Before you buy
Now that you’re thinking of a new place to live and possibly renting an apartment, you need to decide if you’ll need a car. If you live near a city and work in that city, chances are there is public transport available. If this is the case, it usually makes much more sense to take advantage of it. Other options depending on how far away you live from work may be walking, biking, or taking a train. If you choose biking or walking which are healthier options, be sure to leave enough time to arrive at work, depending on the weather you may also want to bring a change of clothes. If you buy a bike, you should educate yourself on keeping the bike in top shape, and know a safe place to keep it during the day while at work. These options will certainly save you money in car insurance and gas which can now be spent on other material goods or activities. If you’re interested in determining whether or not where you are living or would like to live is a viable place to walk or bike, click the button below. It will take you to a website that ranks up to 3,000 cities and 10,000 neighborhoods on how walker friendly they are.
In some scenarios however, using public transport isn't a viable option so you'll need to get a car. Before delving too deeply into the various costs associated with car ownership, check out the button below for the average costs of car ownership per state. It will give you an idea of what you'll be spending.
Perhaps having a car is an investment you’ve put a lot of heart into. It’s all about what lifestyle will suite you best. Now, this module is about budgeting so let’s talk about the cost of car ownership. The first step, is choosing what type of car you want. This is completely based off of personal preference, if you’re unsure or still deciding, try out the button below and you may find some options which work for you.
If you don’t already have a car, you’ll want to consider whether or not to buy a new or used car. Again, this is a personal preference, and cost will be a major factor especially if you are buying the car with your own money. Check out the video below which provides you with really good information on how to decide whether or not to go with used or new.
Auto Loans
So, you've weighed your options as to whether or not you'll want to buy a car, used or new, and maybe you have a car in mind. This module is focused on budgeting, so I won't really be discussing the process of attaining a car. If you have a car in mind, write down how much that car costs. For the sake of practice, click the button below to Edmunds car searching website.
So, you’re thinking of buying a car and you may have one already in mind. Based on the price of the car, you may need to take out an auto loan to help cover the cost. If you have enough money set aside to purchase the car outright, great, you’ve already slightly reduced your cost in owning a car. If you don’t have enough to cover the full cost however, you will probably take out a loan. Check out “Bank Rates Auto Loan Rates” for some information on what you may be paying based on your area where you live. If you remember from the credit and banking sections, loaners will be looking at your credit score and your responsibility around it to determine whether or not you are worth giving a loan to.
Once you have the overall cost of your car and the interest rate you’ll pay on that car loan, take a look at the loan calculator to determine how much the car will cost you on a monthly basis. Use "Bank Rates Auto Loan Calculator" to help you out.
Once you have the overall cost of your car and the interest rate you’ll pay on that car loan, take a look at the loan calculator to determine how much the car will cost you on a monthly basis. Use "Bank Rates Auto Loan Calculator" to help you out.
Car Insurance
Auto loans are not the only cost for your car, you’ll also need to be paying for car insurance. These are costs you’ll want to make sure you calculate when thinking about buying a car. You should already have how much it will cost you to take out the auto loan. Your parents or guardians may already have a form of car insurance, if that is the case, talk to them about the costs of this insurance and its different parts. Car insurance coverage and cost will vary from the provider, so while I will provide links for you to conduct research, it is important that you are familiar with whatever your family already uses. My goal here is to ensure you have a basic understanding of the costs of car ownership and factoring these costs into a budget. Use the tool from the button below to help you estimate the how much car insurance will cost in your general area. The website provides a great deal of useful tools for starting to explore car insurance costs and giving you a ballpark estimate. If you're unsure of how much car insurance you might need, check out the second button below. It details the various types of insurance you might buy as well as provides more resources for further exploration.
As you conduct research, you will stumble across the term Liability Insurance. This is perhaps one of the most basic forms of auto insurance coverage and is mandatory in every state. This insurance covers damages to others from accidents which you caused. For more information on Liability Insurance and the various forms of coverage under this type of insurance, click the button below. You may also want to investigate the website of your family’s insurance provider for more specific or relevant information to your life.