Car payment or paid off?

[OnURleft]

So I don't know about ya'll but i've been raised never to have a car payment and to earn my way to an expensive car. Hence why I have an older, cheaper car. I don't really know why but i'm having a change of heart and I think I am about to put 70% down for this new car I want and finance the rest. I really don't see much harm in it as i'll probably have it payed off in 6-10 months anyhow, it has an extended warranty and I won't have to wait until fall time to get it..

So how many of you own your cars and how many of you are paying the bank for it?

[ksniperfox]

financing things will build credit. which is always good to have. if you ever buy a house, i doubt you will have $150k on hand to buy it outright. having good credit will save you thousands..

if youre in a position to put 70% down and pay the rest off in under a year, i say do it!
you can still be responsible with your money and finance things.

[ksniperfox]

i was raised the same way. i always had older, cheaper cars, paid cash. eventually they would keep breaking down, or go to the shop for a couple days, leaving me stranded or having to find a ride, or take a day off work. i needed something reliable and newer.

[OnURleft]

financing things will build credit. which is always good to have. if you ever buy a house, i doubt you will have $150k on hand to buy it outright. having good credit will save you thousands..

if youre in a position to put 70% down and pay the rest off in under a year, i say do it!
you can still be responsible with your money and finance things.

This is very true and it's what i'm telling myself. I am still very young and don't have much credit at all. I rarely every use my credit card. However, my parents are advising me I should be building my credit with other things then a car payment. I agree, but I also disagree. If your going to get a 6 year loan and put 2 grand down on a 30k car then I think it's stupid, but I believe my situation is very reasonable and worth while to establish good credit and get a nice ride.

[DieselNuts]

I financed my last two cars and payments suck balls. I bought my current truck with cash money lulz

[Maniacc]

36 months for me. I'll be done paying my car off in a few months.

[Barefoot]

i paid like 82% down and financed the rest. just so i help my credit a lil.

[B18c1Turboed]

i have a total of 6 cars. I paid cash for all but financed wifey a new car!!! All mine are paid in cash!!!

[SLOWR/T]

My current cars are paid in full. I wasnt ever told not to have a car payment though Im finding its alot nicer to just pay cash.

[Elbow]

After you told me your plan you sound good to do it. I think it's fine to make a payment on a car if it's not crazy long term and you know you can pay it off smoothly. Some kids go out and buy a car they can't afford and screw themselves up. But your situation sounds good so I say do it. As others said building credit is good.

[Brick]

I've always financed. I believe I'm finally in a position though to where I can pay cash for my next one. Everything is paid for now.

[Elbow]

...and as you know I bought my car cash lol.

[RL...]

Nothing wrong with financing, but for now I chose to buy mine cash

[hondachik]

Yayer 36 mths.

[Christopherr]

Paid $14K OTD back in 2001 for 60 months @ $252.

But if I'd to do again...I'd try to pony up the cash...but saving $14K was hard when you were 19.

[Crazy Asian]

my boss told me he never financed. He said "F that crap, when you got the money buy the fawking car outright."

[Atlblkz06]

Even if I had the cash I would find the lowest interest rate loan and invest the money in something safe. I can make at least 6% with the cash and I'm only paying 5% interest.

So I make 1%+ interest on the money

[OneSlow5pt0]

cash...i will never finance a car,if i cant pay for it right then, i cant afford it.

ofcourse houses are different story.

[03RCode]

I financed my Mach 1 for 5 years, and had financed one of my old SN-95 for 12 months. The last few vehicles I've owned I've paid for in cash. I have decent credit now, and honestly would rather pay cash from now on out. I'm officially unemployed now so if I had a payment I'd be hurting in a bad way. From here on out if I can't pay for it in cash I wont even think about financing until I have atleast 70% to put down. Its just not worth being upside down in a car loan.

[wannab20hatch]

All of my cars ive paid for in cash. insurance is cheaper and payments suck. my wife has a car payment and its no fun. if you got 70% to put down and can get the rest in a few months just pay cash. just get another credit card and use them for gas or food and pay them off at the end of every month and youll have plenty of credit. especially wih the market right now use the card or theyll cancel the account.

