To finance or not to finance

[crisi]

I guess I've never really checked out used cars properly & yes, both of my DH's used cars were well, very used. I'm intrigued enough to investigate when it's time for us to trade in.

I think my main concern is that beyond the basic parts neither of us is capable of identifying potential problems with a vehicle.

I can't either, but I have a mechanic I trust and dealers I trust.

 

[Dean]

I guess I've never really checked out used cars properly & yes, both of my DH's used cars were well, very used. I'm intrigued enough to investigate when it's time for us to trade in.

I think my main concern is that beyond the basic parts neither of us is capable of identifying potential problems with a vehicle.

My current preferred method is buying 1-3 year old cars at dealer auctions that are still under warranty. I have a buyer and that's what he does. He goes to dealer auctions and finds specific cars for people. Personally I feel FAR more comfortable with this setup than buying even a certified used from a dealer. But it's because I put so much trust in him and I've seen issues at dealerships. Dealer auctions have professionals that grade every car plus he's a pro at looking for issues beyond the formal evaluation. They're not as dramatically cheap as they once were but you're generally looking at around private sale price or a little less for condition depending on specifics. We've also bought new but mostly because I wanted specific things and didn't want specific items as well. Buying new allowed us to cutout many of the extras we didn't want to pay for but still get other extras. For example, my Camry Hybrid XLE we bought new a few years ago. Decent Costco Discount, found one without the stupid add ons they do, avoided the sunroof (difficult to get most high end cars without one, didn't want it) but had to give up factory leather to do so. About $6000 less when it was all said and done over the same vehicle with the added options I purposefully avoided. And it wasn't available at auction even with the added items at the time.

 

[Madame]

I can't either, but I have a mechanic I trust and dealers I trust.

My current preferred method is buying 1-3 year old cars at dealer auctions that are still under warranty. I have a buyer and that's what he does. He goes to dealer auctions and finds specific cars for people. Personally I feel FAR more comfortable with this setup than buying even a certified used from a dealer. But it's because I put so much trust in him and I've seen issues at dealerships. Dealer auctions have professionals that grade every car plus he's a pro at looking for issues beyond the formal evaluation. They're not as dramatically cheap as they once were but you're generally looking at around private sale price or a little less for condition depending on specifics. We've also bought new but mostly because I wanted specific things and didn't want specific items as well. Buying new allowed us to cutout many of the extras we didn't want to pay for but still get other extras. For example, my Camry Hybrid XLE we bought new a few years ago. Decent Costco Discount, found one without the stupid add ons they do, avoided the sunroof (difficult to get most high end cars without one, didn't want it) but had to give up factory leather to do so. About $6000 less when it was all said and done over the same vehicle with the added options I purposefully avoided. And it wasn't available at auction even with the added items at the time.

Excellent! Thank-you both. I love to research and plan just about anything so this will be right up my alley .

 

[mel&me]

I would never finance, DVC is a luxury item. If I could not buy it outright, I would not buy.
I did purchase originally with a Credit Card Check that had zero interest for 18 months and it was paid off in 6.
I only did that for the reward points.