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i think of the lease payment for someone like as necessary. for one, owning depreciating assets through car LOANS is not really my priority right now. Paying down debt is a priority. A small lease payment doesn't cut into my budget to crank down those credit cards much at all.
Just my analysis. Making a debt payment on a depreciating assets makes even less sense.
FYI, our cars are both paid for now, but each has over 135k miles. Small repairs necessary, but I can do most of them. Watched dad a lot growing up!
I live in a suburb just outside of Boston, MA and insurance is pretty high to begin with. Mine is even more crazy because I'm young, I'm a relatively new driver, and had a couple accidents a couple years ago. Last year, it went up again just because of a price adjustment for my area code. Believe me, I've shopped around. I'm just sick and tired of forking over that money every month and think it's time I start pocketing it myself.
The $5000 repair estimate from the dealer is most likely a rip-off. some on the things on my estimate. Things they suggested were control arms, and engine mounts and other preventative maintenance services. i took the car to a mechanic and he thought all of that was BS but he suggested I replace tire rods which I did. Cost me about $700. Since I am not mechanically inclined, I have no idea if I'm being screwed or not.
I never would have bought this car on my own because all I need is something basic, cheap and reliable to take me from point A to point B. And I barely knew how to drive so I really should have bought a junker. Then those dings and scratches wouldn't matter. My uncle who is (kind of) mechanically inclined went with me to buy this car and made me thing I was getting a great deal. I know now that he is terrible with money and I was car crazy and stupid when I bought the car. Not complaining about any of this. I signed the papers. I bought the wrong car. I just want out now.
Here's an update - I listed car on craigslist and I got something like 10 responses within 12 hours so I took down the posting. I probably listed the price way too low because after I took down the posting, someone sent a message with an offer that was $2000 more than what I had listed. I've got a few people who said they will come for a test drive this weekend. they'll probably try to low ball me when they see some of the damage on the body but will see how that goes.
I don't know anything about selling a car to a private seller so I am kind of anxious. I don't have title in hand so that may be a challenge. Not sure if it's worth taking out a credit card loan to obtain it. Plus what if the potential buyer I meet with is a lunatic? What if they buy the car and have buyer's remorse and decide to harass me? How do I make sure I don't get scammed? How does all the paperwork get transferred? This is why I would rather do this through a dealer. I'll give it a shot though.
I still haven't decided what I will do if I do decide to sell the car. A lease sounds like a pretty attractive option since I probably drive less than $15k miles for the year, and I could get a new car for a smaller monthly payment for the next few years and start off again at 0 after it's all over. But I've heard plenty of horror stories about leases. I would have to pick up some loan/lease gap coverage on insurance. Also, if I ding/scratch my own car, I can shrug and walk away. If I do the same thing to the dealer's car, that's a different story.
I am really hesitant to put money down on a used car. I am not mechanically inclined, I don't know a good mechanic, and I don't want to have to have to deal with a new car problem every few months.
I could just take public transportation for a while. My commute would increase from a comfortable 30 minute drive to a 2 hour bus and train ride. Could be worse I guess.
I haven't read through all of the posts, but here is what I did 5 years ago.
I went to a Hyundai dealership, we had a car with $5600 left on it, where the bottom was going to fall out any day (I didn't buy this car I told the sales person that I will buy one from them if they paid off the loan. They said, no problem and came back twice with the $5600 rolled into the new car loan - they listed in a different place both times thinking I wouldn't notice. I told the guy, "look, I'm not an idiot, I will not have this loan rolled into the new car loan, either you pay off the $5600 and give me the new one for the $20K, or I'm leaving." They came back the third time asking where to send the $5600 check. The car was $20K out the door, with a $350 payment, which I paid off in 3.5 years. The car just turned 5 years old and is in great condition with no issues (knock on wood). I plan to keep it for another 5 years payment free.
You can try something like that. I have had zero repair costs on my car, just maintenance. I don't drive it much so only 70K miles on it right now.
I haven't read through all of the posts, but here is what I did 5 years ago.
