Bought my car in 2018 (Ford Focus Hatchback) used with 92K miles. Seven years later I have successfully paid it off and own it.
132K miles and still runs good. No engine problems and no accidents (knock on wood).
What now?
My dad is recommending drive it until it breaks and I have friends saying to trade it in and go b
ack to making payments on a better car. Both have good points but I’m lost in what to do.
What did you do with your first car you paid off?
Thanks!
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The future doesn’t look too bright. I’d keep it as hard assets that you own are unbeatable in this environment.
Listen to your old man.
Your friends care far less about your financial well being than your parents ever will.
That’s just my take.
Congrats on paying it off! Here’s to some extra disposable income.
Keep paying h that car payment but instead of the bank getting it to pay a debt, put it in savings for emergency fund/ goals saving. You’ll eventually have enough to buy a replacement vehicle with cash and not have any worries about unforeseen expenses that may pop up in life.
Pay yourself a car loan into savings so you have a down payment when you need it next.
Drive it till the wheels fall off
Pay off other debts. If you have no other debts, proceed to the next step.
Estimate what you would pay per month if you took your friend’s advice to upgrade, and start stacking that money in a savings account. Just having that rainy day fund is going to bring you peace and confidence. Drive your car until the cost or frequency of repairs is pinching your life. Then go buy a new car and use your savings as a hefty down payment.
You’ve got a car that doesn’t have payments. Keep making those payments into a separate savings account and keep driving the car.
It has more value to you as a car than as cash.
Right now with things being as they are. Keep it. There are way too many things that can happen. Not all good.
Rock that bitch out til the wheels fall off! When it starts getting up near 180k miles, start putting a car payment in a high yield savings every month. When the current car starts costing you too much, go ahead and buy your next car in cash. I’m running this method for the past 7 ish years and never plan on having a payment again
That’s a very reasonable car that should do anything you need it to do around town. Ford focus reliability is fine. If the vehicle suits you, Drive it into the ground.
If you DO feel the need for “something new” put a new set of wheels or leather seat covers on it – something reasonably cheap that will give you a bit of joy to see every day.
Then put the “monthly payment” into a high yield savings account for future you to enjoy.
Not having a car payment allows you to bank that payment every month. Budget it for keeping the car running.
The economy is about to be sh*t the last thing you need is a payment of any kind
Brother, use it to the point it’s no longer reliable (as in getting you stranded in the middle of nowhere, for example). In the meantime, either you save it or invest it, whichever you’re more comfortable with.
Take your old car payment and pay yourself now into a rainy day fund, and then retirement. If it starts having major issues then you can buy another car, but just run it into the ground until then.
I always wonder why people who aren’t even in to cars feel like they need to buy new ones all the time. When to them, it’s just a point A to point B machine. Like, I’m not really a computer guy for example. So since I don’t really care about it, I use the same one for years until it just craps out. If I was a PC enthusiast, I would probably buy/build new ones on a regular basis, and it would be a huge waste of money but I would still enjoy it since it’s my hobby.
No offense but if it took you 7 years to pay off a used ford focus with 92,000 miles already on it, you don’t need to be upgrading to a new car any time soon. Just keep driving it until it no longer works.
Listen to your dad. Vehicle debt is bad debt. Drive it into the ground. I haven’t had a car payment in 20 years, I think it’s one of rue best moves we’ve made in our family.