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"At the start of 2022, 64% of the U.S. population was living paycheck to paycheck"

MC Fresh Breath

By MC Fresh Breath
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WBT

WBT 20,422

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44 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

Yep.  My 2004 4Runner is at 213k miles and runs like a gem.  I'm going to get another one in the next couple of years that I expect to last at least as long.  I've only ever owned 2 cars in my life and I'm about to hit 40.

 

32 minutes ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

Knock on wood, I'm on car number two of my adult life. Had a beater when I was 17-20 years old.

Approaching the same age as you.

Similar for me and I just recently became a man.  Current vehicle is an '08 4runner that I bought new.  Runs great at 195k miles and I've never had to do anything beyond replace tires, brake pads, and batteries.

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TwiceHorn

TwiceHorn 31,283

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4 hours ago, horn4life said:

Yeah the trust fund inheritance folks got their parents house, but in most cases not the work ethic.  Had an old guy, whose father was a very wealthy attorney and he was bragging about his wealthy upbringing.  I told him that I doubted many of the people he knew still lived there as my experience with the few River Oaks kids I knew, were only cashing their parents checks, not building their own careers.  He explained to me I did not understand the level of wealth he was talking about.  I'm 60 and he was late 80's?, and I got pissed talking to the old fart, and asked him to write down a few names of folks he knew.  I picked up his tab to still my temper.

i searched the street name in the Harris County appraisal district, and not a single name he mentioned lived on the street.  It would not surprise me at all that the kids of the rish live paycheck to paycheck.  Simply as they are certain the check will come on the first, so they spend it all.

Actually, as a person who grew up among the affluent, the "work ethic" of the parents is not often passed down, necessarily.

But many of the other privileges are:  the payment of college expenses for the gentlemen's C average, the "network," etc.  While many children of the affluent may not be the "go-getters" their parents or grandparents were, they seem to fall pretty easily into high-income jobs, often in "deal making" jobs like commercial real estate or investment advice, where who you know can be very important.

I know very few/no children of the affluent that get to sit around and collect trust fund checks.  And a pretty fair number of them are smart, hardworking solid citizens, who did get a work ethic from somewhere, and pretty solid values.

Even so, the learned lavish lifestyle can mean that even the high-income jobs just or barely make ends meet.

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Beau Vine

Beau Vine 54,003

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1 hour ago, Dahobbs said:

As I said, I don't think 100k combined for vehicles is that crazy for a family with kids. Pretty much any decent sized SUV or Minivan is going to have you knocking on 40k before any options.

I bought a new hybrid SUV last year for $32K, so I could have bought three of those for under $100K.

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Celery Man

Celery Man 20,886

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Wife's new Cherokee Latitude Plus was $24k out the door in 2019. I'd want a bigger car for a whole bunch of kids but it's a perfectly nice and modern mom mobile. Covid supply chain shit has fucked up car prices over the past few years for sure, though.

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Helobious

Helobious 9,481

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You never really know how well someone is actually doing, some people are good at faking like they aren’t on the brink. I know a lot of people that have close to nothing in savings, probably not truly paycheck to paycheck but damn close. I only have a couple friends that invest outside a 401k. Not a lot of long term thinking going on generally. When you’re poor if you make it through the week it’s a win. Rinse & repeat. Big time “I’ll be alright somehow” mentality. Weirdly enough they generally are, at least so far in my circle. 
 

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MC Fresh Breath

MC Fresh Breath 4,074

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1 hour ago, Bullneck said:

No.  Why?

To go out and buy a vehicle that gets less than 30 mpg these days is stupid.  It might not be the car your ego wants but  . . . 

Think about the kids in $80,000 a year liberal arts colleges and ask if the world needs more Comparative Literature majors.  

It's the same level of thinking, isn't it?

It read to me like telling people who are in bad situations to just go buy another car that gets better gas mileage.  Which seems problematic.  Maybe I'm misinterpreting.  But a poor person stuck with whatever gas guzzling $2k car they happen to have isn't going to run out and buy a Prius. 

 As well, it seems to ignore that consumer goods rise along with the increase in fuel prices.  And typically even when those fuel prices go back down there isn't a corresponding decrease in the price of goods.   

This is all but one piece of the larger puzzle of course.  The thread (and from here on out I'm not really aiming this at you per se) went about as I expected and seized upon all those poors making bad financial decisions while ignoring the astronomical amounts just printed up and given to the already wealthy (see the cares act for but one example).  While the wealth gap gets larger and larger the man in charge has the audacity to say "Americans have to sacrifice."    If only the poor would give up their fancy iphones and that avocado toast.  We have great big safety nets for those rich enough to take advantage of them.  

