A testimony from Jen
We’ve been married for 8 ½ years and have two children. In early 2010, just a year after the birth of our second child, my husband and I decided that it was time to sell his 14-year-old truck and buy a larger truck or SUV that would fit our growing family. We had been driving two cars everywhere we went because we couldn’t all fit into just one of our vehicles.
Having taken Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University in the past, we committed not to finance vehicles, so we knew this was going to be a cash deal. It was time to sell the truck, and just hours after listing it online we had an offer. We took it and three days later we had a large wad of cash for our next vehicle!
We set our budget for buying a new truck and began searching. Two months later we found a Suburban that was within our budget and fit all of our needs. So we bought it — with cash!
A month after the purchase the our new-to-us automobile, the suburban’s engine blew. We were out. Out our truck and out our cash.
Not only that, but it was going to cost more to fix the problem than we paid for the vehicle! We had been scammed and I was mad; the kind of mad where steam comes out of your ears.
I got over myself, and we decided to cut our losses. We picked ourselves up, decided to sell the suburban “as is”, tuck the money away and start saving again for another vehicle.
Once again, we set a budget and decided when we reached that amount we would start looking. This time though, we decided that as we were looking we would continue to save. This way, the longer it took to find another truck, the more we’d have to spend. We began putting money away from each paycheck.
Fast forward eight months to January 2011 and we had reached our goal. It was time to start looking for a vehicle, but this time we knew we did not want to make a private party purchase. We were determined to buy from a dealership.
The search began and on February 12, 2011, we paid cash for a 1999 Chevy Tahoe! The dealer even sweetened the deal by including a three-month warranty because we were paying in cash! As you can see, it’s a beautiful truck, and we now have peace of mind about our purchase because we have a warranty.
The best part about our purchase was we were able to negotiate the price and walked away from the sale with $600 of our budgeted money leftover in our pockets! We were able to put the extra money back into savings for future vehicle needs.
Jen Lowman is a stay-at-home, homeschooling mother of two and lover of the Lord Jesus Christ! Her husband Chris is a wonderful man who also loves the Lord and works very hard to support and provide for his family!
Have you saved up and paid cash for something — large or small? Submit your story for possible publication here.
CW says
I have done both: purchased from a dlr with financing and purchased from a private seller with cash. Before I purchased from a private seller I got the car checked out by a mechinac and then I purchased it and I have no regrets because it was driven by myself and family member for a longtime and then sold for cash so I got back about 30% of the purchase price.
I know everyone’s advice is different and alot of readers are cash only but I have financed and I don’t regret it. I financed for five yrs at a low interest rate and I have driven the truck for ten yrs so I have had five years with no pmts and I am praising God because he keeps it on the road and I have had no major issues.
If you can’t pay cash for your car/truck please don’t feel bad because financing a vehicle and then driving it for an additional 10-15 yrs also saves alot of money. If you really need another unit research your options and find the best price and the cheapest unit for you and your family. Just be smart about it and dont allow anyone to influence you to spend more then you want to spend. Have a great day!
Lana says
We have a 99 Suburban that is almot identical to your Tahoe that we paid cash for about 6 years ago. Our transmission had to be rebuilt in the first year but it has been a very reliable vehicle since then.
Kim N. says
Thanks for sharing your story! I have to say that reading this made me sweat a little! We are currently saving to buy a Suburban. Read all the comments and will definately have it looked over by a mechanic. I can’t imagine having to start all over again! That would be rough.
Pat says
Dave Ramsey rocks! We paid cash for our last 2 vehicles, one new, one used. It feels good not to make car payments!
jodi says
This is a great story, being a bit spoiled as I am though, I am saving to buy myself a brand new car cash 🙂
I have had my fair share of used, and it just doesnt do me well so New is the new thing, but with no payments 🙂
Cindi says
We’ve bought several cars over the years, both from private parties and new from dealers (only with 0% financing, though–let our money grow in our investments, instead!); but, I have to say my absolute best experience has been my most recent one. I was in the market for a replacement for our lovely Toyota minivan before it hit 100,000 miles and depreciated considerably. So, I sold it private party, hung on to the cash and the money I’d set aside, and researched my next car (an AWD Audi wagon) on the internet. I was able to find EXACTLY what I wanted from a dealer in another state, negotiated the price down to exactly what I wanted to pay (none of that ridiculous “I’ll talk to my manager” haggling while you’re left waiting at the dealership) and received a beautiful, low-mileage, 2-year old lease-return “Certified Used” Audi shortly thereafter. Best of all, the certification meant that it came with a warranty to 100,000 miles and prepaid service through 45,000 miles (which includes oil changes)! I got the best of both worlds–a great price on a nearly new car that had already depreciated the worst (those first two years), a long-term warranty and service coverage, all from the comfort of home.
