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1. If you are considering buying an expensive car, the [vehicles wiki](/r/personalfinance/wiki/vehicles) has budgeting advice. We recommend reading it. If you don't meet 100% of the criteria, then no, you cannot afford it and you should not buy it.
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Spending half your annual income on a car is generally not a good idea unless you have a material net worth.
Financing a car so you can continue to speculate on bitcoin is also generaly unwise
You can but it doesn’t make sense. You can get a perfectly fine car for 20k or less and it could be just as reliable.
You also shouldn’t hold your “emergency fund“ in Bitcoin.
Entirely depends on where you live and other factors. New car costing me just over 300 for 6 months of coverage. Well above state minimums, and extra coverages as well.
Still agree op spending too much on a car here and bitcoin savings is maximum foolery
Yes, you are making a mistake. Spending half your salary on a car is not a good idea unless you want to come back to this sub in six months asking how you can get out of an underwater car loan.
This new car is going to save you 32k in gas?
Does your current car need 32k in repairs?
You can’t justify this financially. If you do it, you’ll just have to accept you’re doing it for other reasons that you consider more important than the fact that it’s a bad financial decision.
So I'll speak from experience. My dumbass financed a 2015, 32k car back in 2014 while making about 36k annually plus commission which got me up to around 40k.
I was super excited for my first car ever. It had 32 miles on the odometer when I signed the paperwork and was looking at a payment that was literally half my paycheck. Now at that time I didn't have rental payment (inherited a house) so to me it was like paying rent. Food could be done at $50/week and my bills were pretty low all around. So it never really hurt.
It was the BEST decision I made even if it was a terrible financial decision. Future me lost out on probably ~100k -$150k in retirement funds. But at the time a reliable car with a 100k mile warranty on it ended up being the reason I got out to explore. I drove it everywhere up and down the coast, Midwest to southeast and everything in between. I had the freedom to beat it up cause I knew it was mine, but take care of it cause I wanted it to last. Fast forward to 2016 and I hated that payment but kept the car. 2018 I almost lost it due to job issues. Paid it off in 2019
Now here we are in 2024. I have the same car. 215k miles on it. And still runs like she's got 60-75k miles. I haven't had a car payment in years but that single purchase which was terrible ended up being great. Memories of my GF turned wife, and our child. Memories of road trips and shenanigans. I still remember the day I hit 40mpg when we drafted behind a semi for 250 miles. Good times.
Would I do it again? Probably. But not having a car payment is kind of amazing too.
This is not just a bad idea, it is a very bad idea and you are talking yourself into it, despite what you know aren't good financial decisions. That is way too much car for your salary. Also, suggest you check out the wiki and FAQs here. Your emergency funds are in the wrong place. Some learning good financial practice is in order. If not this, then check out the money guys on youtube or google their financial order of operations. good luck with whatever path you choose.
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> I know can get a cheaper option but I really don't want to go through all the games of still spending a large sum of money while gambling on how reliable it will actually be in the long run vs getting a newer, safer, nicer all wheel drive vehicle that I can hopefully rely on for hopefully 10+ years
Yeah, this is exactly the kind of myth that the car manufacturers love to hear suckers buying into.
Old does not equal unreliable, and new does not equal reliable. I've gotten used cars with 150k miles on them already for well under $10k and still gotten another 10 years out of them. You just need to do your research to figure out which kinds of cars last for ages (hint: Honda and Toyota) and have a mechanic inspect it prior to purchase, then keep up with basic maintenance for it.
You don't make enough money to be dropping $30k on a car. Plain and simple.
People really need to learn how to drive a car that won't financially ruin you. My 2014 Toyota Corolla runs great and I have no car payments. I COULD buy a 30k car if I wanted to. Hell I could pay for it in cash without financing. But why would I when my current car runs fine and has no payments.
