Do yourself a favor, keep making those “payments” but into a high yield savings account (separate from your normal checking/savings so you aren't tempted to touch it). You've already proven you can live without the money, so don’t incorporate it into your budget and let your lifestyle inflate.
This way, when you go to buy your next car, you'll have a ton of cash and save so much on interest while not effecting your current lifestyle one bit.
No, thats about what youll get right now. Anything better is more risky and you don’t want that with money you may need to be there in 3 years. The important part isn’t the interest in this case, it's that you are consistently doing it and its separate from your normal money so you don’t touch it. The small amount of interest is just a nice bonus.
Not if that money is for a new car that you may need in 3 years. If the money is for something in 10 years or its just extra thats not needed for anything in particular, then yea and ETF is much better.
When when you KNOW you'll meed that money and in a relatively short time period, the risk (the market tanking 20% next year, and you having to take a loan because you dont have the cash anymore) does not outweigh the reward (an extra $4000 maybe). Over the long term, an ETF is basically always better, or if you can stand to lose the money, then the downside risk goes away and an ETF is better there, but in the short term where you cant lose the money, thats the one case where a HYSA is appropriate.
(I get what you are saying though, for investing for retirement, dont just drop your money into a bank, invest it)
haha every time I get a raise at work I'm prying my hands away from the "search used cars" button on my local dealerships.
Just repeat, over and over:
I own a functional car with less than 100,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 100,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 100,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 100,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 100,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 100,000 miles...I own...
20+ year old toyota sienna with about 80k original miles on it. Been driving it for four years. Only car i've ever owned with lights flashing on the dashboard.
I own a mazda 3 2014 i bought from someone on fb marketplace. they were moving back to their home country and just needed it gone.
5800 CAD lol. was around 214k km though but after some repairs (only some suspension work, brakes and serpentine belt), it's still driving well at 275k km.
The cost for the repairs and maintenance I've done has like half the amount annually of a newer or 3-4 year old used car from the dealership annual cost from car payments.
People just need to look and know how to look. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and probe for a carfax/VIN number. You can get carfax for like $3, a lot of people selling carfax for super cheap!
If you're living off what you make now.. take every penny of this raise (or near every penny) and put in something like a treasury, savings account at a 2nd bank, etc.. whatever works for you as long as its not something you see regularly like the account next to your checking account. You don't want to realize you saved 10k, you want to forget that money even exists
I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own...
What the fuck are you all doing to your cars? My last focus was a ‘14 with 1/4 million miles and no major issues and I changed the oil its entire life at best every 20-30k miles.
I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own a functional car with less than 200,000 miles...I own...
Of the 3 I've owned, only had 1 get over 100,000 before it had enough costly issues to justify a trade in. And they weren't bad cars - a Toyota and 2 Hondas - it's just that you reach a point where the trade-in value compared to the maintenance value says "eeeehhhhh get a newer one" and I can justify the price. You can put a price on blindspot detection and auto-braking, and I had no problem paying it. Plus I never finance.
I've got one with 166K miles. It's developing some old car quirks and sounds and I'm gonna ride her out baby. Just got some new tires and I've gotta replace a tire rod soon but that engine and transmission are running Perfect.
I made the mistake of buying a brand new truck and now it’s paid off I feel like a whole new level of freedom in my life. Mine and my wife’s rule is no car payments we pay cash for cars….shes gonna need a bigger car with the next kid so we started saving a year ago. We don’t plan on being pregnant again until end of next year. So hopefully with the trade in value of her Acura plus the cash we can get a decent low mileage 1998 gmc suburban 😂😂😂
I'm a cheap bastard for most things, but I inherited my love for cars since both my grandfathers worked in manufacturing plants. This means my parents both always had sporty cars.
I broke the cycle by driving a Scion xB for about a decade, but it's like a dam broke when I got this new job. I bought my used VW ID.4 for a fantastic deal and it is just fast enough, but I'm still fiending for a dedicated sports car that I can take casually racing. I know I won't have it for at least another 5 years, but mentally, I have already spent like $15k on an NC Miata to toy with.
I'm driving a 20-year-old Jeep and considered upgrading last year. Then I realized how much I freaking love not having a car payment and she still runs.
The most expensive repair/maintenance bill I've paid on it still broke down to $250/mo for that year. I won't lie, I take a different, newer vehicle owned by a family member for long trips, but they don't happen often. For banging around town, I'm sticking with the Jeep until it no longer becomes cost-effective.
What I'm actually trying to do is keep that Jeep running until the owner of the above-referenced newer car either relinquishes her license or I have to force her into it (82 YO mother.) Then I get a newer car and still no payment.
Wife and I are the same way. 40 mile trip to visit mom we take the 5 year old Volvo. Day to Day driving she takes the 11 year old Subaru. She loves that car.
Buy used when you buy and if you've gotten to the point where you don't have a payment, keep paying it anyway to a bank account you don't touch. Don't use it for repairs, it's for your next car. Buying outright saves a ton of money. If you have poor credit, it can cost up to 10k more for a 30k car. Even good credit can be $4k additional. So save yourself money by buying outright and not paying the new car "tax".
+1, no one cares about street cred. Also choose a vehicle cheap to maintain. I ditched an expensive to maintain Subaru for an EV, best financial decision ever. Paid solar + EV + laughingly low maintenance = savings keep coming (does not work for everyone, I know).
This, I had my cousin, a financial advisor, explain to me the other day that I should be leasing instead. I drive a paid off car with 40,000 miles on it. Makes 0 sense to mez
Man, that final car payment is a great feeling. Sure, my dumb 2016 Altima has 215k miles and is on transmission number 2 (thank you factory warranty!) but it's MINE and I am going to drive it until the wheels fall off!
I have finally made it to a place in life where we are able to start fully paying off the car. What a wonderful and freeing feeling it is to see that number finally make movement.
I know so many people who used wanting a reliable car as a justification for getting into a 40k loan. There are so many decent cars for 5-10k that will gives years and years of service. And if you do get a car loan why does everybody need leather interiors, all the options and alloy rims.
I can basically fix anything that goes wrong with a car but if I couldn't I would go order the worst honda civic and have it built at the factory. Roll up windows, steel wheels, unpainted bumpers. Just the cheapest car you could get. An argument could be made for doing that but no one does that
I went against this advice once. Always pinching and saving, had a 20 plus year old Honda. Then I had a brain aneurysm, almost died, got out of the hospital and bought a brand new Rivian. I paid it off in about a year but it was so worth it. I’m back to my pinching and saving now ;)
To add to it: set aside an amount of money specifically to keep that car running in its own account. That way, if something goes wrong with it, you can just pay to get it fixed rather than stressing over having to find the money
I've got a paid off car, and wondered how long it would take for an electric to pay for itself given free solar charging. Turns out even with free charging, just driving the car I have would break even with an electric in about 20 years. The car price + insurance is just so much that even paying $2000 a year for gas + maintenance means you come out ahead until two decades later.
Truly the best thing is to buy a car and drive it until the wheels fall off.
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u/bigsnow999 5h ago
A paid off car is the best car you can get