Cindi says
Oh, and I forgot to mention, regarding the thread above and fitting in three car seats–I fit three in the back of the Audi wagon, too. We have two Sunshine Kids Radians next to a Graco Nautilus convertible/booster.
Jen Lowman says
This is my story…Thanks for all the LOVE! Guess I should have clarified, we DO have 2 vehicles and we DID have to manage with just 1 while we were patient and saved for this awesome Tahoe. It was well worth it!!
We went with a bigger vehicle, a “gas guzzler” if you will, because we needed 4 wheel drive and something capable of towing…work trailer, camp trailer (which was given to us for FREE), etc.
We are happy with our purchase and the way we went about it all!
For everyone wondering what to do about buying vehicles…my advice is to really consider how a car payment would treat your family, your budget and your lifestyle in general. For us it was a personal choice not to have a car payment EVER again, but I know that our way of doing things is not everybody’s way. Good luck in all your future purchases!!!
Thanks for profiling our story!
Diane_C says
I’m so sorry you had such a bad experience. Our family/extended family has experienced the opposite when buying used–getting duds from the dealers but cream puffs from the private sellers.
Allison V. says
Hooray! It’s tax time, and for me that means I’m shopping for a van to replace our outgrown car. I’m sticking under my budget and I’m determined to have a nice chunk leftover. I just opened my first savings account in years! Woohoo!
Michelle Schwartz says
I have a paid off Toyota Sequoia that we keep for camping and boating only. The gas prices in CA are higher than most parts of the country and will probably go higher. My two sons are 8 and 12 and we wanted the Sequoia when they were younger for safety and it was nice to have the extra room.
In August we paid cash for a new Honda Civic Hybrid due to the high gas prices and the fact that I homeschool also and oftentimes commute to fieldtrips that are far away from our home. Consumer Reports was very important in our choices. We are very leary of American built cars based on stories of lemons like yours. We think reliability and gas mileage are really important. I hope this new SUV ends up working out for you.
If people have older kids out of car seats they may want to consider Toyota Corollas or Honda Civics that are new or used to save money on gasoline and as we’ve found the costs of tires, oil changes and other maintenance is much lower on a small car than on a large SUV.
Sandra Lee says
When my mom could no longer get in and out of my car easily, I found I needed to purchase a new vehicle. I too, purchased a new SUV with cash, at least, in a way I did. I place the cost of the SUV ($26,000+) on 2 different credit cards and I received 1 point for every dollar I charged. I then paid the credit card bill in full and accrude 26,000+ points, which I then redeemed for $$ back from my credit card. It’s what helped to pay for my gift giving this past Christmas.
Diane_C says
This is a great idea!
Jen says
Unless you end up paying interest on the balance. I know she said she paid it off right away, but some cards might still charge interest on it, even for that short time.
Laura says
We bought a NEW vehicle for half price by watching the dealership ads for a few months. We would find one at an incredibly low price, go in, find out there was only 1 at that price and go home disappointed. After doing this a few times, we decided WE would be the ones to go home with the “one offered at this price” deal.
My hubby diligently scoured the papers, and when we found one we liked, he took time off work to go in first thing on Fri morning. The dealerships list their lowest vehicles in the ads on Fri so it brings in people all weekend. Well, by noon on Fri we finally got the car we needed and had been saving for. It was similar to buying a used car…you can’t chose the color or options, you have to be very patient, and you have to be ready to act quickly when the deal is right. You also have to be persistent and not give up if you don’t get your car right away. If you pay cash, you can get a terrific car at at terrific price, with a warranty.
I have never heard anyone else talk about this strategy, so I thought I would bring it up. (I would be curious to know Ramsey’s take on it.) It has been 6 years now, and the car is working well for our family’s needs. Instead of needing to replace a worn-out used car, we are planning on driving this car for many more years. Because we’ve had it from the beginning, we know it has been well-maintained. We plan on buying all future cars this way. It is a lot more work, but when you consider all the savings, it is well worth it!