The only time I’m ever willing to buy a new car is if there is a lucrative financing deal, I.e 0% Apr for 60 months. Otherwise buy the car you want that is a couple years used. Learn how to negotiate on a used car to get the best deal and always secure your own financing, from my experience credit unions will give you the best rate( absolutely never finance a car longer than 5 years, shorter the better honestly.)
That all being said, 30k car given your income level seems unwise, unless you run the numbers and you are willing to make sacrifices in your budget for other nonessential items (vacations, eating/drink out, the newest gadgets). If you don’t have a budget, no more thinking of a car, and more making a budget.
My last piece of advice is HAVE AN EXIT STRATEGY for the bitcoin. Hopefully you are in the green and not holding the bag. I recommend selling off small chucks each time it has a big bull run and if you wanna keep it long term only have a small amount of your long term holdings in bitcoin….. diversification is a good thing.(personally I’m bearish long term on crypto so I would just sell it all)
Well even with bitcoin down I'm still up double what I have put in. So I'm doing fine on that front. I had feeling I'd get this general response just even mentioning crypto at all in here.
Having been about where you are, I bought the car.
It was great for about a month, then it felt just like my old car.
Wasn't worth it for me. I could have had a 10k car and no payments.
I have a 2019 Mazda cx-5 that I bought used that runs great with 60k miles on it. Maybe look into something like that.
If you want great gas the Kia Niro is also a solid option.
I once had a used car which broke down often. It cost hundreds to repair and caused me to miss work aka income. I bought a brand new car. No regrets. The peace of mind was well worth it. I don’t think buying a Mazda is irresponsible.
I'l go against the grain a bit. This is a borderline decision. It's neither good or bad, but there are better options.
Here's why.
Rules of thumb for car purchases:
1. Total value of all vehicles should be no more than 50% of your gross household income
2. Total spending on transportation, including insurance and fuel, should be no more than 12-15% of your gross household income
3. Cars are purchased either in cash, same as cash financing, or with a three year note, and only after a 20% down payment. The total monthly payment should not exceed 8% of your monthly income.
Now, all of these are 'rules of thumb', meaning that they're not hard and fast. However, with a 60K income, a 30K car is - reasonable - but not ideal. Insurance will be comparatively cheap, and you save a bit on fuel.
However, you don't have the 20% down payment. You would also likely have to finance the vehicle for more than 36-48 months.
So, it's neither a good or bad decision. You won't mess up if you pull the trigger. You also won't be doing anything that improves your finances.
Here are some alternatives:
1. Keep your current car until you get a raise
2. Sell your current car and get into something cheap, frugal, and you can ideally pay cash for. A Honda Jazz/Fit is a good option.
A car that expensive is a bit of a stretch for your income. "Half your income on a car" is high-wire walking without a net. You have no leeway for the four years you're making payments, don't get sick / don't get laid off / don't spend money on nice vacations or furniture or clothes or dining out, "the car" is your vacation for a little while.
It can be an okay idea to stretch like that in the long run, but that means "in the LONG run" like "you plan to see 300,000 miles on that thing over the next 20 years." If you decide this time next year that "holy crap, it's FIVE HUNDRED BUCKS A MONTH for car payments, I need to get out of this car!" that's too damn bad. "Half your income" on a car is like diving off the high board at the pool, you had better have a plan for entering the water, you had better be able to swim to the edge afterward, and you damn sure better already be wearing a bathing suit and goggles. Too damn many people here buy an expensive car like *"I enjoyed my little bounce off the diving board and I'm enjoying my long free-fall like all the other Big Kids at the pool, but OHMYGOD that's WATER up ahead?? I'm still dressed, I'm still wearing contact lenses, MY PHONE is in my pocket! I HAD NO IDEA I'D HAVE TO GET WET doing this! HOW DO I AVOID GETTING WET?"* And it's too damn late, they jumped off the high board already, there's no getting out of the next part, there's only getting THROUGH it.
