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Not to counter you, but why would a low-income household consider buying a new car? A properly maintained ten year old car these days is normally quite reliable
by Maakuth 8y ago
Not to counter you, but why would a low-income household consider buying a new car? A properly maintained ten year old car these days is normally quite reliable and safe.
- emiliobumachar 8y agoKey expression is "properly maintained". And there's no reasonable way to know. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Market_for_Lemons https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Market_for_Lemons
- Maakuth 8y agoNot a fool proof way, but when you buy, say, a $10 000 car, you should budget some thousands for repairs. Then if it breaks down soon after and it's too expensive to repair, your downside is $10 000, which is how much your $40 000 new car would depreciate in a very short time. If you don't have especially bad luck, this doesn't happen for every second hand car you own, but the depreciation is guaranteed to happen for every new car.
- rchaud 8y agoThey would not. When I was a teen, my parents had a joint income of just about $100k (definitely not low-income). When I began working, I got their hand-me-down '97 Accord. Bought for $3000 in '04, the car lasted 8 years before we sold it for $1500. Great value for money, and it had a relatively classic look that belied its price. That's the kind of car I intend to buy again in the future.