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If you can live with mileage restrictions, you could always lease, but shop insurance first because you have to have full coverage on a leased vehicle, same as financed. You could then keep the insurance money as a savings fund for another car in two to three years, but you would have zero maintenance expenses and if you find an inexpensive vehicle to insure at an attractive $0/down lease, you can control expenses and get a handle on the insurance premiums.
Economy cars can have higher insurance, so you want to look for something that would appeal to a retiree, where there are fewer sustained losses. Something boring like a Camry, Buick, or Avalon may end up being less expensive, as a total monthly expense, compared to a smaller car with higher insurance rates. Talk to your insurer and inquire about different vehicles to see what is the best bet. Then, look for a lease deal, CPO, or used vehicle that would fit the insurance parameter, as that's the budget killer. Find out if you can take a driver improvement class to get the points reduced, whatever your insurer will accept to give a discount, such as theft recovery system, etc. try to bundle discounts.
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All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
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Please take this advice.
Go to Dave Ramsey .com and find his radio show near you, or listen to three of his pod casts, and READ his wealth building and debt reduction theories.
1) PAY OFF THE CREDIT CARD. As others have said.
2) BUY A BEATER for cash. You have $1,700 it won't be pretty but it will run. Insurance will be $60 a month.
3) If you take the $500-$600 you save with no car payment and put it away, in about 10 months you can sell the Beater for $1,500 and buy a newer car for cash.
Rinse and repeat.
I drive a $70,000 pickup now, and get a new one instead of changing tires, because back in the day I drove $100 and $1,800 cars. Now I drive what I want.
Insurance on a four-door car is cheaper than on a two-door. A two-door is considered a sport's car in the insurance company's eyes, and more likely to be driven by high-risk drivers.
I've always bought new, never used. I don't buy a bunch of options I don't need. Keep it basic. Keeping the car several years after it's paid off pays for itself. I never have to worry about purchasing someone elses nightmare.
So much advice and mostly none of it concerning actual vehicles. The OP didn't ask you to be financial planners; (s)he asked what car to get, not what bills to pay off. In any event, an 18-month balance transfer promo (I'm guessing at 0-1% as many cards today are wont to do in order to get new business) with a six-month delay is a great deal and if OP can make the $500-ish monthly payments in six-month time, that's that. As far as what car to get with your $7K, my advice would be either a Toyota Matrix AWD (or a Pontiac Vibe on which, due to badge prestige - or lack thereof - you could probably get a better deal) or the newest Subaru Impreza you can afford.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mizzlea
my FWD has been an issue in the winter time.
This, alongside the six points, are the only red flags to me in this whole situation. FWD is usually fine in wintertime for most drivers, so, going on available evidence, I am guessing OP could probably benefit from a driving course refresher (which could actually help with the insurance premiums, as well).
Never accept the first offer from your insurance company, always appeal for more. Also, you should not have a $1,000 deductible for comprehensive ... And if you really do, your neighbor's insurance should pay you any out-of-pocket ... His tree smashed your car.
Whether the tree falling is the neighbor's fault depends on why the tree fell. A healthy tree that uproots because of unusually heavy rainfall (an "Act of God") may not be the neighbor's fault. A dead tree that the neighbor was aware was a liability and declined to remove would be.
Whatever you buy, check insurance quotes first. 250 a month for insurance is money being wasted. Also I hate to be one of the people telling you to do so, but pay off that CC for the love of god. You are asking for trouble.
Then maybe you shouldn't. How is it asking for trouble in OP's situation, pray explain?
Sometimes a problem is so obvious, that you cannot in good conscience ignore it. What benefit does he stand to gain by letting this just linger? There is a good amount he is not telling us, like why is insurance is so high. All we have to go by, is his previous mistake of an automobile purchase. It stands to reason that with his past mistakes, putting that 5,000 on a credit card is going to give him trouble later. Why not just pay it off now?
What benefit does he stand to gain by letting this just linger?
If (s)he has the debt on a 0% APR balance transfer offer (which I am going to go ahead and assume is the case and is the caveat I've referred to in the past as well), there are numerous advantages to "letting this just linger".
Quote:
It stands to reason that with his past mistakes, putting that 5,000 on a credit card is going to give him trouble later. Why not just pay it off now?
Your logic is tantamount to saying "because Johnny stole a cookie when he was six, he is going to be robbing banks at 30". I don't see any correlation between these past mistakes and making poor credit decisions. You're doing a lot of assuming in the absence of information.
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