Maybe try to get through July and August with that $500 set aside, and if you get through August without coming close to needing that $500 each month, take your extra thousand bucks to the Mazda store and see if they'll make a deal on leftover 2024s now that 2025s are out.
The AVERAGE car on the road in the US is 12.1 years old, so if you're thinking "this will be fine for the next ten years or so" then what you need is a CX30 with the cloth seats and no sunroof for $26k, or a Subaru Impreza wagon for $23k or a Crosstrek for $25k.
My household income is about twice yours, and we have a mortgage from 2009 that barely has a comma in the monthly payment, and the car we just bought was a used plug-in hybrid that cost us under $20,000 all-in. ($23,700 after taxes, but used PHEVs under $25k have a $4,000 tax credit.)
And I'm a guy who LIKES cars, A LOT - you are getting a car so that you can get to work, but I am working so that I can get cars. If I felt about cars the way you did, my PHEV would've been a $17,000 used Chevy Volt (still a really good option actually.)
I can think of better decisions but the least you can do is make the wise decisions surrounding this Mazda purchase. Sell the current car privately - go to the buyer's bank for them to cut you a check, create a buyer's order too for the title transfer. Get as much as you can out of the sale. Take their current keys for the test drive or their friends keys. Get the best rate online for financing the Mazda before stepping into dealership. Instead of the 27k Mazda, get one for under $24k and slightly used. There are a bunch of 23/24s out there with minimal miles on it.
Also if that bitcoin were in the S&P, it will be doubling every seven years. While btc can fluctuate it's not as steady and much riskier option. I'd take out at least half and sump into an index. Take the profits while you can. Keep a few $k in there for FOMO, but this is no different than having $27k in an individual stock.
If you throw down the $9500 + 3000 in ethereum + 3k trade in, you're looking at about $15.5. If you buy a new .. say a base camry or accord, which is like 28k + tax. I think that's pretty reasonable. They're super reliable and will last you a long time. What would make the deal better is, if you're buying new, look for some promo APR offer, if you can get a low interest rate on buying it new and you plan to keep it for 10 years, I don't think it's unreasonable.
Whatever you do, don't empty your savings, you still need some sort of emergency fund.
You're not even close to being able to afford that car.
You really shouldn't count Bitcoin as your emergency fund. It's far too volatile for that. It might be $27k right now, but it could easily be $10k when you need it most. It could be more, too - but you don't plan for the best case scenario with an emergency fund.
You're looking in the same price range as my wife and I would look. We have far more savings than you and we make 3x your income. Even then, $30k feels like the very top of our budget.
Don't make a financial mistake like this. Life feels so much easier when you aren't overextended.
What is your career trajectory? My thought says yes unless you have a decent upward mobility. You can always rent a car if you need one for road trips.
Edit: also, what is your other expenses. I also don't count investments as an emergency fund. It can quickly drop. I wouldn't count money in the s&p as an emergency fund either.
If your current car is having issues, buy the new car, (make sure it’s exactly what you want, maybe consider something a few thousand less) it’s a bit expensive for your budget but surprise repairs cost a lot as well, put down enough so the monthly payments are comfortable but don’t drain your savings. For new cars Mazda has promotional financing which is very attractive if you qualify.
If your current car is not having mechanical issues, sit on the idea for 2-3 months. Put aside the expected payments for that time and see how you feel about it. If you still want it go buy it. A good car you enjoy and have the peace of mind on the reliability, does have a value for most people, which is really up to you to decide. Everyone overlooks the fact that text book financial advice isn’t applicable to everyone, there is something to be said about enjoying the fruits of your labors. It’s not an unreasonable car, don’t go out and buy a 60k luxury car, but enjoy yourself to an extent.
You can also get an idea on private sale value of your car in the mean time. Might be a good few thousand extra depending where you are and what you have.
Wait until you can buy a car for cash. And while you’re waiting, put aside EXACTLY the amount each month that you would’ve paid for that car into a high yield savings account. Then in 3 years you will have the money for a car.
