It’s all over the news that the price of a new car is going up… and that many American’s simply can not afford to buy one like past generations could.
Interest.com did an interesting study…the 2013 Car Affordability Study. They found that only in Washington could the typical household afford to purchase the typical new car. Washington has a median income of $86,680 a year. The rest of the country had medium incomes that were lower thus not being able to afford the monthly payments.
I recently bought a new car, actually a new mini-van. For me the purchase decision came down to 3 factors and affordability was one of them.
1. Functional- This is my third mini-van in 13 years. The first 2 I only kept for 2 years and 3 years. I average keeping a vehicle for about 2 years. My vehicles get high mileage pretty quickly with all the events I cover. Before The Toddler joined our family I bought a mini van after saying I would never drive one again. I wasn’t anti minivan so much as I was just over driving one after my kids got older. Throw in a new baby and a mini van started to sound like a good idea again. After that one needed to be replaced I looked at other types of vehicles, namely SUV’s like I’ve had before. None of them provided the space and ease of use in getting a toddler and her gear in and out like a mini van though so I narrowed my search down again to which mini van to buy.
2. Price- After I knew which mini van I wanted I started negotiating {actually Pete did}. This is the biggest money saver for us. Like all purchases you make and save money when you buy, not sell. Getting the best price up front saves you money in the long run. We email all of the dealerships we are willing to drive to and get quotes and then negotiate between them all.
3. Interest rate- We wanted to finance this purchase. Knowing that our credit union had an interest rate of only .99% made this part easy.
We ended up with a 2012 Honda Odyssey. By purchasing a 2012 at the end of the model year we were able to get a really good deal. I absolutely love it too. I did think for a little bit about getting a more eco friendly vehicle, but as our family grew so did our need for a bigger car. The hybrids that are out there are still cost prohibitive in my opinion. Instead of buying an eco friendly vehicle I choose to go green in other ways like combing trips while running errands and turning off my car if we are going to idle for more than two minutes.
Although the average American can no longer “afford” the typical new car there are definitely ways that you can afford a new car and be ecologically responsible.
What kind of car do you have? Do you love it or…. ?
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About Heather
I have a 2011 Dodge Journey. Wish I could go back in time because I might have chosen something else. I like the car, it’s okay, but it’s kind of small.
Tiffany C. recently posted..Day 3: What Makes You Happy? – 31 Day Blog Challenge
It’s hard to know what the future will hold… I hear you on needing a big car!
We have a minivan that is three years old…we bought it from a company that sells “old” rental cars when it was only a year old. We have been extremely lucky with it and love it sooooo much! I really do want to look into a more eco friendly car, however, next time we’re in the market for one.
Gena recently posted..Is America Headed for a Soft Drink Ban?
Mini vans just don’t get the coolness they deserve. I rarely meet anyone who doesn’t love them!
We bought a 2011 Nissan Quest late in the year, as soon as the 12s came out and we’re VERY HAPPY with it. Although, now I definitely wish that we had compared smaller SUVs a little more – it would be nice to get a bit better gas mileage!
Lindsey G recently posted..Mineral Makeup from Mia Mariu
My main vehicle is a 2007 GMC Yukon. I love it!! It has all the room I need and it handles great on the winter roads around here. I do wish the gas mileage was better as I average 3,000 miles a month but with a vehicle this size it is to be expected. I want a new one so bad but the price tag is keeping the urge at bay.
Brandy Myers recently posted..Get Cooking With Homemade Cream Of Mushroom Soup
When you look at the price it does make you stop huh? I love GMC Yukons too!
We have a Dodge Ram (LOVE it when I don’t have kiddos with me), and a Chrysler Town and Country and YES I love it! Both are 2012, so they’re nice and new.
Got my van last March and it had 7 miles on it. It now has 5800, we don’t drive much if you can tell!!
I will continue to stick with the T&C until my kids are a bit older and then I’ll go with an SUV like a Jeep or Durango. Or even a Ford Explorer.
Wow you don’t drive much… that’s great though because the car will last much longer!
I have a Honda Odyssey and love it! My next car definitely needs to get really good gas mileage. I can’t stand paying so much for gas.
Cecile recently posted..Pintastic Pinning Party – March 3, 2013
I think I am the only mom that can’t stand minivans. We have an SUV and a Volvo. Currently, we’re looking to replace both vehicles with a Suburban or Ford Expedition EL. While it might not be the most eco-friendly move, having one vehicle will encourage us to plan our trips better, and we’ll be less likely to take unnecessary trips. For the last two months we’ve been practicing by using only one vehicle, and only ran into one snag! Even though we’ll have a large vehicle, in the end it will save us on fuel, car payments, parking stickers for the beach, insurance, and excise taxes.
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I’m not a fan of minivans either. I love old school cars, as long as it runs good, I will always go for older models over new models.