I will say that our lease "interest" rate since it's not really that is less than 1%. It used to be that you could prepay the lease and not pay any interest. I figure that as long as our money can earn more invested, we'll pay the minute rate the car company wants. Of course, we won't even talk about the other 4 leases in our family -- 3 boys completing post grad work and my dh. Sometimes I think we are personally keeping the economy afloat. We've got two in CA, one northern, one southern, house payment for one, the other bums in friend's guest house in Malibu. We still own our family home in Luguna Beach (purchased in the early 50s with an interest rate of 1/4%) and I can't imagine house payments under $1,000. Wow!
My payment is right around 400.... I sooo want a new car right now though! I'm looking for a Mini-Cooper (like a year old one) that is an automatic (it's been hard to find one.)
Bought my cars (through my life) with cash... and keep them until they koink out. This one will take me for YEARS because it's a 2005. (Some of your car payments scare me! And are you adding a mortgage to that? And taxes? And insurance? OUCH!)
I really can't fathom how some people can pull it off. I really can't fathom. Car payment, insurance, mortgage, 401k, gym membership, daycare, etc, etc.
It's all relative to your family income. Of course, we've never paid a single dollar for daycare as I was a run-about mom. We pay all bills in full each month. We took a 6 week trip to Australia last summer (all the family) and used AmEx miles for the airfare.
I pay 412 a month for my 2008 Honda Civic, although I always pay a little more because I'm trying to pay it off a little bit early. I had a '91 Honda Civic that my mom bought me for school that was completely paid off, but after sinking nearly 3,000 dollars into it in one year and then being told I need a new antifreeze tank, a new transmission and that they couldn't fix the air conditioner, I gave up the ghost and bought a new one.
This seems to be a good time to buy a car. We just helped my daughter purchase a 2007 Hyundai for $9,000. We spent about 4 week ends and numberous hours on the phone and computer, but it was worth it. She paid cash, by using every resource in the family and her tax return. (Her grandmother gave her some money, we helped her out, and she sold her old car.)
We have no car payments now and plan to keep it that way. We have two vehicles now and plan to have them for several more years. When we do get a "new to us" one in the future, it will be paid in cash.
My parents' deal was they would pay insurance as long as we got all A's and B's on our report card. Spanish and Math had me paying every semester....
They ARE super cute, aren't they? I have a friend who is always buying new things, even though she works low-paying part time jobs, her dh is out of work, and they live in the basement of her dh's parents' house. She bought a brand new hybrid Escape in a gorgeous lime green, and I swear, I ground about an inch off my teeth. I'm not usually the jealous type, but COME ON! That was hard to swallow.
I just bought another car for 4100, Chysler Sebring. Walked up to the used car dealer and said"4100 dollar cash". Took out the bundle and drove off into the night. Well, I did have to sign some things and that does not include TT&L. SO, that makes it 2 for me.
We have two cars, a 2005 Scion tC and a 2009 Corolla. Both are between $360-380. I had a civic that I used to pay $310 a month. For me, I would never want one car payment to be over $400. BTW, I recommend both cars! They're awesome.
Cransmans, doesn't it feel good to control the process.......... AND to not pay any interest.... Congrats..... Major........
2 door or 4 door? I really like the 2 door (convertible) and I think the Chrysler 300M is beautiful. I am an SUV gal for now but I really like those two Chrysler vehicles. I used to have a red Toyota Celica convertible before kids. I loved it but I seemed to draw the attention of the law.
Quote: Originally Posted by Upsadaisy My car is paid off, but I am paying my DD's car payment, and insurance on all three cars. I'm getting really sick of it, too. You think toys are expensive when they're little..... My parents' deal was they would pay insurance as long as we got all A's and B's on our report card. Spanish and Math had me paying every semester.... Jem - my kids are in their 20's!!!! Every time I look at my '03 Saturn L200 I think how happy I am that it's paid off. It doesn't matter that I glued back on the ripped-off side-view mirror myself! Hey, it's stuck in MY view.
My first car was $218 a month in 1986. My parents always bought new and paid at the time, but they financed my car because they had 0% financing! They put the car money in an account earning good interest and made money. I'm not that good. I paid $435 back in 1996 when I bought my car. I've been without a car payment since early 2000. DH bought a used Jeep in 2007 and paid cash. They had it listed at $9100, and he ended up paying $4000 cash because SUV's weren't exactly selling great then. He held out for his "perfect" Jeep. He wanted the older body style, and he finally found it. We looked for a few months. It had 105,000 miles on it, but considering that his other one was pushing 200,000 when he ran it through a fence, we figured it was good for a lot more miles. I just inherited my dad's truck. He bought it in September, and it only had 5500 miles on it when I brought it home. He paid it off at the time. Mom doesn't drive, so Dad told me to take it. I told Mom to sell it, but she said she wasn't willing to take "used" prices for a basically new truck, so she insisted I take it.
My '99 GMC Jimmy is completely paid off and has been since '03. We pay $571 for our '03 GMC Sierra Heavy Duty 3/4 ton pickup. DH's truck will be paid off next January.. we'll hold off buying me a new vehicle until late next year. Then, I want a new Acadia... the payments will be close to what we have now. Our plan is upgrade to a new vehicle every 6 years... in that way, we'll always have a "good vehicle" and only one payment at a time.
$204. I'm starting my last year of paying for my car and I can't wait to stop writing checks. I have an '03 Civic that I purchased used in '05. I would have had a payment under $200, but I purchased a warranty through the dealership and had it spread out over the life of the loan. I haven't used the stupid warranty, but you know if I hadn't purchased it, something would have gone wrong every month from the moment I brought my car home!