The magic of that is in 3 years from now you can keep saving that amount of money every money toward an actual retirement!!
Yes, bad idea. Your numbers and what you have in the bank don’t even really consider emergencies or unexpected costs - or even job loss.
Also, I think you need to get a true quote on what your car insurance would be. If you call your agent and give them details about the car you want, they can give you an estimate of the cheapest insurance that would still meet the requirements of the finance company on the auto loan.
> but gets horrible gas mileage
This false logic needs to die. The price of gas is not bad enough to make it worth buying a new car over. And if you're a tree hugger then you should know that the environmental toll of making electric car batteries and charging them is worse than gasoline.
My mom has this attitude. I bought a cheap SUV cause it was the cheapest thing I could find that didn't seem to have any engine or transmission issues. She complained that I should have gotten the $5,000 more expensive car cause I'd save on gas. I didn't plan on even having the car for 4 years cause I was in trucking school and was going to go out over the road and be home only four days a month. and buy something newer after a year or two of saving money So I thought the fuel savings would have taken decade to make up for it. Even after losing my CDL for medical reasons It would have taken 4 years to see the difference in price.
> And if you're a tree hugger then you should know that the environmental toll of making electric car batteries and charging them is worse than gasoline
Any source to backup such claims? My search on scholars.google.com has been unfruitful to proof by prooving this particular claim. Anyways OP is better off buying a moderately used hybrid such as the Corolla Cross if an SUV is a must. Better yet, something like a 2017-2019 Chevrolet Bolt is perfect for the price as it has depreciated a lot.
First part may be true, second part definitely is not. The upfront environmental toll of creating an EV is higher than a ICE car, but it's far, far lower over the lifetime of the vehicle. Burning gas is much worse for the environment than charging a car is. Plus, the metals in EV batteries are recyclable meaning that over time, the impact of creating them will be much lower.
https://www.npr.org/2024/05/09/1250212212/ev-batteries-environmental-impact
That's only counting the mining. It doesn't count getting shipped to china to make the battery, then shipped back to the US, and finally being powered by unregulated coal plants.
In the long run, sure, but it can take you about 50-100k miles to break even when it comes to carbon emissions, depending on how clean your electricity is. [Volvo Says Manufacturing An Electric Car Generates 70 Percent More Emissions Than Its ICE Equivalent | Carscoops](https://www.carscoops.com/2021/11/volvo-says-manufacturing-an-electric-car-generates-70-percent-more-emissions-than-its-petrol-equivalent/)
Yes it actually is. People have done studies that prove it because the lithium is mined in Canada, shipped to China, Then to the US. Cargo ships run on dirty ship oil. Mining equipment runs on diesel that's not regulated at strictly as gasoline, and 80% of the electric grid is powered by coal plants that have failed emissions tests for more than 30 years with no repercussions.
I just looked the CX50 up. It looks like a great ride - smart buy, something you can fall in love with while paying for it.
You have your stuff together, I say go for it.
This post has been removed because it does not meet the subreddit submission guidelines ([rule 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/about/rules)). We're not doing posts about luxury products, expensive cars, etc. anymore because (a) they generally just provoke unproductive discussions and (b) most of the time, it is very clear whether the person asking is able to afford the item. 1. If you are considering buying an expensive car, the [vehicles wiki](/r/personalfinance/wiki/vehicles) has budgeting advice. We recommend reading it. If you don't meet 100% of the criteria, then no, you cannot afford it and you should not buy it. 2. In general, if you're not on step 6 in ["How to handle $"](/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics), you should find a less expensive alternative to a luxury product. If you are on step 6, then feel free to spend money on whatever is most important to you. *If you have questions about this removal, please [message the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fpersonalfinance&subject=Removal%20help%20request&message=Hello%20moderators,%20.%20%0a%0a%0aMy%20submission:%20https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/comments/1do4pqu/am_i_making_a_mistake_wanting_to_buy_a_30k_car/%0a).*
Spending half your annual income on a car is generally not a good idea unless you have a material net worth. Financing a car so you can continue to speculate on bitcoin is also generaly unwise
Yes it is a bad idea and too much car for your income. These are the kind of purchases that keep people poor in the long run.
