Should I or should I not. Need advice

Look at it this way. Each truck payment is a round trip ticket to anywhere in the US.

You aren't going anywhere if you are saddled with a truck payment.

Enjoy your youth and see some places.

Every new truck WILL be a used truck. Save lots of money and just buy used.

I'm glad you are open to planning for your future. Good on you.

 

I bought a new Tacoma when I was 29, because I had never had a brand new vehicle. Did it once, will not do it again.
The amount of taxes/fees that I paid because it was new, wasn't worth it.
There are some great 1-2 year old vehicles (Tacomas) that have tons of life left in them.
IMO.
Good luck.

 

My two cents: just bought my Taco in November. I had my heart set on the Crew Cab Off Road trim but I was torn as to whether to buy a 2014/2015 or a brand new 2016. I found a 2014 w/ 16k miles in great condition for $29,000. The quote I got for 2016 was $41,000. After taxes, I saved about 10k. I went that direction for a couple reasons: I wanted to let someone else eat the depreciation. I am somewhat wary of buying the brand new model of anything (you never know what kind of problems start popping up after a while of real world use. The 2014 has a good decade of use behind it and is very reliable - and I plan on doing overlanding so this is huge). I also wanted to begin modding it right away, so I wanted extra cash to do that and I wanted components available (2016 stuff will come w/ time but I'm impatient). I plan on keeping this truck for 10-15 years so I want plenty of parts available (with a decade of these trucks on the road, I don't think there will be any difficulty getting parts). I love my truck and am super happy with it. But I'll be honest with you, every time I see a 2016 I get a little twinge of jealousy.

 

Holy crap, never looked at it like that.. I will hold on to the car I have until I'm ready

 

Live BELOW your means....IF you can do that and still spend to your hearts contents....do so.

 

And they will envy you with your truck all modded with the money you saved
I figured if I'm in a trade for a job the truck would be useful. My father is in the process of building a house in the woods off grid, long dirt road. So the truck would have its purpose for sure! But I think I may wait.. Or get the 4cy to save some cash. I wont be doing any towing at all with it. Plus its 26k instead of 33k. I have some thinking to do lol thanks for the post!

 

My father's has always said this also.
Thank you

 

thank you for sharing what you went through. Monthly payment was high??

 

Read this: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/2012/04/how-much-can-you-afford-to-spend/index.htm

 

I like that 36 percent ball park thing they talked about. A little confused by it though. I don't have any payments except a credit card and make about 32 a year.. Prob shouldn't be looking at a truck right now huh..? Lol

 

That number is bull shit. Still way, too, liberal.

Realistic, that number should be around 20%.

 

the best thing you can do for yourself is plan ahead...you say you plan to run it into the ground...lets say 10 years. a lot can happen in 10 years: can you still afford your payments if a kid comes along, or if you decide you want to get a dog, marriage, vacations, etc. if your TV breaks will you be able to afford to fix it, what happens if you lose your job or have to move for XXXX reasons. plan your purchase around what you think could happen over the life of your vehicle.

for me: I could get away with a AC 2WD right now, but in 10 years I will probably have kids so a double cab was for me. I don't really offroad at all, but 10 years from now I might not even be in the south (depending on if my gf has to move for work(p.s. also why i rent an apt instead of going directly into a house), so I got a 4X4. If your parents pay the phone bill, or cable or w/e, when do you plan on taking over that responsibility for yourself? if your health insurance increases or even rent increases will you be able to afford everything? the best thing you can do is plan everything ahead, with a little bit of gap.

also, even when you figure out all this planning, expect it to not quite pan out the way you planned; something will always come up. good luck! I was in your same shoes (sort of) for the past 5 years waiting to get out of college to start my life (move out of parents house, new truck, good job) when I could afford it. FYI im 25

 

Hey thanks for relating to my situation. I do pay for insurance credit card and phone, I didn't include that because it's the smaller fees in life but not adds up. Your right and agree with you about planning ahead but not to expect it the way its planned.
It's stressful because my car is getting older and up in miles, bought a truck that's not worth fixing plus dumped alot of money into it and its still FUBAR.
Instead of the v6 I may end up with the 4cy to cut costs. But I know soon I will need a reliable vehicle, and would put the Tacoma to great use. Thank you for the response and it really hit home with me.

 

So whats the verdict?

 

This makes solid sense for every car other then a Tacoma unfortunately. HOw much will the kid really save going down the used 1-2 year route vs buying new, saving 1-2K at most?

 

Bought my 2015 last December at the age of 22. No complaints. My insurance actually went down vs. the '06 Wrangler I traded in.

I say go for it.

 

Driving is expensive. It's tricky to try to minimize that expense, but I think buying a used car with a couple years on it and some life left in the warranty is the way to go. I've bought a 6 year old escape which lasted me 6 years before the engine blew, I've bought a 3 year old outback which has been the best vehicle purchase of my life, and I've bought a brand new Tacoma. I may change my mind on what's smartest in 6-7 years, but for right now its the 3 year old outback.

Get a slightly used reliable vehicle and drive it into the ground. This is more feasible if you buy something you can alter as your life changes, such as a Tacoma.

 

What do you do for work if you don't mind asking? Thanks in advance

 

Save your money until you've been stable and employed for a year. Do you live on your own or pay your own rent?

If not, are you okay with being burdened by a new car loan and all that it entails if it keeps you living with your parents for another few years or more?

Paying for your own roof is far more rewarding than living under someone else's and having a new car.

Short of catatrophic failure neither of your two vehicles now will cost more to repair and keep reliable than a years worth of payments on a new truck. At $400+ a month for a truck payment, you could replace the engines and transmissions in both for what you'd pay in the first year of an auto loan - and that is a pretty unlikely scenario.

A decent rule of thumb for life is not to get caught up in emotional changes like new jobs, romanticizing how much more it pays than the previous and all the stuff you can buy now.

The reality is, you could easily spend the same $400 your truck payment requires on gas and insurance in a month, depending.

The larger picture is your $400 extra monthly bill turns into $600 really fast.

Either way, wait. What other people did with their financial risk has nothing to do with what you could do with yours.

If you aren't passed probation periods, you aren't really employed there. That's how I would look at it. When a company invests in you, you have more freedom to invest yourself in things.

Until then, work hard, save hard - your success in the working world will allow your dream truck to be purchased soon enough, and even more.

 

get it, by 25 its paid off...