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My point was that everyone's financial situation is different, and since a car is essential, someone could easily commute in a 80K car, where other folks can only afford or only willing to spend 10,000 for a used toyota or a high milage bmw. Social economics comes into play. Also other factors such as a need or a lack of for status on the road. To each his own.
I guess it all depends on the car.
80) mile car is near the breaking point where it becomes expensive to maintain.
So you would essentially end up paying more money in the long run.
Unfortunately,it costs money to go to work.
Sometimes people think cars last forever.
To me,cars are money pits. Every single car I ever had,either the tranny or engine went.
With my Pt Cruiser,both went within a month of each other. I also changed the oil and other maintenece on time.
Good mechanics are HARD to find. I don't trust them at all. I don't want to be bothered with them again,ever.
This is why in the long run leasing is better. I finally have it figured out. I will never buy a car again. Lease is it for me.
Ain't got to worry about maintainence. They take care of it.
It costs money to have a decent car like Toyota or Honda.
If you own a car,you are on your own after 3 years regarding any breakdowns.
I used to be dead set against leasing but have since relaxed my stance on it. It can be a good move on certain types of cars. Very popular with the luxury car crowd since it keeps the payments lower and builds in certain protections and certainties for the "buyer", since the finance company still has a vested interest in the vehicle they'll be getting back in 3 years. If you like the car you can certainly buy it out at the end of the lease, which will have given you plenty of time to get an idea of whether you've got a "good car" or a problem child and can decide accordingly. Also if somebody smashes your leased car in a parking lot or while parked on the street, the depreciated value of the car is not your problem as it would be if you'd owned the car. (This actually happened to a brand new BMW of mine a long time ago.)
I guess it all depends on the car.
80) mile car is near the breaking point where it becomes expensive to maintain.
So you would essentially end up paying more money in the long run.
So I guess its either pay up now,or later.
Not even close, but do whatever works for you. With my five-year-old car with 120k miles trading in on a five year note for a new one would mean payments of $250 a month. My maintenance and repair bills are nowhere near $3000 a year. The only repair has been a AC compressor that failed just outside warranty. Mazda picked up the labor and I paid for the part, so $400. A particularly bad year I had to replace the brakes and tires, which was about $1200... maybe $1500 with oil changes and what not thrown in. It's nuts to me to get rid of a car because it needs new tires or brake pads.
I guess it all depends on the car.
80) mile car is near the breaking point where it becomes expensive to maintain.
So you would essentially end up paying more money in the long run.
So I guess its either pay up now,or later.
I have bought three toyotas one at 18K, second at 74K and the third at 80K. First one now has 85K, second 156K and the third 195K. I don't remember doing anything major.
I hear what you're saying. Cars have become ridiculously expensive when adjusted for inflation and compared with real incomes, which incidentally have been stagnant for twenty years now.
Then don't vote for politicians who keep raising your taxes, which reduces your take home pay. Also, don't vote for politicians who keep voting for added mandatory safety/emissions equipment on new cars. That stuff is not free.
Then I guess you'll never have a car worth more then $10,000. Nothing wrong with that; everyone's resource allocation priorities are different. Me personally, I've bought about 20 cars in my lifetime and only 3 of them cost more than 10K. But it's worth noting that part of why I've gone through so many cars in 20-some years is because many of them were disposable. That's what happens when you buy cheap cars. At some point it's worth paying more upfront now to avoid unexpected expenses later, but one's ability to do so depends on one's cash-flow situation
As for your question, people afford cars one of two ways: 1) they earn and save up enough cash to buy one outright in their price range, whatever that range may be; or 2) they buy one on credit.
#3 - have your parents buy you a new car when your turn 16.
I can afford a car because I work and get paid enough to do so. Having a car, a nice car, is one of the many motivations as to why I obtain more skills and perform well at my job, that way I can get promoted, receive performance bonuses, and receive more salary each year.
I had a great education, had a decent career (most people would be happy with my pay) and can afford a car living in NYC. I decided to invest in myself and went back to school part time and changed to an even better career this year, so I bought a new house and a 2nd car (more out of necessity for living in the suburbs).
My point is that don't just work hard, work smart and always think ahead and invest in yourself first (before making big purchases like a car). If you always make the best decisions, you should do well and can afford most things in your life (that isn't extremely extravagant).
As far as I'm concerned there are far to many people in the US that should not have a vehicle. Between the cost of the vehicle, maintenance, gas, and insurance. They simply are not able to afford it. They are over thier head in payments, and these other costs and cannot get out from under. They are forced to own a vehicle because that is how the US looks at life. You must own a vehicle or your options for where you live are very limited. Not everyone is going to be able to live in the few cities, with adequate transit that we have in this country. America wanted it this way decades ago. (Auto Dependence). Even in some of our biggest cities one needs a car. Phoenix for one and I can attest to that one ,as I'm spending the year here. Ridiculous mileages and almost non existent transit in the majority of it. Yet its the 5th largest city in this country. They want it like that and will not change. The populace here and politicians expect that everyone will own a vehicle. Its like this in so many of the Metro's in this country, that its rather selfish I think to have no transportation options.
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