You can but it doesn’t make sense. You can get a perfectly fine car for 20k or less and it could be just as reliable. You also shouldn’t hold your “emergency fund“ in Bitcoin.
How can you go from paying 68$ a month insurance for a 3k car to 80$ a month for a financed 30k car ?
Yeah that stuck out for me too. I know that insurance differs wildly but $80 for full coverage sounds too good to be true. Maybe more like $110-$130.
Entirely depends on where you live and other factors. New car costing me just over 300 for 6 months of coverage. Well above state minimums, and extra coverages as well. Still agree op spending too much on a car here and bitcoin savings is maximum foolery
I have a newish Honda Pilot and pay $67/mo for full coverage. But because I have multiple cars and homeowners insurance, I do get an overall discount.
Yea, no way!!!
Yes, you are making a mistake. Spending half your salary on a car is not a good idea unless you want to come back to this sub in six months asking how you can get out of an underwater car loan.
This new car is going to save you 32k in gas? Does your current car need 32k in repairs? You can’t justify this financially. If you do it, you’ll just have to accept you’re doing it for other reasons that you consider more important than the fact that it’s a bad financial decision.
So I'll speak from experience. My dumbass financed a 2015, 32k car back in 2014 while making about 36k annually plus commission which got me up to around 40k. I was super excited for my first car ever. It had 32 miles on the odometer when I signed the paperwork and was looking at a payment that was literally half my paycheck. Now at that time I didn't have rental payment (inherited a house) so to me it was like paying rent. Food could be done at $50/week and my bills were pretty low all around. So it never really hurt. It was the BEST decision I made even if it was a terrible financial decision. Future me lost out on probably ~100k -$150k in retirement funds. But at the time a reliable car with a 100k mile warranty on it ended up being the reason I got out to explore. I drove it everywhere up and down the coast, Midwest to southeast and everything in between. I had the freedom to beat it up cause I knew it was mine, but take care of it cause I wanted it to last. Fast forward to 2016 and I hated that payment but kept the car. 2018 I almost lost it due to job issues. Paid it off in 2019 Now here we are in 2024. I have the same car. 215k miles on it. And still runs like she's got 60-75k miles. I haven't had a car payment in years but that single purchase which was terrible ended up being great. Memories of my GF turned wife, and our child. Memories of road trips and shenanigans. I still remember the day I hit 40mpg when we drafted behind a semi for 250 miles. Good times. Would I do it again? Probably. But not having a car payment is kind of amazing too.
I make twice as much money as you and bought a used Honda....
If it's your only expense you could make it work but unless you're getting free rent for the next 5 years it's probably too expensive....
I make 7x and until recently drove a 7 year old Subaru… now I drive a 4 year old Subaru lol.
The payment alone will be crazy...
This is not just a bad idea, it is a very bad idea and you are talking yourself into it, despite what you know aren't good financial decisions. That is way too much car for your salary. Also, suggest you check out the wiki and FAQs here. Your emergency funds are in the wrong place. Some learning good financial practice is in order. If not this, then check out the money guys on youtube or google their financial order of operations. good luck with whatever path you choose.
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> I know can get a cheaper option but I really don't want to go through all the games of still spending a large sum of money while gambling on how reliable it will actually be in the long run vs getting a newer, safer, nicer all wheel drive vehicle that I can hopefully rely on for hopefully 10+ years Yeah, this is exactly the kind of myth that the car manufacturers love to hear suckers buying into. Old does not equal unreliable, and new does not equal reliable. I've gotten used cars with 150k miles on them already for well under $10k and still gotten another 10 years out of them. You just need to do your research to figure out which kinds of cars last for ages (hint: Honda and Toyota) and have a mechanic inspect it prior to purchase, then keep up with basic maintenance for it. You don't make enough money to be dropping $30k on a car. Plain and simple.
