how do you guys pay for cars?

There's a big upside to financing a car no one has mentioned. Your credit score. All else being equal, it goes up a good bit if you have a car financed and make the payments on time. With the low or no interest financing available, definitely finance (a car you can afford).

No offense to anyone who has posted in this thread, but paying cash for everything is usually a sign of a scarcity based attitude. People are so "scared" of the idea of having to make payments that they want to pay everything off, when the truth is that borrowed money is cheap and you're better off NOT paying cash for anything.

Why the hell would you want to payoff a car or house when you can borrow the money for 5%? Surely you can figure out something else to do with that cash that will make you more than a 5% return.

Financing and leverage are great things when you use them properly. Most "ballers" don't pay cash for stuff (until you start talking about people with 9-10 digit net worths)

LOL - If your a true baller why the hell do you even need credit?
 


I improve my credit score by having a mortgage and paying my bills on time, dunno about you.

The place I'm in right now was purchased for $690,000 a few years ago, my neighbour is selling their identical place for a listing price of $438,000. I'm glad I'm renting :)
 
LOL - If your a true baller why the hell do you even need credit?

Those making $10 million+ per year, almost always finance purchases such as a home, etc...that they could afford to pay for in cash. Why? Because they can make more by keeping the cash in hand. Example, 6% interest mortgage, while they make 9% per year on the cash.
 
LOL - If your a true baller why the hell do you even need credit?

Because you are better off spending other peoples money rather than your own. Oh wait... MSFT/GOOG/GE/HP/TI/etc... all don't need funding because they are true ballers.... *sigh*
 
OPM (other people's money) is always the best way.

Leasing a car can be done as a business expense (benefit in kind).

Everyone NEEDS to get a decent car out of their system.

My last car was a leased Audi S4 4.2 V8 soft top which went like shit off a shovel, but mostly sat on the driveway when I was up in London working, or at my second house in Cyprus, so although the lease was 3 years I gave it back early and paid a penalty. I enjoyed every second of driving it, but don't miss it at all. I got it out of my system and now it's more practical and economical all the way.

It's a bit like anything you do once - go first class, drink kristal.....etc.. If you have the money to pay for it in cash, then if you lease it, you still have the money to pay for it in cash, you can invest that in IM and more than cover the cost.

A car is like most big buys, the minute you drive it off the lot in most cases it depreceates like 50%. You rarely get back what you put in to it.

Whichever way you go, don't beat yourself up on the decision.
 
Those making $10 million+ per year, almost always finance purchases such as a home, etc...that they could afford to pay for in cash. Why? Because they can make more by keeping the cash in hand. Example, 6% interest mortgage, while they make 9% per year on the cash.

that's actually not true at all, LARGE portions of vacation/multiple homes are paid for in cash, along with high dollar homes.

2008 Second-Home Sales Decline; More Buyers Pay Cash

http://www.frej.net/news/central-florida/2009-07-30/half-homebuyers-pay-cash-central-fl



30% of vacation home buyers paid cash, that includes ALL vacation home buyers, not just "ballers"

It brings a smile to my face when friends make the comment "yeah but if things downhill you have credit card payments, student loan payments, car payments, etc etc" and I don't have the heart to tell them "uh - what are those?"
 
Most used cars suck. The prime of a car is 5 years & after that you are going to have problems every now & then. Pay cash and buy new if you can afford it. There's nothing wrong with a monthly payment either if it's within reason. Just because you're making 10k/mo for the past couple of months dont get stuck with a 1k monthly payment. Factor in other costs like insurance, cash for potential accidents and repairs, tickets blah blah.

Not really. If you buy new, the car depreciates as much as 25% once you drive it off the lot. If you're money smart, then buying used (like new) is the way to go.
Nothing wrong with buying new, just really doesn't make sense. (financially)
 
I improve my credit score by having a mortgage and paying my bills on time, dunno about you.
If all you had on your credit was a mortgage payment and a credit card, and I had a mortgage payment, credit card AND a car payment, I will have a higher credit score than you. Capiche?

LOL - If your a true baller why the hell do you even need credit?
When you start making real money, bulid a real business, start investing, etc. you'll figure it out.

Only sheeple think having no debt and not using credit is a good thing...
 