By the way, we actually don't "have to sacrifice."   They could just as easily give everyone money for gas if they wanted to, but they don't.    Just like they could give us all free health care and education, but they don't.   Or they could quit giving billions to say, Israel, while telling us that we have to sacrifice.  And then us willing guppies say "hey poor people, quit driving as much and shut up."  

Argue about the polls as much as we want, there's a very large amount of folks left behind economically.  Plenty of them with college degrees, btw. 

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And the generations after the millennials have it even worse.  I don't know why I rail about it other than to express frustration I suppose.  

 

 

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CooterBrown

CooterBrown 17,913

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I can’t speak to others buying habits. I’m sure people in that position buy what they can afford, and worry about its fuel efficiency after initial price and reliability. I’m only stating that $100/mo is likely a low estimate for tons of people.  
 
Im assuming anyone with a 70k truck can afford the fuel for it.  

I’d bet the majority of people with a $70K pickup make less than $70K a year.

It’s always surprised me how many folks buy cars costing equal to their salary.
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Aqua Buddha

Aqua Buddha 14,521

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The biggest cost run for middle class families over the last twenty years has been housing, education, and health care.  Everything else has been relatively flat.

The people screaming the most about inflation now on things like food have very little to say about those three buckets.

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Blotto

Blotto 23,434

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8 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:


I’d bet the majority of people with a $70K pickup make less than $70K a year.

It’s always surprised me how many folks buy cars costing equal to their salary.

Aint that the truth. I've never bought a new car in my life. I typically shoot for that 4-5 year old low mileage used car and save a few years depreciation vs the same model brand new. Last spring I paid 23K for a low mileage used car that was only a couple of years old and I struggled mightily with that outlay. It had nothing to do with what i could afford, but what the fuck was I doing spending that much money on a depreciating asset that just needs to get me from point A to point B and sits empty 98% of the time. When I was still commuting into the office pre-covid, I was always amazed at all of the new shiny, jacked up, tricked out pick-ups that people used to drive back and forth to their office jobs. Maybe 5% of them ever went off road, I'm guessing. 

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Beau Vine

Beau Vine 54,003

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Last year I talked the wife into getting rid of both of our 10-yo cars and buying one new nice car.  

Her: "What happens if one of us has the car and the other one needs to go somewhere we can't walk?"

Me:  "Uber.  And I guaranfuckingtee that our yearly uber bill will be a small percentage of what we'd pay for insurance on that second car."

We're 11 months into this experiment, and so far that percentage = 0.0%.

 

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1 hour ago, Aqua Buddha said:

The biggest cost run for middle class families over the last twenty years has been housing, education, and health care.  Everything else has been relatively flat.

The people screaming the most about inflation now on things like food have very little to say about those three buckets.

I guess it's for another thread, but this has been my thing about this bout of inflation. I don't want to downplay it, but I was at UT when tuition deregulation went into effect. I'm fairly sure my tuition almost doubled in four years. Then I have paid for my own health insurance most of my adult life. It went from about $50 a month for just me to nearly $1,000 a month for our family with Obamacare (with ever-rising deductibles).

Thankfully I bought a house well before this most recent run-up, but I still see the property tax inflation each year. 

The pain of inflation really depend on your specific circumstances. Oh gas went from $2.50 to $4? Sucks, but it's a much smaller hit on my budget than having tuition go from $2,500 a semester to $5,000.

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Judge Roybeanbag

Judge Roybeanbag 11,810

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3 hours ago, fuggled said:

Well, I don't want to speak for @Aqua Buddha, but if someone doesn't have money to throw away I'd advise them to get a used Toyota or Honda minivan with 50-60K miles on it for ~$30K, like these:

And I'd advise their second vehicle be a smaller sedan or compact in the ~$20K range for one spouse to commute with like these:

Point being, anyone who is saying a family needs $100K in vehicles because "that's what the market is now" isn't really trying.  I can easily get to half that budget for reliable transportation.  Anything beyond that is just what I want (and it's fine if someone wants more than that).  

Also, what this guy said. “The average new car price” of $47k referenced above is for Dallas $30k millionaires.   Ain’t nobody needs a car that costs that much, except to assuage their tiny penis.  I have a nice 4x4 truck with less than 30k miles I paid $28k for.   