Diane_C says
Wow, the half price concept is something I’ve never heard of. Very intriguing!
Dave Ramsey is great, but using the knowledge we glean from him doesn’t always have a cut and dried answer. I think you used the knowledge you gained from him and to your advantage. You had a paid-for car under warranty and had time to accumulate savings to anticipate the expenses that would come up when the warranty was over. And you know where the car’s been 😉
Dh and I have purchased several brand new cars after 25+ yrs of marriage. Two were hail damaged, two were year end, one was zero percent financing. Each one also involved a mfr. rebate and GM card $$. My husband commutes 100 mi round trip each day. If you protect that new car investment with regular service , you’ll more than likely get 200,xxx miles. It doesn’t pay to scrimp on service. We’ve never purchased an extended warranty, either.
I would also say to everyone, don’t trade in your car if you can keep from it. Sell it private sale–we’ve always come out way ahead. And we’ve never bought a used car from a dealer–it’s either been private sale or from a family member. Either way, we had it checked out by a trusted mechanic so we’d know what we were letting ourselves in for.
Shannon says
Congratulations on your purchase! Sorry you had to go through a lemon first, but I’m glad you ended up happy.
Leighann says
Wow…it’s nice to see all these positive experiences. My husband and I had never (either one of us) had a new vehicle until 2009. We had always bought used. The last car we bought used was a Chevy Malibu from a reputable dealership. We paid $6,000 cash for it in 2008 – no sorts of discounts or negotiations or anything. We sold the car in 2009 for $600 because the engine totally blew out. It went out about 6 months after we got it (lemon laws only protect new vehicles, btw) so there was a good 6 month period where the car sat there and did nothing while we tried to scrape up the money to get the engine repaired. When we finally did have enough money to get it repaired, we found out that it would require a whole NEW engine and that it would be some sort of special purchase, and would be at least $2500.
We sold the car on Craigslist as-is for $600, turned around and bought a brand new Kia Soul. We have never had a better car buying experience. We had bad credit, but our credit union financed our purchase. Having the debt doesn’t bother us, because we don’t have to worry about not making payments for the car – that is taken care of thanks to our credit union (the money comes out of my husband’s check before he even gets any of the money, which means that the car ALWAYS gets paid). The car insurance isn’t very high at all. AND, having the positive loan out is a good mark on our credit, bringing our credit score up. Anything that goes wrong with the car is covered by the 10 year warranty on it. It runs wonderfully and we’ve had no problems with it, and it’s almost 2 years old.
Sometimes buying used with cash is good, but sometimes buying new and financing (and getting those positive numbers on your credit score) is better.
Jen says
Unless you don’t give a hoot about credit scores! 😀
Katrina says
How DID you get around for 10 months without a vehicle you could all fit in?? We live 17 miles out of town and definitely could not go without a vehicle for any length of time!
Jen Lowman says
I get the distance thing, we live 35 miles out of town. We have a second vehicle, but needed a SUV/truck for my husbands work. It was hard to manage that long with just one vehicle, but it was worth it, for us anyway!
Jennifer says
As others have said get a mechanic to check out any used vehicle. It could be the people selling it may not have known the engine was about to go bad. Even with a 3 month warranty I’d have it evaluated because that is not really a long time. I’m glad my DH us good at working on cars…it has saved us a bundle!
Chona says
That is SO encouraging!! Thank you for sharing! When my husband and I moved to Hawaii to assist with a church plant, we made the decision to sell his beloved Mustang so that we had can pay for moving expenses. So with only one car, that my husband has to use for work, it’s been challenging to run errands and such throughout the day (thank God our kid’s school is only a block away and thank God for public transportation). We’ve committed not to finance another car but pay for it in cash! So we’re saving up for that. Now that I’ve read you’re post, we’re going to have to weigh out our options. Private party sale or dealer? Hmmm….
beth says
We bought a salvage SUV shortly after our second child was born. On eBay. Crazy, right? The seller is in the business of fixing and selling salvage Saturns and we carefully examined his feedback and did our research. Yes, it was a risk but so is.buying any used car. Getting it titled was a pain and it can only be insured for half the bluebook value but that’s what we paid. I’d do it again in a heartbeat
For the record, the damage was driver’s side front. We decided we’d have fixed a car we already owned with that damage. The state inspected it and we took it to a Saturn dealer for evaluation as well.