If all you had on your credit was a mortgage payment and a credit card, and I had a mortgage payment, credit card AND a car payment, I will have a higher credit score than you. Capiche?

When you start making real money, bulid a real business, start investing, etc. you'll figure it out.

Only sheeple think having no debt and not using credit is a good thing...

my credit is above 800, I have a mortgage only.

let me know when I don't qualify for something.
 
And you've never financed a car? Uh huh.

Either way, I was simply stating a fact. For the average person, financing a car and making payments on time makes their credit score go up vs. paying cash for a car.
 
my credit score is 760 and ive never financed anything nor do i have a mortgage, only one credit card for 5 years
 
And you've never financed a car? Uh huh.

Either way, I was simply stating a fact. For the average person, financing a car and making payments on time makes their credit score go up vs. paying cash for a car.

seldom

You have a valid point, however the number of people who started making money and then financed car/house that they couldn't afford which resulted in them losing everything is a lot higher than those who paid cash for what was relatively peanuts.

I'm in the mortgage business implosion capital of the world- and have been snapping up good deals from the desperate for well over 2 years now. It's been nice! :338:
 
Well sure, but guns don't kill people ... people do.

Regardless of the availability of credit, stupid people will figure out lots of ways to be financially irresponsible.
 
that's actually not true at all, LARGE portions of vacation/multiple homes are paid for in cash, along with high dollar homes.

2008 Second-Home Sales Decline; More Buyers Pay Cash

Half of homebuyers pay cash in Central FL | Florida Real Estate Journal



30% of vacation home buyers paid cash, that includes ALL vacation home buyers, not just "ballers"

It brings a smile to my face when friends make the comment "yeah but if things downhill you have credit card payments, student loan payments, car payments, etc etc" and I don't have the heart to tell them "uh - what are those?"

True.

I should have said the SMART ones making multi millions per year (at least I think those are the smart ones)
 
lease a mansion, lease a luxury ride, max out your credit cards because the world will end on dec 21 2012

lol
 
well to clear it up .. i dont want to buy the car to get laid ... i just want a ballin car in general.

since i was a young kid i've always loved cars ... since i was 16 i've always had a civic so now by graduating i just want to get a nice new car ... i told myself as a freshmen that i would buy an m3 when i got out of college, i want to do this still, but i would lease a 335 if it was similar payment...

like i said earlier .. my friend put a total of 13k aside for 3 years to pay off his 328 lease payments ... i might need a bit more for a 335 but not much

i agree with everyone about buying a car outright, i can understand the stress this relieves and the joy of having no car payment, but i'm still not dead set on what im going to do

all i know is that right now i need to ditch the civic ... its nothing about a baller thing .. i like the bmws bc theyre amazingly engineered machines. my main goal is just to move up. my civic right now is turbo charged with an exhaust ... this car was cool about a year or two ago, but now ive grown out of it .. i want a semi luxurious decently fast car ... would i like to buy it outright of course, but would i lease as well... yea

the part im worried about is getting to a point where i wouldnt be able to make payments. thats what worries me ... but in my mind right now .. even if i had the cash .. paying 50k for a brand new 335i would be retarded ... i much rather buy a used one for a "normal" price ...
 
Buy a used Honda Civic off craigslist.

Unballer, but hey, you'll have more cash and cash money in the bank.
 
Only sheeple think having no debt and not using credit is a good thing...

This is correct. Credit is there to use it. Use it.

You need hard, cold money to make money... don't give it to the banks all at once. Use their money instead.
 
the part im worried about is getting to a point where i wouldnt be able to make payments. thats what worries me ...

you can't afford it, sorry.

I'm not saying this to rain on your parade, I'm saying it to hopefully prevent it from being the most expensive run of the mill car that ends up costing you more than an Arnage and more than you'd ever know in terms of opportunity cost with fvcked credit OR lands you delivering pizzas on weekends to make the payments.

*Again why my "pay cash for it" mentality avoids this situation completely* (I'd just keep the car you have).

Especially just graduating college we're in a shitty economy and if things dry up on the AM front it's gonna be a hell of a lot harder for a new college graduate to find work than those of us with a decade of corporate experience. Good luck bro.
 
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Don't throw your money into a depreciation asset (a car). Wait until you can buy a house. Depending on where you live, see if you can get yourself into a duplex or triplex and rent out the other apartments to help with the cashflow.