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Dahobbs

Dahobbs 17,447

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3 hours ago, fuggled said:

Well, I don't want to speak for @Aqua Buddha, but if someone doesn't have money to throw away I'd advise them to get a used Toyota or Honda minivan with 50-60K miles on it for ~$30K, like these:

And I'd advise their second vehicle be a smaller sedan or compact in the ~$20K range for one spouse to commute with like these:

Point being, anyone who is saying a family needs $100K in vehicles because "that's what the market is now" isn't really trying.  I can easily get to half that budget for reliable transportation.  Anything beyond that is just what I want (and it's fine if someone wants more than that).  

First, my whole point was that 100k for two vehicles for a family isn't that crazy. Sure, one could spend less, but it isn't an insane luxury purchase when its right at the cost of the average new vehicle. We aren't talking Land Rovers and Beamers. We are talking Toyotas, Hondas, and Chryslers. 

Second, I'm going to seriously question the advice of spending $30,000 on a 6 year old used Toyota Sienna XLE with 50,000 miles that gets 21 miles per gallon (your first link) when a brand new hybrid one that gets 36 mpg can be had for $41,000.  You'll literally be saving $1,000 a year on gas alone with the new model at current prices. Once you add maintenance and repairs for the used car, you'll eat up that $11,000 in upfront savings real fast. Used cars aren't the deal they once were. 

Third, I'm not saying a family needs $100k in vehicles. I'm saying it isn't this absurd price point that @Beau Vine seems to suggest. In fact, I'd say that for a solidly upper middle class family, it is an entirely reasonable expenditure on vehicles for a family with kids. 

2 hours ago, Beau Vine said:

I bought a new hybrid SUV last year for $32K, so I could have bought three of those for under $100K.

Great. You're apparently not a family with kids and can survive with one vehicle. It would be impossible and unsafe for my family to do so.  So, we are talking about two of those $32k vehicles. $64k is less than $100k, but it isn't that much less. As I said, families can definitely get by with less. But 100k isn't an exorbitant amount and it is more than a bit ridiculous to call it unfathomable. 

57 minutes ago, Beau Vine said:

Last year I talked the wife into getting rid of both of our 10-yo cars and buying one new nice car.  

Her: "What happens if one of us has the car and the other one needs to go somewhere we can't walk?"

Me:  "Uber.  And I guaranfuckingtee that our yearly uber bill will be a small percentage of what we'd pay for insurance on that second car."

We're 11 months into this experiment, and so far that percentage = 0.0%.

 

 

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Dahobbs

Dahobbs 17,447

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9 minutes ago, Judge Roybeanbag said:

Also, what this guy said. “The average new car price” of $47k referenced above is for Dallas $30k millionaires.   Ain’t nobody needs a car that costs that much, except to assuage their tiny penis.  I have a nice 4x4 truck with less than 30k miles I paid $28k for.   

I have no idea what this post means. It is the average nationally. 

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Beau Vine

Beau Vine 54,003

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9 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

Great. You're apparently not a family with kids and can survive with one vehicle. It would be impossible and unsafe for my family to do so.  So, we are talking about two of those $32k vehicles. $64k is less than $100k, but it isn't that much less. As I said, families can definitely get by with less. But 100k isn't an exorbitant amount and it is more than a bit ridiculous to call it unfathomable. 

Do you suck at math something terrible?  It's 36% less.  

As I pointed out, you could literally buy a third car and still be under $100K.

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Judge Roybeanbag

Judge Roybeanbag 11,810

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9 minutes ago, Beau Vine said:

Do you suck at math something terrible?  It's 36% less.  

As I pointed out, you could literally buy a third car and still be under $100K.

I don’t understand people who spend almost as much on their cars as they do housing.  They’ll end up living in that car one day.  Also DAHobbs, it would take you 11 years at that gas savings to make up the price difference on those vehicles.  I reckon you would say fuck it, and buy a new Yukon at some point during those 11 years.  If so, more power to you, that’s your choice.   Most people pay way too much for cars though.  

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pyrohornIII

pyrohornIII 4,809

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20 hours ago, Immaculate Vibes said:

The biggest problem we are about to face is with energy prices so high a recession is in the cards while the fed is still at 0% interest.  What do we/they do when things turn bad? There’s not really an economics thread so I’m not sure where to discuss this, but how is that addressed? There is a dearth of posters here that think much on this level. @washparkhorn @bernorange  

 

Do we pass a bill for essentially UBI and Fed monetizes the debt? We have no wiggle room.