Lindsey says
I bought my vehicle on ebay too! That was in 2003 and it’s still going strong. It’s been my best vehicle I’ve ever owned and it’s my fourth!
Kristine says
We bought a vehicle on eBay, too. We paid $3,000 for a used minivan in 2001, and the only thing wrong with it was that the air-conditioning didn’t work, but the seller paid for fixing it. It was a risk, but it’s worked out well for us. We’ve had it for almost 10 years now, and because of a few problems that it’s had recently, we’re just starting to think about replacing it next year.
Deborah Berko says
When we purchase used, we have the car evaluated by a mechanic first. This can usually be done for under $100.00. You can either renegotiate the price -taking into account the needed repairs- or choose not to purchase the vehicle.
Jennifer says
In my experience (and my husband’s much more extensive) experience buying used cars–I can count at least 15 that we have bought (not all to drive, some to sell), private party deals are actually almost always better than dealerships. Many, many dealerships will do quick fixes that will last through their short warranty, but then cost you thousands of dollars to fix. Average people don’t generally know how to do that sort of thing well enough to fool mechanics. Always, always get a mechanic or knowledgeable person to check out the vehicle you want to buy. An honest person will not mind at all. My husband once saved a friend of ours from a huge mistake in buying a van. He looked up all the potential problems that model had and took his engine stethoscope over there and found out the engine was basically on its last legs. I don’t think the owner knew it was as bad as it was, actually. There are things dealerships could have done to mask this problem for a while, but then it would eventually cost a ton to fix. I think private sales are better if you go into it with full knowledge from an expert’s examination.
KC says
I agree with your post. I think it is important to have a mechanic inpect any vehicle a person is about to purchase – whether it is from a dealership or an individual. In 2005 I had my mechanic check out a vehicle I was interested in purchasing and he said that he would not recommend buying it at all. I was VERY disappointed because I had my heart set on it. I took it to another mechanic and he said the same thing. I gave in and kept looking for another car. About a month later i found a great car. I had my trusty mechanic check it out. He said it was great, the kind of vehicle he would feel safe with his daughter owning. I also took it to a second mechanic who had a diagnostic machine (my mechanic is “old school” and doesn’t have one) and he said the car was great as well and that I should get it! It only needed 1 minor repair which I got the dealership to fix free of charge. I have had the vehicle for 5 1/2 years, it is a 1998 Nissan Sentra and I have not had to do ANY major repairs. The effort and hassle of taking it to 2 different mechanics to be inspected BEFORE buying it has saved me hundreds if not thousands of dollars. Plus, I have not had the frustrations of being without a car for days on end while it gets repaired.
Katrina says
I agree completely. We went to sell our 2005 Ford Excursion with only 30K miles on it, and the buyer requested we take it to the dealer for an inspection (at his expense), which we agreed to, of course. Well, we found out that the engine was leaking oil and needed to be pulled out of the truck for repairs (several thousands of $$). It was covered under our warranty, but we had no idea there was a problem, and never intended to sell a broken vehicle! The buyer, of course, walked away, but we had the repairs done and later sold it successfully. Always have a mechanic check out any used vehicle you’re planning on purchasing!
Kelly R. says
You are right on about taking a vehicle to a mechanic!!! My husband is a mechanic and all of our family members will have he go with them when looking at vehicles. So are so many little things that can mean BIG problems, that the average person can’t spot, but a mechanic can easily pick them up. And yes, I would never “over-trust” a dealership. No matter how good they are, at the end of the day they are there to make money. When looking at a car, we always find out the trade in value and go from there…remember that is what the dealership paid it. We always had good luck with private party. Even had good luck buying a 2001 Chevrolet Cavilier in 2005 with 86,000 miles on it for $2,500, because it was a repo at the salvage yard. Well, different transmission at 120,000 miles had to be put in, but at 150 miles away from 200,000 that car had saved us so much on gas, insurance, and having no payments. It looks like junk now from hitting a bridge, couple years later hitting a deer, and this winter going through a very deep ditch…but I’ll glady drive it to town over our newer Alvalanche because of the gas savings.
Heather says
Something I learned early on in my vehicle purchases was to make sure I saved extra cash beyond the purchase price of the vehicle. I’m convinced that buying used is best but there can be more unexpected expenses with a used vehicle. (Mine was a $500 fuel pump fix less than two weeks after I bought the car — from a reputable dealership.) So, I learned to save at least $1000 more than the cost of the vehicle (plus tax and registration fees) just in case. So far, it’s worked out well! I love not having a car payment!!