People really need to learn how to drive a car that won't financially ruin you. My 2014 Toyota Corolla runs great and I have no car payments. I COULD buy a 30k car if I wanted to. Hell I could pay for it in cash without financing. But why would I when my current car runs fine and has no payments.
Too much car for your income IMO. Plus, your auto insurance goes up $960/year.
The only time I’m ever willing to buy a new car is if there is a lucrative financing deal, I.e 0% Apr for 60 months. Otherwise buy the car you want that is a couple years used. Learn how to negotiate on a used car to get the best deal and always secure your own financing, from my experience credit unions will give you the best rate( absolutely never finance a car longer than 5 years, shorter the better honestly.) That all being said, 30k car given your income level seems unwise, unless you run the numbers and you are willing to make sacrifices in your budget for other nonessential items (vacations, eating/drink out, the newest gadgets). If you don’t have a budget, no more thinking of a car, and more making a budget. My last piece of advice is HAVE AN EXIT STRATEGY for the bitcoin. Hopefully you are in the green and not holding the bag. I recommend selling off small chucks each time it has a big bull run and if you wanna keep it long term only have a small amount of your long term holdings in bitcoin….. diversification is a good thing.(personally I’m bearish long term on crypto so I would just sell it all)
Well even with bitcoin down I'm still up double what I have put in. So I'm doing fine on that front. I had feeling I'd get this general response just even mentioning crypto at all in here.
Having been about where you are, I bought the car. It was great for about a month, then it felt just like my old car. Wasn't worth it for me. I could have had a 10k car and no payments.
I have a 2019 Mazda cx-5 that I bought used that runs great with 60k miles on it. Maybe look into something like that. If you want great gas the Kia Niro is also a solid option.
I once had a used car which broke down often. It cost hundreds to repair and caused me to miss work aka income. I bought a brand new car. No regrets. The peace of mind was well worth it. I don’t think buying a Mazda is irresponsible.
I'l go against the grain a bit. This is a borderline decision. It's neither good or bad, but there are better options. Here's why. Rules of thumb for car purchases: 1. Total value of all vehicles should be no more than 50% of your gross household income 2. Total spending on transportation, including insurance and fuel, should be no more than 12-15% of your gross household income 3. Cars are purchased either in cash, same as cash financing, or with a three year note, and only after a 20% down payment. The total monthly payment should not exceed 8% of your monthly income. Now, all of these are 'rules of thumb', meaning that they're not hard and fast. However, with a 60K income, a 30K car is - reasonable - but not ideal. Insurance will be comparatively cheap, and you save a bit on fuel. However, you don't have the 20% down payment. You would also likely have to finance the vehicle for more than 36-48 months. So, it's neither a good or bad decision. You won't mess up if you pull the trigger. You also won't be doing anything that improves your finances. Here are some alternatives: 1. Keep your current car until you get a raise 2. Sell your current car and get into something cheap, frugal, and you can ideally pay cash for. A Honda Jazz/Fit is a good option.
