

    Discount amount=0.20×33,500=6,700\text{Discount amount} = 0.20 \times 33,500 = 6,700 Sale price=33,5006,700=26,800\text{Sale price} = 33,500 - 6,700 = 26,800

  2. Add the tax and license fees: Janice will also have to pay additional fees of $1,885.

    Total amount to be financed=26,800+1,885=28,685\text{Total amount to be financed} = 26,800 + 1,885 = 28,685

  3. Set up the loan details:

    • Loan amount: $28,685
    • Loan term: 3 years (36 months)
    • Annual interest rate: 5.75%, compounded monthly
    • Monthly interest rate: 5.7512=0.47917%\frac{5.75}{12} = 0.47917\% or 0.00479170.0047917 in decimal form
  4. Use the formula for the monthly payment on an amortized loan:

    M=P×r×(1+r)n(1+r)n1M = \frac{P \times r \times (1 + r)^n}{(1 + r)^n - 1}

    Where:

    • MM = monthly payment
    • PP = loan principal ($28,685)
    • rr = monthly interest rate (0.0047917)
    • nn = number of payments (36 months)

Now let's calculate the monthly payment.Janice Ng's monthly payment on the 3-year loan would be approximately $869.41.

Would you like more details on how the formula works or have any other questions?

Here are 5 related questions for further exploration:

  1. How much total interest will Janice pay over the life of the loan?
  2. What would her monthly payment be if the interest rate were 4.5% instead of 5.75%?
  3. How would her payment change if she chose a 5-year loan instead of 3 years?
  4. What is the difference in total cost between paying cash versus taking the loan?
  5. How does the monthly compounding affect the total amount paid compared to annual compounding?

Tip: When considering loans, always pay attention to both the interest rate and the loan term to understand the total cost.

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Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Percentage Calculation
Loan Amortization
Compound Interest
Algebra

Formulas

Sale price after discount: Sale price = MSRP - (Discount percentage * MSRP)
Loan amortization formula: M = P * r * (1 + r)^n / [(1 + r)^n - 1]

Theorems

Loan Amortization Formula

Suitable Grade Level

Grades 11-12