Fun Momma says
I totally agree. My family growing up, and my family now have nearly always bought used cars from private parties. If you do your research, for instance, in Consumer Reports, before purchasing, you should be fine. Pick a model and year with good reports! And, Heather is absolutely right that you should be prepared for mechanical issues; they are cars, after all. Even new cars will have problems. We bought a 2000 Honda Oddyssey three years ago from a private party and have only put on new tires, changed the oil, and had the tires aligned. (Knock on wood), it’s been a great and dependable vehicle for us.
Rachel says
We always ask for our mechanic to check-out the car before we buy. We have never had a problem with the seller refusing to allow us to do this.
We were able to catch some issues with one car and negotiated a lower price because of it.
Kym says
that’s what we do too. we have our mechanic look the car over and test drive it. Most mechanics will do this for $25 or even free if u’ve gone to them for a while.
We buy private party used but only w/ a mechanic looking it over.
We are also going to be doing the 3 car seats in the back of our Buick regal and Chevy Trail blazer. We’ll be taking the trail blazer on long trips 🙂 we are trying to pay off our little house before buying a minivan. We’d like to buy the van by the time the baby is out of the infant carseat and since we are just pregnant it should be June 2012!
Cash is the way to go 🙂 Great job every one!
Catherine says
Thanks for sharing this! My husband and I are in the process of deciding what to do about our vehicles. We have two paid for vehicles that can seat our family of five but are feeling a little too squishedand would like to purchase a SUV. We follow Dave Ramsey too and went through Financial Peace and will never have another car payment! Nice to know that the private party deal is not always the best especially when you have cash! We will now be considering all the options!
sara says
Do you fit 3 kids in the Backseat? My husband and I have two paid for newer cars and are thinking about adding a third baby. We do not have the money to buy a bigger car and cannot sell the ones we have for business reasons. Its sad that our vehicles are determing our family Size!
Nicole Z. says
My pediatrician has 3 kids (5 yo, 2 yo twins) and fits all three in the back of her Camry. She has the Sunshine Kids car seats. I “believe” they are the narrowest car seats available. They are not cheap, but much cheaper than a new car/van/suv. We hope to have a third child as well and are seriously considering making the switch to three of these seats.
jo says
Thanks for this tip. We are expecting our 3rd in June and are not quite ready to purchase a larger vehicle. Our oldest is only 3 which means 3 carseats. I have been trying to figure out which seats to go with. We have a Honda Accord. Anybody else have three carseats in a sedan and have suggestions? Much appreciated!
Marie says
I can fit my three in the back of our Toyota Camry. It’s a pain, but it works.
chelsea says
We have three carseats (infant + Graco x 2) in the backseat of our Kia Optima. Our oldest is three, and this works just fine for us. I think we’re the only family I know who has this car arrangement!
Michelle M says
Cosco touriva (convertible carseat) and high back boosters (forward facing only, restraint to 40lbs and booster to 80lbs) are pretty narrow carseats and not overly expensive $35-40 at Walmart/Kmart. We have them as a second set for my parents and can fit 3 across a bench seat.
Bethany says
My kids are 3, 2, and 1, and we fit them all in the back of our Camry and they just have the basic Graco carseats. It’s tight, but it works. 😉
Heather says
thank you thank you thank you for this little discussion here. We need to replace our (only) car that is at death’s door. We thought our options were minivan or buy two cars in a short period of time. We were wanting a Camry or something similar so it’s good to know this is possible!
Megan says
My parents had a Honda Civic when I was growing up and we three kids fit in the backseat just fine. This might not work if you have three car seats, but if at least one of your kids is out of the car seat phase it should work. Maybe not the best for long car trips, but it’s just fine for getting to church and the library.
Karen@ Mom of Three Monkeys says
I have a Civic with three carseats in the back — a Radian 65 (forward facing), Graco Nautilus (forward facing, with armrests removed), and Britax Roundabout (rear facing). When our little one outgrows the Roundabout we will probably need to upgrade to the Radian, which is pricey but as others have said, less than a new car! Of course, I’m crossing my fingers that my 11 year old Civic with 117k miles lasts that long 🙂
Katrina says
We have 3 kids in carseats, and we fit all three in the backseat of our Dodge Ram truck in even the biggest of carseats, and also in our Kia Spectra with 2 Sunshine Kids Radian carseats and a Graco Snugride 32 infant seat. The seats weren’t cheap, but much less expensive than buying and driving a bigger vehicle! I’ve taken the kids 3 across all over the country in the back seat with no problems.
