Ugh - New Car - Should We.....

[geniegirl]

So what would you do. We just moved and dont have a house payment anymore but do have a huge adoption loan. We are selling our old house and with the profits we will be paying off all our credit card debt and the LOC that we had to get the new place ready to move into. We will be left with the adoption loan, school loans, and 1 car payment as well as utilities. Once the house is sold we also will not have the $1000/mo payment but I planned on putting most of that toward the adoption loan, we also plan on adopting again within a year or two. We both have solid jobs so no fear there.

We have another small car that is paid for but it is old, has lots of miles and will need about $1000 worth of work by the end of summer to get through inspection, plus who knows what else may happen to it. So we went and looked a mini van tonight just to check out what the dealers were doing and we could get a $30k van for $20k since they are closing. We will have the money once the house is sold for sure and could swing it now if needed but what to do. I want to get the adoption paid off but when are you gonna get a deal like this and we will need a bigger car once we have a second child......

sorry for the long story I just dont know what to do

 

[pyrxtc]

If the bigger car is something you will need regardless, then buy that. By the time you adopt again the deal will/may not be there and you will end up paying $10,000 more than you could have.

 

[AnastasiaTremaine]

You need another car. But you don't need a brand new car, and I am willing to bet you can find a better deal on a minivan that is only a year or two old, and that would make your payments significantly lower. I say this because you seem to be basing your decision on "when the house sells". In this market, who knows when that will happen -and even if you're currently under contract, there's no guarantee that the sale will go through. I hate to be all doom & gloom about the economy, because I do believe things are getting better, even if microscopically!, but I think this is a very risky time to make any financial moves based on a safety net (the selling of your old home) that just isn't very 'safe' right now.

My vote is that you do indeed get a car, but get a newer car at significantly lower price point than a brand new car off the lot. Good luck to you guys and I do hope you can sell your home asap!

 

[Kickapoo Joie Juice]

So what would you do. We just moved and dont have a house payment anymore but do have a huge adoption loan. We are selling our old house and with the profits we will be paying off all our credit card debt and the LOC that we had to get the new place ready to move into. We will be left with the adoption loan, school loans, and 1 car payment as well as utilities. Once the house is sold we also will not have the $1000/mo payment but I planned on putting most of that toward the adoption loan, we also plan on adopting again within a year or two. We both have solid jobs so no fear there.

We have another small car that is paid for but it is old, has lots of miles and will need about $1000 worth of work by the end of summer to get through inspection, plus who knows what else may happen to it. So we went and looked a mini van tonight just to check out what the dealers were doing and we could get a $30k van for $20k since they are closing. We will have the money once the house is sold for sure and could swing it now if needed but what to do. I want to get the adoption paid off but when are you gonna get a deal like this and we will need a bigger car once we have a second child......

sorry for the long story I just dont know what to do

Don't do anything until you have closed on the house, handed over the keys, and then walked away.

Then sit down and make a budget-put in all your expense, all your income, figure out where the money is coming in and where it is going out.

Every. Penny.


Really, if you don't know whether or not you can afford the car, the answer isn't yes or no to the car, it's understanding your finances better so you don't need to ask us, you'll have the answer yourself.

ETA if it's a chrysler dealership they'll be closing at the end of 09, or whenever they run out of stock. Neither of those two things is tomorrow. Don't get sucked into the shiny new penny excitement of cars (I'm car obsessed and I know better than to set foot in a dealership). The deals will ONLY GET BETTER for Chrysler at time progresses and the need to get rid of stock increases.