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Rules For First Time Car Buyers |
By:
Jeff Neilan |
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For young people just arriving at the age when they can begin driving a car or those rapidly approaching this milestone in their life, much of many conversations with their parents turn to them getting their own car.
I have gone through the same with a couple of my kids now and having been in the car business for a number of years, I can assure you that there are some very real reality checks that need to happen as you discuss this subject with your child.
Clearly, the most obvious is to engage in the discussion of just how they are going to pay for their first car. Now... needless to say that if you as a parent are of the financial means that you are going to take care of the financial responsibilities of car ownership for them, then obviously you need read no further. If however, you insist on the major portion of the participation be owned by your son or daughter, you will definitely want to consider the following points.
When we talk about 'paying for the car', we want to darn certain that the young car owner to be has a very firm grasp on the fact that even if they pay cash for the car; they never really stop 'paying' for the car.
Get beyond the price of the car in your discussion of the financing. Be sure to make sure they and their budget fully understand such items as insurance, gas, maintenance... and those times when things break that aren't planned for.
Let's get back to the financing angle for the point of our discussion. You'll want to insist that your first time young adult car buyer be in a comfortable position to put at least 20% down of the purchase price. Also, don't allow them to consider financing beyond the 48 month mark. In fact, insist on this.
The vital aspect of the no more than 48 months and at least 20% down will help ensure that your son or daughter isn't financially upside down in their car (they own more than it's worth) for the life of their loan. No complaining or crying... make sure they do this.
Take time to explain to the young buyer that it is not a strategy at all to be driving and paying on car in which you continually owe more than this depreciating asset is worth. I can tell you unequivocally that through my years in the automobile business that everyone who violates this rule puts themselves behind the financial eight ball when they want to trade the car in later... so allow no leeway on this with your child.
As you've no doubt been able to determine, this article deals with the premise that the fist time car buyer's car is going to be of the used variety. If you and your first time buyer are looking on the new car side of the lot then there are a whole bunch of other parameters and rules that you must follow... or risk literally spending thousands of dollars too much.
Not to worry though... simple check out all of my car buying tips, advice and procedures that I have put together for you on the website... I promise if you use them you'll save quite a lot of money on your next car buying experience.
For more valuable information on car buying, be sure to visit www.acarbuyersguide.com where you'll find information on topics such as getting the best car deals, best time to buy, & more. This and other unique content 'car buying tips' articles are available with free reprint rights.
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Article Source: http://www.statssheet.com/articles/article55960.html |
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