Catherine says
Sara, I should first say that my desire for an suv is more for convience than necessity (I am going crazy trying to make things work all the time). We have a Camry and a Chevy crew cab truck and all three kids fit in both. We have 1 in a Britax Car Seat (big but very safe…won’t compromise on safety!), one in a highback booster and one in a backless booster. In the Camry it is really,really, really tight to try and buckle seatbelts and honestly I don’t feel that it is that safe because the car seat touches both boosters. There is no problem in the truck with fitting everyone safely but I really dislike not having a trunk…so for that reason alone I am considering the suv. I am in California and the law states the kids can be out of a booster by age 6 or 60 lbs but, because I am very concerned with safety and since the car seat/booster recommedations have changed my oldest could be in a booster until age 8+. Not to mention if any of my children want to take extra kids with us…sorry no room! 🙁 I am sure that there are plenty of others that do it and manage…we do…but I honestly am ready for more room.
Carrie says
We fit our three kids in the back of a Subaru Forester. Not a tiny vehicle, but not an SUV either. However, with 2 Britax car seats and one booster it is very tight.
We just turned the toddler’s car seat back around and moved the 4-year-old BACK from the booster to the car seat, based on the AAP’s new recommendation. It definitely made us think about moving up our goal of buying a bigger car! It’s not that the kids are uncomfortable, but it is tough to buckle the seatbelt of the booster when there is so little space left, and installing the 2 car seats side by side is a bear.
Still, though, i think the inconvenience is worth the security of not spending our emergency fund on a vehicle right away, and instead saving for another six months.
Katrina says
The Sunshine Kids Radian carseats accomodate kids up to 80 lbs, so they can stay in it longer and not have to hassle with buckling seatbelts as with a booster. My kids have the hardest time with seatbelts when they’re 3 across. The kids are safer in a 5 point harness than in a booster anyway.
Stephanie says
We have 3 Sunshine Radian seats across in our Toyota Prius. I love my little Prius!
Lindsey says
Add me to the list with 3 in carseats in the backseat! I drive a 2001 Chevy Tracker which has a super small backseat….46 in. I think, so I had to buy all 3 new seats. 2 radians and a chicco keyfit for the new baby. I could never even picture adding another seat before when my oldest two each sat in huge convertible carseats (evenflow triumph advances) but it’s totally doable and much much cheaper than running out to buy a new vehicle!
shawna says
I am so proud of you and your family!!!! You re VERY weird and we are weird also!!! We had a similar situation with a car purchased cash private party! I was cursing Dave Ramsey’s name for an entire month…now I just love the guy!
Skye says
Okay, so what did you do for transportation of the entire family between the time you sold the truck and the time you bought the 2nd SUV? I take it that your family does not rely on two vehicles and you used just one vehicle for almost a year? Just trying to clarify because we would NEVER be able to manage with just one vehicle
Jen Lowman says
We did have another car. It was hard managing with one vehicle during this time, but we did it.
anonymous says
We wouldn’t either. There are 8 of us.
Tracy says
Fantastic job! Sorry the first Suburban turned out to be a lemon. I love that you stuck with your idea of paying cash rather than running back out and financing something when the engine went out. I think a lot of us would have done that in disgust when we felt scammed.
My husband and I have two paid off cars that we hope will last many more years so we can save money in the meantime to pay cash for our next cars. We just started Dave’s program in January. Your story is great inspiration!
Terika says
Me and my husband just paid cash for a 2003 Oldsmobile Silhouette MiniVan last month. We got a great deal for my car and then came across an awesome deal on the van through a dealership. We were and still are so excited. We didn’t want to finance a vehicle because we just bought a new house. So still not having a car payment is a wonderful thing for us. But we live in Michigan so we have high car insurance!
Janet says
I am not certain if this advice helps anyone here but I have found do the research (consumer reports) find the vehicle you want with about 10 to 15K miles only and only about 2 years old on the vehicle (this way it still has warranty left) if you don’t have enough money keep saving until you do! Then drive the vehicle for two to three years and sell it (putting away whatever you get for it with whatever you have been saving for purchase of your next vehicle) This formula has served us extremely well when it comes to used cars.