A car that expensive is a bit of a stretch for your income. "Half your income on a car" is high-wire walking without a net. You have no leeway for the four years you're making payments, don't get sick / don't get laid off / don't spend money on nice vacations or furniture or clothes or dining out, "the car" is your vacation for a little while. It can be an okay idea to stretch like that in the long run, but that means "in the LONG run" like "you plan to see 300,000 miles on that thing over the next 20 years." If you decide this time next year that "holy crap, it's FIVE HUNDRED BUCKS A MONTH for car payments, I need to get out of this car!" that's too damn bad. "Half your income" on a car is like diving off the high board at the pool, you had better have a plan for entering the water, you had better be able to swim to the edge afterward, and you damn sure better already be wearing a bathing suit and goggles. Too damn many people here buy an expensive car like *"I enjoyed my little bounce off the diving board and I'm enjoying my long free-fall like all the other Big Kids at the pool, but OHMYGOD that's WATER up ahead?? I'm still dressed, I'm still wearing contact lenses, MY PHONE is in my pocket! I HAD NO IDEA I'D HAVE TO GET WET doing this! HOW DO I AVOID GETTING WET?"* And it's too damn late, they jumped off the high board already, there's no getting out of the next part, there's only getting THROUGH it. Maybe try to get through July and August with that $500 set aside, and if you get through August without coming close to needing that $500 each month, take your extra thousand bucks to the Mazda store and see if they'll make a deal on leftover 2024s now that 2025s are out. The AVERAGE car on the road in the US is 12.1 years old, so if you're thinking "this will be fine for the next ten years or so" then what you need is a CX30 with the cloth seats and no sunroof for $26k, or a Subaru Impreza wagon for $23k or a Crosstrek for $25k. My household income is about twice yours, and we have a mortgage from 2009 that barely has a comma in the monthly payment, and the car we just bought was a used plug-in hybrid that cost us under $20,000 all-in. ($23,700 after taxes, but used PHEVs under $25k have a $4,000 tax credit.) And I'm a guy who LIKES cars, A LOT - you are getting a car so that you can get to work, but I am working so that I can get cars. If I felt about cars the way you did, my PHEV would've been a $17,000 used Chevy Volt (still a really good option actually.)
I can think of better decisions but the least you can do is make the wise decisions surrounding this Mazda purchase. Sell the current car privately - go to the buyer's bank for them to cut you a check, create a buyer's order too for the title transfer. Get as much as you can out of the sale. Take their current keys for the test drive or their friends keys. Get the best rate online for financing the Mazda before stepping into dealership. Instead of the 27k Mazda, get one for under $24k and slightly used. There are a bunch of 23/24s out there with minimal miles on it. Also if that bitcoin were in the S&P, it will be doubling every seven years. While btc can fluctuate it's not as steady and much riskier option. I'd take out at least half and sump into an index. Take the profits while you can. Keep a few $k in there for FOMO, but this is no different than having $27k in an individual stock.
If you throw down the $9500 + 3000 in ethereum + 3k trade in, you're looking at about $15.5. If you buy a new .. say a base camry or accord, which is like 28k + tax. I think that's pretty reasonable. They're super reliable and will last you a long time. What would make the deal better is, if you're buying new, look for some promo APR offer, if you can get a low interest rate on buying it new and you plan to keep it for 10 years, I don't think it's unreasonable. Whatever you do, don't empty your savings, you still need some sort of emergency fund.
You're not even close to being able to afford that car. You really shouldn't count Bitcoin as your emergency fund. It's far too volatile for that. It might be $27k right now, but it could easily be $10k when you need it most. It could be more, too - but you don't plan for the best case scenario with an emergency fund. You're looking in the same price range as my wife and I would look. We have far more savings than you and we make 3x your income. Even then, $30k feels like the very top of our budget. Don't make a financial mistake like this. Life feels so much easier when you aren't overextended.
What is your career trajectory? My thought says yes unless you have a decent upward mobility. You can always rent a car if you need one for road trips. Edit: also, what is your other expenses. I also don't count investments as an emergency fund. It can quickly drop. I wouldn't count money in the s&p as an emergency fund either.