@Judge Roybeanbag beat me to that.  Trump destroyed that wiggle room and many pointed it out at the time how dumb it was and forecast it would come around to bite us in the ass.  

On 3/8/2022 at 4:32 PM, FirstTimeCaller said:

Haven't these sorts of surveys been debunked yet? How many "75% of people don't have $400 for an emergency" articles have there been? And then COVID hit, which arguably could not have been a bigger shock, and people were able to get through it with better balance sheets than before the pandemic. 

The way many helped their balance sheets was paying down big credit card debts using the stimulus checks.  The ones who really got helped were to uber wealthy like Bezos and those who defrauded the PPP program.  I hope to hell we see lots of skins nailed to the wall during this new investigation.

2 hours ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

It read to me like telling people who are in bad situations to just go buy another car that gets better gas mileage.  Which seems problematic.  Maybe I'm misinterpreting.  But a poor person stuck with whatever gas guzzling $2k car they happen to have isn't going to run out and buy a Prius. 

 As well, it seems to ignore that consumer goods rise along with the increase in fuel prices.  And typically even when those fuel prices go back down there isn't a corresponding decrease in the price of goods.   

This is all but one piece of the larger puzzle of course.  The thread (and from here on out I'm not really aiming this at you per se) went about as I expected and seized upon all those poors making bad financial decisions while ignoring the astronomical amounts just printed up and given to the already wealthy (see the cares act for but one example).  While the wealth gap gets larger and larger the man in charge has the audacity to say "Americans have to sacrifice."    If only the poor would give up their fancy iphones and that avocado toast.  We have great big safety nets for those rich enough to take advantage of them.  

By the way, we actually don't "have to sacrifice."   They could just as easily give everyone money for gas if they wanted to, but they don't.    Just like they could give us all free health care and education, but they don't.   Or they could quit giving billions to say, Israel, while telling us that we have to sacrifice.  And then us willing guppies say "hey poor people, quit driving as much and shut up."  

Argue about the polls as much as we want, there's a very large amount of folks left behind economically.  Plenty of them with college degrees, btw. 

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And the generations after the millennials have it even worse.  I don't know why I rail about it other than to express frustration I suppose.  

 

 

And these figures for real estate for millennials most likely includes a lot of properties being flipped or rented out, either long term or AirBnB style.   Everybody wants to be a landlord these days.  I'd bet 25% of that 12.5% is rental or spec properties.  And some is probably driven by using inheritance investment.     Just a guess.    

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gmr548

gmr548 16,516

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 $64k is less than $100k, but it isn’t that much less

Uh, I’m sorry, what?

Even simply in terms of monthly cash flow that’s just not right. You’re talking about an extra $500, give or take, in car payments every month.

Then of course there’s the opportunity cost of an extra $36k in debt. That’s three years of tuition at UT Austin tied up in a car; money you can’t invest; etc etc.
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pyrohornIII

pyrohornIII 4,809

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10 minutes ago, Judge Roybeanbag said:

It means people are paying out the ass for vehicles they can’t afford.  You can buy a nice Subaru Crosstrek, or Mazda CX 5 for less than $30k.  You don’t need a $47k vehicle.  

I remember as a kid all the grandparents drove Fords and Chevrolets.   They didn't need more.  Now in my neighborhood the grandparents are driving Lexus, BMW, Mercedes, Raptors.  These old boomers are the ones who love them some luxury.  And they seldom drive anywhere approaching the speed limit.  And they have two cars, an RV and two tricked out golf carts.    

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pyrohornIII

pyrohornIII 4,809

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5 minutes ago, gmr548 said:


Uh, I’m sorry, what?

Even simply in terms of monthly cash flow that’s just not right. You’re talking about an extra $500, give or take, in car payments every month.

Then of course there’s the opportunity cost of an extra $36k in debt. That’s three years of tuition at UT Austin tied up in a car; money you can’t invest; etc etc.

Don't forget to add in the extra insurance costs, too.

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AeroHorn

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4 hours ago, StassneyHorn said:

What moron buys a brand new car?

I used to buy used cars but my current two cars were bought new because I keep my cars until they fall apart and found that used cars were not as cost-effective. I have a 2014 Sienna XLE that I paid 35k including tax that still runs like new, and a 2021 Honda Clarity PHEV less than a year back for 31K including tax and nets to 22.5K after 1K state and 7.5K federal tax rebates. It is such a good car with ~50 miles of pure EV and about 50mpg afterwards. I (my daughter mostly) drove ~2000 miles between the last two gas fillings since we charge every night and her commute is about 45 miles.

