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I am working now and perhaps within 5 years of retirement. The cars we have are paid for, are in good shape but are 8-10 years old. Should we buy one last new car before retirement and drive it into the sunset while we are still working or simply budget $300 a month and lease indefinitely? Bottom line, do people afford to buy new cars on retirement income?
I just bought a new car in October. I paid for it outright. The old car was 10 years old but it only had mileage on it in the high 60,000s and some of that was from when I was commuting to work in MD. I just bought a new one, same make and model.
I'm a boring person. I don't burn through my money on big trips, nice clothes, jewelry, electronics (except for cameras), etc., I don't own a house with the expense that goes along with that upkeep and I have no kids so the money was there for the car. I needed more leg room and more ease getting in and out of the car for the difficulty I have with my legs now plus the upkeep of the old one started to get expensive. I took a leased car into retirement and then purchased it after I moved to Tennessee but I live in an apartment complex and the parking I do with my car is lot parking so it gets dinged quite a bit and it's out in the elements and the birds poop all over it when I'm out with my camera. I spend my road trip vacations in wildlife refuges, forests and on dirt and gravel roads here and on vacation which does a number on my tires so I go through them more frequently than the average person. The interior of my car takes a hit from spending a lot of time in it eating and feeding the birds from it and tracking in sand and mud. I have to keep a cart on the back seat (easier to take out than from the trunk) so I don't have to carry anything every time I go out. I do my scheduled service appointments and take it to the car wash but I'm rough on my car since retired. I learned from the last one to go for a light exterior and a dark interior, the opposite of what I had before. I just have a midsized sedan, can't step up for an SUV. Nothing fancy, just like me.
You might consider at one time in your future life you and your spouse may have mobility issues, if you do buy a new car, and you are thinking it's the last new one you buy. Think about leg room and the ease of getting in and out of it.
.... that is a lot of miles on that battery powered skateboard.
rjm1cc mentioned it is never good to do a lease and I am assuming that he means especially in retirement. I would disagree to a degree. As I stated above if you do not do much driving leasing a car every two years allows you to keep current model cars with approximately the same payments and no maintenance whatsoever now with many dealers providing oil changes free of charge. yes it does mean a payment every month but remember you cant take it with you. It is better if you are self employed and that car is a business expense but it is still a safe feeling for those who do not want to deal with worries that a car is not ready to go. If money is tight however I will agree rjm1cc buying a late model car every few years that has a few miles on it makes much more sense than buying a brand new one or leasing.
My DW loves the gas-mileage she gets.
With my leased car, all of the servicing is free.
One friend of mine likes getting a newer car very few years, but always the same make/model. He says that in this way, all the knobs and switches are the same from one vehicle to the next.
Buying a new vehicle is really more about how much debt you carry. More so then your income.
We have no mortgage. The only debt we have would be vehicles, we could easily afford to buy a second Prius.
Last edited by Submariner; 01-07-2016 at 03:09 PM..
One friend of mine likes getting a newer car very few years, but always the same make/model. He says that in this way, all the knobs and switches are the same from one vehicle to the next.
Buying a new vehicle is really more about how much debt you carry. More so then your income.
We have no mortgage. The only debt we have would be vehicles, we could easily afford to buy a second Prius.
exactly. We pay off the cars within 12 months of buying them with the exception of the lease my wife did for her Subaru. After the lease was over she bought the car outright because her whole commute with it was 5 miles a day round trip. So her 07 Forester has less than 50k.
As it is right now my next vehicle I want to spend money on is a boat. My wife is nearing the okaying of me getting a nice 24 to 27 foot cuddy cabin. Woo hoo. I have a wonderful woman.
My car hits 100k this weekend. That means that i should be able to get another five to six years out of it and will likely need a new car in 2020 or 2021.
When that occurs, I will be 62 or so and plan to buy another NEW car which will probably last until the end of my driving days. I am done with used cars although I could pick one up as several of my neighbors will quit driving in the next 3-4 years and will be looking to dump their rides.
Here is one suggestion; buy a previously leased car, one with lower miles. You might live into your eighties and still drive, so, you will, most likely, need to buy another one during your retirement.
I decided a few years back that I wanted to replace my old car BEFORE I retired. So over two years, I managed to save enough to pay cash for a barely used Honda. Not knowing how the years ahead might pan out, I figured that was one expense I didn't want to deal with if I could help it.
I am not retired, but why can't you get zero percent? That way you are using their money. My grandmother just got a new Toyota with zero percent. She wanted to finance it to increase her credit rating.
I am not retired, but why can't you get zero percent? That way you are using their money. My grandmother just got a new Toyota with zero percent. She wanted to finance it to increase her credit rating.
If your grandmother is still driving, that tells me you're still pretty young. So here's the deal. If you buy a vehicle at zero percent, that just means the manufacturer and the dealer made up that cost in another way. The most likely way is through a higher sales price and/or a lower trade in price for the old car. These guys are pros and it's highly unlikely that a grandmother is going outmaneuver the sales team. Toyota and its dealers aren't number one or two in the world by letting consumers use "their" money.
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exactly. We pay off the cars within 12 months of buying them with the exception of the lease my wife did for her Subaru. After the lease was over she bought the car outright because her whole commute with it was 5 miles a day round trip. So her 07 Forester has less than 50k.