If your current car is having issues, buy the new car, (make sure it’s exactly what you want, maybe consider something a few thousand less) it’s a bit expensive for your budget but surprise repairs cost a lot as well, put down enough so the monthly payments are comfortable but don’t drain your savings. For new cars Mazda has promotional financing which is very attractive if you qualify. If your current car is not having mechanical issues, sit on the idea for 2-3 months. Put aside the expected payments for that time and see how you feel about it. If you still want it go buy it. A good car you enjoy and have the peace of mind on the reliability, does have a value for most people, which is really up to you to decide. Everyone overlooks the fact that text book financial advice isn’t applicable to everyone, there is something to be said about enjoying the fruits of your labors. It’s not an unreasonable car, don’t go out and buy a 60k luxury car, but enjoy yourself to an extent. You can also get an idea on private sale value of your car in the mean time. Might be a good few thousand extra depending where you are and what you have.
Wait until you can buy a car for cash. And while you’re waiting, put aside EXACTLY the amount each month that you would’ve paid for that car into a high yield savings account. Then in 3 years you will have the money for a car. The magic of that is in 3 years from now you can keep saving that amount of money every money toward an actual retirement!!
Yes, bad idea. Your numbers and what you have in the bank don’t even really consider emergencies or unexpected costs - or even job loss. Also, I think you need to get a true quote on what your car insurance would be. If you call your agent and give them details about the car you want, they can give you an estimate of the cheapest insurance that would still meet the requirements of the finance company on the auto loan.
Honestly, I've been consistently buying new but well used cars from Enterprise car sales etc. and have been very happy.
> but gets horrible gas mileage This false logic needs to die. The price of gas is not bad enough to make it worth buying a new car over. And if you're a tree hugger then you should know that the environmental toll of making electric car batteries and charging them is worse than gasoline.
Dude gonna spend 32k to "save" on gas 😂😂
My mom has this attitude. I bought a cheap SUV cause it was the cheapest thing I could find that didn't seem to have any engine or transmission issues. She complained that I should have gotten the $5,000 more expensive car cause I'd save on gas. I didn't plan on even having the car for 4 years cause I was in trucking school and was going to go out over the road and be home only four days a month. and buy something newer after a year or two of saving money So I thought the fuel savings would have taken decade to make up for it. Even after losing my CDL for medical reasons It would have taken 4 years to see the difference in price.
> And if you're a tree hugger then you should know that the environmental toll of making electric car batteries and charging them is worse than gasoline Any source to backup such claims? My search on scholars.google.com has been unfruitful to proof by prooving this particular claim. Anyways OP is better off buying a moderately used hybrid such as the Corolla Cross if an SUV is a must. Better yet, something like a 2017-2019 Chevrolet Bolt is perfect for the price as it has depreciated a lot.
Yeah [google.com](http://google.com)
First part may be true, second part definitely is not. The upfront environmental toll of creating an EV is higher than a ICE car, but it's far, far lower over the lifetime of the vehicle. Burning gas is much worse for the environment than charging a car is. Plus, the metals in EV batteries are recyclable meaning that over time, the impact of creating them will be much lower. https://www.npr.org/2024/05/09/1250212212/ev-batteries-environmental-impact
That's only counting the mining. It doesn't count getting shipped to china to make the battery, then shipped back to the US, and finally being powered by unregulated coal plants.
In the long run, sure, but it can take you about 50-100k miles to break even when it comes to carbon emissions, depending on how clean your electricity is. [Volvo Says Manufacturing An Electric Car Generates 70 Percent More Emissions Than Its ICE Equivalent | Carscoops](https://www.carscoops.com/2021/11/volvo-says-manufacturing-an-electric-car-generates-70-percent-more-emissions-than-its-petrol-equivalent/)
Not worse than gasoline.
Yes it actually is. People have done studies that prove it because the lithium is mined in Canada, shipped to China, Then to the US. Cargo ships run on dirty ship oil. Mining equipment runs on diesel that's not regulated at strictly as gasoline, and 80% of the electric grid is powered by coal plants that have failed emissions tests for more than 30 years with no repercussions.
I just looked the CX50 up. It looks like a great ride - smart buy, something you can fall in love with while paying for it. You have your stuff together, I say go for it.