Average new car payment $554

[JeffKeryk]

Cars are not investments, mutual funds are.
Do not put money into a depreciating asset, do put money into an appreciating asset.

Cars are different things to different people.
From basic transportation to status symbol and everything in between.

I will say they are a good way to get into financial trouble; can be bad or good.
I bought a new fully loaded black 6 speed Corvette in 1990 that I could not afford.
Of course I convinced myself otherwise...
Every "extra" penny I had went into that beautiful car.
When I sold it to a Corvette house a year later, I had to pay a bunch to get out from under the loan.

Perhaps the best lesson I ever learned.

 

[MCompact]

In 1992 I bought a one-owner E24 M6. It was an absolute ball to drive, especially once I installed a Dinan chip and the catalyst accidentally fell off in the garage one weekend. I sold it in 1995 for $500 less than I paid for it. My only regret was that I sold it. I have many fond memories about that car-on track and off-including using it to bring my newborn son home from the hospital in 1994.

Could I have saved money running a low-rent vanilla appliance during that same period?
Almost certainly.

Would I consider trading all those good times for the money I could have saved?
Not for one nanosecond.

 

[philipp10]

average car payment of $554....lol. NOT IN MY WORLD. I refuse to join that sorry group. My goal is to become well off enough to retire and not have to worry about money and a car payment like that is just not going to happen. No wonder about 1/2 of Americans don't have 2 nickels to rub together.

 

[philipp10]

Originally Posted by tony1679
Linctex has it right. Give me my very nice, very roomy $100k house (or even better a small ~700 square foot small house for ~$50k including a few acres of land in a rural area). I could literally retire for the rest of my life on $200k. And I'm 29. Everyone loves to

, but I absolutely could.

Cookie-cutter 4,000 square foot houses, Escalades for a soccer mom of one, and grocery-getting Raptors are for imbeciles.

the rule of thumb is you can take about 4% off your investments. So if you think you can retire on 8k a year......have at it. I would not retire until I had a million in the bank and even that is not that much extra.

 

[philipp10]

...

 

[JTK]

A $554/mo vehicle payment is nothing compared to some of my co-workers and friends "must have" truck or SUV payments. It's not my thing, but I know it's indeed a thing. Most have 84mo loans as well.

 

[dave1251]

Originally Posted by philipp10
average car payment of $554....lol. NOT IN MY WORLD. I refuse to join that sorry group. My goal is to become well off enough to retire and not have to worry about money and a car payment like that is just not going to happen. No wonder about 1/2 of Americans don't have 2 nickels to rub together.


From this it sounds like you are very judgmental to each is their own. At least you have a better grasp of finance then most.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by CKN

Remember-there are those on here who buy a $200.00 ( that's been in a flood) beater-and the goal is to drive it to a half a million miles and reach (in their opinion) the pinnacle of automotive excellence.

I don't know if I'd call "automotive" excellence, but if I could actually do that it'd be a stroke of financial excellence. At least for me.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by philipp10
Originally Posted by tony1679
Linctex has it right. Give me my very nice, very roomy $100k house (or even better a small ~700 square foot small house for ~$50k including a few acres of land in a rural area). I could literally retire for the rest of my life on $200k. And I'm 29. Everyone loves to

, but I absolutely could.

Cookie-cutter 4,000 square foot houses, Escalades for a soccer mom of one, and grocery-getting Raptors are for imbeciles.

the rule of thumb is you can take about 4% off your investments. So if you think you can retire on 8k a year......have at it. I would not retire until I had a million in the bank and even that is not that much extra.

I've never quite understood the 4% rule. I think it's from the assumption of little to no growth in the fund, or just enough to keep up with inflation, and 25 years of life in retirement. 4 * 25 is 100%, after all.

Thus, retiring at any age below about 60 would require a withdraw rate lower than 4%. Unless if one has their assets in something that will grow, and can handle the ups and downs of the market.

I'm no financial guy though.

 

[flinter]

56 years old and NEVER had a car payment in my life....and NEVER will. I currently drive a MINT condition 2017 Hyundai Elantra Value Edition, paid cash. Remember, one NEVER gets rich with constant car payments!

 

[RooflessVW]

Originally Posted by flinter
56 years old and NEVER had a car payment in my life....and NEVER will. I currently drive a MINT condition 2017 Hyundai Elantra Value Edition, paid cash. Remember, one NEVER gets rich with constant car payments!

Are you rich?

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by flinter
56 years old and NEVER had a car payment in my life....and NEVER will. I currently drive a MINT condition 2017 Hyundai Elantra Value Edition, paid cash. Remember, one NEVER gets rich with constant car payments!

I think that's considered a non-sequitur. Someone making six figures per year, who lives cheaply, could max out their retirement savings potential yet decide to buy a new car every year.

Ultimately the path to richness is to spend less than you make. For most, a car payment a hindrance. But for some, particularly as you climb the income ladder, it's not really that big of a deal. But most people prefer to live at the edge of their budget and not worry about saving...

 

[MCompact]

Originally Posted by rooflessVW
Originally Posted by flinter
56 years old and NEVER had a car payment in my life....and NEVER will. I currently drive a MINT condition 2017 Hyundai Elantra Value Edition, paid cash. Remember, one NEVER gets rich with constant car payments!

Are you rich?


Do you actually think you will get a straight answer?

 

[RooflessVW]

Originally Posted by MCompact
Originally Posted by rooflessVW
Originally Posted by flinter
56 years old and NEVER had a car payment in my life....and NEVER will. I currently drive a MINT condition 2017 Hyundai Elantra Value Edition, paid cash. Remember, one NEVER gets rich with constant car payments!

Are you rich?

Do you actually think you will get a straight answer?

Of course not.

 

[Srt20]

LMAO at all the judgemental people in here....

Why do you worry about what others do????

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by Srt20
LMAO at all the judgemental people in here....

Why do you worry about what others do????

Remind me how well we all did during the last credit crunch.

 

[Mad_Hatter]

Originally Posted by Srt20
LMAO at all the judgemental people in here....

Why do you worry about what others do????


In general I don't. However, we don't live in a vacuum and most of us aren't so well off that we're fully insulated from the effects that poor lending/borrowing practices have on the economy. And people did say the same thing before all those bad home loans helped crash the economy. Both the banks and the borrowers knew they were getting loans they had no business having.

Like the "Ninja" loan...no income, no job application.

 

[PimTac]

Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by Srt20
LMAO at all the judgemental people in here....

Why do you worry about what others do????

Remind me how well we all did during the last credit crunch.




I did quite well. I use my credit very conservatively. I could see what was coming many many months prior and many people did not believe it.

I'm not the only one. Many people, in fact most people were able to adapt and live fine. The focus was of course on those who overextended themselves and played the home equity game.

 

[Mr Nice]

Nobody can blame the commissioned folks in finance that know certain people are overextended and buy houses and vehicles they can't afford.

All these folks care about is selling and selling....

 

[Srt20]

Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by Srt20
LMAO at all the judgemental people in here....

Why do you worry about what others do????

Remind me how well we all did during the last credit crunch.


So what is judging on an internet forum going to do?

People complaining about others is going to change anything?

Worry about yourself, and take care of your own issues so things dont happen to you.

Give good advice to people that ask.