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TwiceHorn

TwiceHorn 31,283

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3 hours ago, Celery Man said:

Wife's new Cherokee Latitude Plus was $24k out the door in 2019. I'd want a bigger car for a whole bunch of kids but it's a perfectly nice and modern mom mobile. Covid supply chain shit has fucked up car prices over the past few years for sure, though.

Yeah, although higher-end vehicles are getting crazy expensive, it is pretty astonishing how nice a car you can get (pre-pandemic) for ~25k.  It's not just an econobox.

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Dahobbs

Dahobbs 17,447

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41 minutes ago, Judge Roybeanbag said:

It means people are paying out the ass for vehicles they can’t afford.  You can buy a nice Subaru Crosstrek, or Mazda CX 5 for less than $30k.  You don’t need a $47k vehicle.  

I agree, people shouldn't do that. But that doesn't mean a new car purchase at ~$47k is unreasonable for the upper middle class. If you can't afford it, don't buy it. But let's not act like $47k is a super high end car anymore. It isn't. It is the average car. That was my entire point. 

40 minutes ago, Beau Vine said:

Do you suck at math something terrible?  It's 36% less.  

As I pointed out, you could literally buy a third car and still be under $100K.

Yes, it is 36% less. You could also buy 10 crappy cars instead of 3 ok cars. But you said $100k was "unfathomable" for a family. I say that statement is ridiculous on its face given the average price of new cars.  

31 minutes ago, gmr548 said:


Uh, I’m sorry, what?

Even simply in terms of monthly cash flow that’s just not right. You’re talking about an extra $500, give or take, in car payments every month.

Then of course there’s the opportunity cost of an extra $36k in debt. That’s three years of tuition at UT Austin tied up in a car; money you can’t invest; etc etc.

I have no doubt you could do other things with the money. You could also buy a $5k beater and save even more money! But that isn't really the point. The point is that when average new car sales for $47k, that a family spending $100k on vehicles isn't an out of this world, unfathomable expense. Should the family making less than 100k spend that much? Probably not. But for a lot of families that amount can fit comfortably in the budget, especially if the car purchases are spaced out. 

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Beau Vine

Beau Vine 54,003

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3 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

I agree, people shouldn't do that. But that doesn't mean a new car purchase at ~$47k is unreasonable for the upper middle class. If you can't afford it, don't buy it. But let's not act like $47k is a super high end car anymore. It isn't. It is the average car. That was my entire point. 

Yes, it is 36% less. You could also buy 10 crappy cars instead of 3 ok cars. But you said $100k was "unfathomable" for a family. I say that statement is ridiculous on its face given the average price of new cars.  

I have no doubt you could do other things with the money. You could also buy a $5k beater and save even more money! But that isn't really the point. The point is that when average new car sales for $47k, that a family spending $100k on vehicles isn't an out of this world, unfathomable expense. Should the family making less than 100k spend that much? Probably not. But for a lot of families that amount can fit comfortably in the budget, especially if the car purchases are spaced out. 

This is not the hill I expected you to be willing to die upon.

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Dahobbs

Dahobbs 17,447

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8 minutes ago, Beau Vine said:

This is not the hill I expected you to be willing to die upon.

I'm just trying to point out that cars are simply more expensive than they used to be. $100k isn't what it once was. All those budget considerations are entirely on point and reasonable. But if you're a family trying to purchase a vehicle, especially for multiple children with car seats, your options are quite limited. Y'all want to get judgmental on car purchasing decisions, but y'all appear to be a bunch of old and/or single folks that have limited need for vehicles and appear to be basing judgments on what car prices used to be rather than what they are. For me, it's the same thing I see with the cost of college and folks saying kids should just work during school to pay for it. It is out of touch and ignorant.  

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DigglerontheHoof

DigglerontheHoof 21,065

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4 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

Yep.  My 2004 4Runner is at 213k miles and runs like a gem.  I'm going to get another one in the next couple of years that I expect to last at least as long.  I've only ever owned 2 cars in my life and I'm about to hit 40.

I have a 2013 Silverado w/ 120K miles on it.  I bought it in 2015 and financed it over 3 years.  I had to do about $2K worth of engine work to it last year but, other than regular maintenance, that's it...and haven't had a car payment in 4 years.   The only reason I have a truck, is to tow my motorcycles to the mountains 3/4 times a year.  But I work from home w/ no commute, so high gas prices don't bother me. 

