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Grok+17 agentsLoan Decoder: What This Loan Really Costs
Decode a personal, auto, or mortgage loan offer into total cost, APR vs. advertised rate, and the traps ranked.
$5
Loan Decoder: What This Loan Really Costs
Example session with this skill installed
Auto loan offer: $28,000, 72 months, 7.9% advertised rate, $1,450 in 'documentation and origination fees' rolled in, GAP insurance $795 added, prepayment penalty 2% if paid off in the first 3 years. Payment quoted $529/month. I'll probably keep the car 4 years and might pay it off early when a bonus comes. Decode this.
- Read your context and instructions
- Compiled the loan decoder
Loan Decode: auto loan, $28,000
1. The verdict
Negotiate these terms first: the fees and GAP push the financed amount to $30,245 and the effective APR to roughly 9.6%, well above the 7.9% advertised. Total cost over 72 months is about $38,090, of which $7,845 is interest and $2,245 is fees and add-ons. The prepayment penalty conflicts directly with your plan to pay early. Shop one competing offer before signing.
2. The real numbers
- Amount financed: $28,000 + $1,450 fees + $795 GAP = $30,245
- Payment: $529 × 72 = $38,088 total paid
- Total interest ≈ $7,843; total fees and add-ons $2,245
- Advertised rate 7.9% vs. effective APR ≈ 9.6% — the gap is the $2,245 financed on top of the car
- Prepayment at month 30 (your bonus scenario): remaining balance ≈ $19,400 → penalty ≈ $388
3. Decode table
| Term / fee | What the document says | What it means for you | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doc/origination $1,450 | "Rolled into the loan" | You pay interest on the fee for 6 years | 🔴 |
| GAP insurance $795 | Added to principal | Often available for $200–$400 elsewhere, or unnecessary with a strong down payment | 🟡 |
| Prepayment penalty 2% / 3 yrs | Charged on early payoff | Penalises exactly what you plan to do | 🔴 |
| 72-month term | Six years | Longer than you'll keep the car; you'll sell with a balance | 🟡 |
4. 🚩 Red flags, ranked
- "2% prepayment penalty in the first 3 years" — cost ≈ $388 at month 30. Fix: remove it, or shorten to 12 months.
- "$1,450 documentation and origination" — cost with interest ≈ $1,850. Fix: ask for the rate without the fee, or cap docs at the dealer's standard fee.
- "GAP $795 financed" — cost with interest ≈ $1,010. Fix: decline, or buy from your insurer.
5. The three questions that most change the deal
- What is the payment at 7.9% with the fees paid in cash rather than financed?
- Will you remove the prepayment penalty in writing?
- Is GAP optional, and what is the price if I buy it elsewhere?
6. What's negotiable
Fees (most), GAP (always), penalty (often), rate (sometimes with a competing offer). The single biggest lever on total cost is a 60-month term at the same rate: total paid drops by roughly $1,400 in interest.
This is a plain-language reading, not legal/financial advice — laws vary by jurisdiction; confirm anything load-bearing with a qualified professional.
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What you get
About this skill
The problem
Loan offers advertise a rate and a monthly payment. The total cost, the fee-inflated APR, the prepayment penalty, and the variable-rate reset are in the document, but never in the pitch. People compare payments when they should compare totals.
What it does
- Computes the total-cost-of-loan number: everything paid over the life, and total interest and fees separately.
- Reconciles APR against the advertised rate and explains where the gap comes from.
- Decodes every term and fee in a table with a severity rating.
- Ranks red flags with the dollar cost under a realistic scenario and the fix to ask for.
- Names the three questions that most change this specific deal, and which lever moves the total most.
Why this beats prompting it yourself
A general prompt says whether the rate seems fair. This skill produces the total-cost figure first, shows the APR arithmetic, computes the worst-case reset payment on variable loans, and tells you what to negotiate in order of impact.
Use cases
- Comparing two auto loan offers with different rates and fees.
- Checking a personal loan for prepayment penalties before paying it off early.
- Understanding a mortgage's APR gap and points.
- Deciding whether add-ons like GAP or credit insurance are worth it.
Known limitations
Not financial advice. With partial paperwork it decodes what's there and lists the numbers still needed (APR, fee itemization, penalty terms). Rate-reset projections are scenarios, not predictions.
How to install
Works the same in every agent - Claude, Cursor, Codex, Copilot and 20+ more.
- 1
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- 2
Unzip into your skills folder
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- 3
Ask your agent to use it
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