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Someone in my neighborhood is selling a 2023 Corolla XSE hatchback and it's about $23.5k (asked 26) is this a deal? And can I afford it? [USA] (lemmy.world)

submitted 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Afaik, it has no accidents, and the family is selling it because their kid is moving countries. Has only about 23k miles on it.

My overall net worth is $30k. I've saved all I can from jobs, don't pay rent right now (will be paying rent in about 5 months) and don't have any debt. I could take out a loan to help pay it off but I'm considering just biting the bullet and paying cash, how stupid is this move?

I make about 20/h and work fulltime, and since I'm with my parents I don't really need to spend a ton on food or anything. My total monthly spending ranges between 300-600 (300 is pure necessity average, no going out or impulse purchases)

I can probably sell my current car (2010 Ford Focus) for about $2.4k. I've never bought a car so this would be the first ever big purchase. It's a good car but I feel like it may be out of my range realistically.

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[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

Whether that's a good deal or not is easy to check with used car platforms and dealerships in your area, that can vary by state and even city.

On the question whether you can afford it or not it's getting a bit tricky.

Do you want to buy cash? You can afford it, assuming your net worth is liquid (i.e. not invested in assets you can't easily sell, or in pension funds and whatnot you can't withdraw from). Whether you should spend almost all your money on the car when you're about to move out soon is another question.

Do you want to finance it? Then we'd need a more detailed budget, including future rent and expenses when you no longer live with your parents, plus the anticipated loan installment for the car. As of today I'm sure you can finance the car regardless, but if you live in an area with sky high rents, that may change drastically. Half a year isn't all that far away.

Edit: Must have overlooked the part that you want to pay cash. Then really have a look at future expenses once you start to pay rent, and consider everything it takes to furnish a new place. Car loans are usually cheaper than random cash loans since you can collateralize a car, but not random furniture. I guess the smart way would be to finance about half to leave you some wiggle room.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago

Yeah... It's a good deal for the car but the time just isn't right. I'm moving to Colorado from Florida so I do need a good car to drive that far. However, after some sleep and reading the responses I'm just going to hold off on the car. I think as the time gets closer I'll get something but obliterating my savings that ultimately took years to build on a single car is overkill.