I went to a Hyundai dealership, we had a car with $5600 left on it, where the bottom was going to fall out any day (I didn't buy this car I told the sales person that I will buy one from them if they paid off the loan. They said, no problem and came back twice with the $5600 rolled into the new car loan - they listed in a different place both times thinking I wouldn't notice. I told the guy, "look, I'm not an idiot, I will not have this loan rolled into the new car loan, either you pay off the $5600 and give me the new one for the $20K, or I'm leaving." They came back the third time asking where to send the $5600 check. The car was $20K out the door, with a $350 payment, which I paid off in 3.5 years. The car just turned 5 years old and is in great condition with no issues (knock on wood). I plan to keep it for another 5 years payment free.
You can try something like that. I have had zero repair costs on my car, just maintenance. I don't drive it much so only 70K miles on it right now.
I love this. I'm gunna try this and see if I come out ahead. Only difference though is that my car actually runs pretty well. I took another look at the dealer's estimate for repairs and most of the stuff on there is preventative maintenance. But the car is 10 years old and I could get decent brand new car for this price.
I live in a suburb just outside of Boston, MA and insurance is pretty high to begin with. Mine is even more crazy because I'm young, I'm a relatively new driver, and had a couple accidents a couple years ago. Last year, it went up again just because of a price adjustment for my area code. Believe me, I've shopped around. I'm just sick and tired of forking over that money every month and think it's time I start pocketing it myself.
The $5000 repair estimate from the dealer is most likely a rip-off. some on the things on my estimate. Things they suggested were control arms, and engine mounts and other preventative maintenance services. i took the car to a mechanic and he thought all of that was BS but he suggested I replace tire rods which I did. Cost me about $700. Since I am not mechanically inclined, I have no idea if I'm being screwed or not.
I never would have bought this car on my own because all I need is something basic, cheap and reliable to take me from point A to point B. And I barely knew how to drive so I really should have bought a junker. Then those dings and scratches wouldn't matter. My uncle who is (kind of) mechanically inclined went with me to buy this car and made me thing I was getting a great deal. I know now that he is terrible with money and I was car crazy and stupid when I bought the car. Not complaining about any of this. I signed the papers. I bought the wrong car. I just want out now.
I also drive a '05 TL and I can't imagine how you have $5000 worth of repairs, especially since Acura's are very reliable vehicles. If you can find a Honda dealer in your area, they are much cheaper than Acura dealers. The dealers will try to rip you off but like the others here have stated only get the most important things fixed first, worry about the other stuff later.
I also drive a '05 TL and I can't imagine how you have $5000 worth of repairs, especially since Acura's are very reliable vehicles. If you can find a Honda dealer in your area, they are much cheaper than Acura dealers. The dealers will try to rip you off but like the others here have stated only get the most important things fixed first, worry about the other stuff later.
True - but I actually went to a Honda dealer and they quoted $5000. The car is actually a pretty good and reliable car all things considered. It's costing me a lot of money but I have not had any mechanical issues. I'm afraid it will cost me a lot more if I don't take care of the preventative maintenance stuff now but those preventative stuff cost $5000! Might as well put that down on a new car.
True - but I actually went to a Honda dealer and they quoted $5000. The car is actually a pretty good and reliable car all things considered. It's costing me a lot of money but I have not had any mechanical issues. I'm afraid it will cost me a lot more if I don't take care of the preventative maintenance stuff now but those preventative stuff cost $5000! Might as well put that down on a new car.
Therein lies the problem. Just because a dealer would cost $5k does not mean it would cost that much elsewhere. Check with some local mechanics/repair garages and see what they will charge for the same repairs.
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I told the sales person that I will buy one from them if they paid off the loan. They said, no problem and came back twice with the $5600 rolled into the new car loan - they listed in a different place both times thinking I wouldn't notice. I told the guy, "look, I'm not an idiot, I will not have this loan rolled into the new car loan, either you pay off the $5600 and give me the new one for the $20K, or I'm leaving." They came back the third time asking where to send the $5600 check. The car was $20K out the door, with a $350 payment, which I paid off in 3.5 years. The car just turned 5 years old and is in great condition with no issues (knock on wood). I plan to keep it for another 5 years payment free. 