[OnURleft]

lots of different opinions in here. That's pretty cool to see everyone's way of doing it

[wannab20hatch]

honestly the best money advice i can give you is to read a Dave Ramsey book. He even says to pay cash for things. in the end youll be better off for it.

[OnURleft]

honestly the best money advice i can give you is to read a Dave Ramsey book. He even says to pay cash for things. in the end youll be better off for it.

That's how i've been raised. Don't buy it unless you already have the money for all of it. This excludes houses, but even there i've been taught to always have a large down payment on a house.

[meengreenPGT]

I actually used some off my credit card to get my current car but I've owned 6 cars previous to this one and I paid cash for all of those.

[matthewAPM]

Im going to get a loan for $4,000 for my next car. I dont see harm in doing so as long as the person is responsible enough to pay back, so if were are talk about you (Ian), id go for it. You work hard for what you want so making payments isnt a bad thing

[green91]

You've just got to make sure you can get your total payments for all your debts within a certain percentage of your income. I financed my truck about 2yrs ago when i bought it new, but i didnt purchase it until i was able to put enough down to make the payment where it was comfortable for me. I did however pay cash for the other 3 cars lol.

For me its worth having the payment to have the piece of mind of knowing my low mileage, new looking truck will start everytime and is under warranty. Not that my honda isnt reliable though lol.

[gtikid]

It's good to use credit, just make sure you have some discipline and don't get "happy" with it. General rule of thumb is to have a car payment that's about 20% of your monthly income. If you have one that's lower, well that's even better. Credit is great, just gotta learn how to use it properly

[green91]

20% seems pretty high man LOL. My payment is def under 10% of my monthly income.

[gtikid]

20% seems pretty high man LOL. My payment is def under 10% of my monthly income.

It should be less than 20% of your monthly income. Cause your right, anything higher than that is ridiculous haha. So if that means you have to save a little more to keep your payments under that, keep on saving

[ISAtlanta300]

It depends what kind of car you want. If buying a 20k car, then yea you can prob. save up for it and pay cash. a 40K and up car is a different story though....

It all depends on your needs and wants. If you need a car right then and there, and want a 'nice' ride then most people will finance. If not in a hurry, then yea, you can prob. save up for it for 5 years and just pay cash.....

[2turbo4u]

First make sure you job is secured. Second make sure that if you pay off the car in a few months that it will help your credit, because it might not be long enough debt to effect your credit at all. Call Clark Howard with your question 877-872-5275.

[Sammich]

i have financed my cars, if i could do straight up cash, i'd do straight up cash. but i've been horrible at saving money my whole life, which really sucks

[tron]

lol i paid for my car in cash when i got it then sold it, haha
i don't have a credit card yet, i will after i finish basic and all that
but its nice to see idea on how to manage my money

[SPOOLIN]

There's nothing wrong with financing a car as long as it fits within your means!!

[Deke]

After you told me your plan you sound good to do it. I think it's fine to make a payment on a car if it's not crazy long term and you know you can pay it off smoothly. Some kids go out and buy a car they can't afford and screw themselves up. But your situation sounds good so I say do it. As others said building credit is good.

True on all accounts.

[97ITR86]

Cash is king....i'm a banker trust me.

[97ITR86]

Cash is king....i'm a banker trust me.

[97ITR86]

Cash is king....i'm a banker trust me.

[Deke]

Cash is king....i'm a banker trust me.

[Jecht]

I'm with a lot of the other guys up there - I won't use credit on things I can just pay for in cash. Like they said, its completely different with a house - its why I use my credit card for small things like gas and all to help build it up. I just manage my payments online.

I would never pay for a car with credit though. It is cheaper and more effective in the long run to buy something cheap and just fix it yourself when it breaks. Yes, it would be more expensive if you are lazy and pay other people to fix it for you. So what if you have to bum a ride for a couple of days? Thats better than owing money in my opinion.