I'm responsible in my auto purchases, motorcycles....I'm a tad less disciplined but usually pay cash. 

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Celery Man

Celery Man 20,886

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If the average cost of an F150 is $70k (making this up) it’s because they are selling a shit ton of the platinums/king ranches/etc. It doesn’t make $70k a responsible amount of money to spend on a truck for the average truck driver. That is true, it is true that trucks are more expensive than they used to be, but it is also false that “average truck price” describes the same kind of vehicle that it did 20 years ago. That’s what is happening with that car number. $100k on two vehicles is not as crazy as it used to be and is certainly super common but that doesn’t mean that it’s not usually poor financial decision making.

 

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Beau Vine

Beau Vine 54,003

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6 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

I'm just trying to point out that cars are simply more expensive than they used to be. $100k isn't what it once was. All those budget considerations are entirely on point and reasonable. But if you're a family trying to purchase a vehicle, especially for multiple children with car seats, your options are quite limited. Y'all want to get judgmental on car purchasing decisions, but y'all appear to be a bunch of old and/or single folks that have limited need for vehicles and appear to be basing judgments on what car prices used to be rather than what they are. For me, it's the same thing I see with the cost of college and folks saying kids should just work during school to pay for it. It is out of touch and ignorant.  

Dude, I have mentioned that I just bought a brand new car within the past year.  And it's a car that's big enough for car seats -- for fuck's sake, have you seen my dogs?

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brown water

brown water 3,761

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3 hours ago, Aqua Buddha said:

The biggest cost run for middle class families over the last twenty years has been housing, education, and health care.  Everything else has been relatively flat.

The people screaming the most about inflation now on things like food have very little to say about those three buckets.

Because the it averages down when you don’t spend money on education 

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brown water

brown water 3,761

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Well I’ve been sitting in the LGA centurion lounge for a few hours due to a flight delay. I’ll save my comment about the overlap in people currently complaining over gas prices and gloating over their 401k between 2016 - 2020 (despite the market being up ~30% since the election) until it can be drafted more coherently. 

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Dahobbs

Dahobbs 17,447

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23 minutes ago, Celery Man said:

If the average cost of an F150 is $70k (making this up) it’s because they are selling a shit ton of the platinums/king ranches/etc. It doesn’t make $70k a responsible amount of money to spend on a truck for the average truck driver. That is true, it is true that trucks are more expensive than they used to be, but it is also false that “average truck price” describes the same kind of vehicle that it did 20 years ago. That’s what is happening with that car number. $100k on two vehicles is not as crazy as it used to be and is certainly super common but that doesn’t mean that it’s not usually poor financial decision making.

 

I agree with this post. The primary word I was reacting to was "unfathomable." 

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Huckleberry

Huckleberry 32,703

Posted
Posted (edited)
6 hours ago, Dahobbs said:

What would you advise that family buy instead?  Used car prices are heavily inflated right now. And buying a used family car is going to carry with it additional maintenance costs, increased fuel costs, and loss of newer safety features. Y'all complaining about families spending ~100k total on vehicles must not have shopped for a car anytime recently. 

Depending on the rate, the longer term deal may actually be better financially for a family. 

I had two kids get licenses at the same time (medical issues for the older delayed her ability to drive until she was 19). Bought two nice used cars for 14K combined. To be fair this was summer 2020 so any price hikes since then would need to be considered. Fortunately I have kids who don't care that dozens of their peers are driving brand new F150s and Camaros to their Cypress school,  including the two my younger daughter knows who had to "return" their cars because the cars "had issues" and now drive nothing because they refuse to drive a used car. 

Well crap I thought I was on the last page. I see I was late to example time. 

Edited by Huckleberry
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Zepol87

Zepol87 9,171

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, Beau Vine said:

Last year I talked the wife into getting rid of both of our 10-yo cars and buying one new nice car.  

Her: "What happens if one of us has the car and the other one needs to go somewhere we can't walk?"

Me:  "Uber.  And I guaranfuckingtee that our yearly uber bill will be a small percentage of what we'd pay for insurance on that second car."

We're 11 months into this experiment, and so far that percentage = 0.0%.

 

Did something similar. Gf got a nice used car a few years ago and I got a beater truck from my uncle. Rarely had to use it with work from home and traveling alot for work now. Really worked well for us these past few years money wise and allowed for alot more saving. Highly recommend

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