A decision to buy a car is one of the most important a person makes during his/her life as a member of human society. This fact has two main explanations. The first one is social and the second one is financial. We are going to speak about them in more detail further.
Buying a car presupposes certain preparations and even studying for a buyer. There is a set of things that every buyer must know to make a successful car purchase. Among them the most important ones are credit report, car financing, car warranty and insurance, accessories and, a point of crucial importance is the place where you decide to purchase an automobile.
Now let us take a brief look at each of these points in an attempt to calculate the cost of owning a car. If we speak about a price, even an approximate one, we should decide whether we are buying a new or a used car. I suggest that we take a new car as an example in this report.
When you decide to make a car purchase you have one more point to think over: buy a car for cash or take a car loan at a certain bank. As most people do not have the whole sum of money in cash, a more common way of purchasing a car is a loan. What is urgently needed in this case is your credit report which you can get at one of the nation’s credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union. The report contains data about the buyer, his or her credit history, and information about any debts if any. Based on your credit report the credit score is calculated according to which the lender decides what interest rate to charge you and the time you have to pay the loan.
Car financing involves all the expenses on a car: from buying it up to its maintenance, repairs, and buying accessories for your vehicle. This is the point which must be decided by the whole family as the purchase means the change of the financial state of the family.
What you have to be very attentive about is the warranty of the car. The choice of this or that vehicle and the place of its buying depends much on this point of the report. The warranty for a new car usually consists of the “bumper-to-bumper” and “powertrain” warranties. The former is due for every detail except brakes and tires, and the latter – for all car moving parts, like engine or transmission. It can be in force for a period from 3 up to 10 years (100, 000 miles). The warranty is usually bought together with the car.
The car insurance is also to be bought by the car buyer to protect the driver himself and his family’s finance as well. This can be done either by internet or with the help of Professional Insurance Agents (PIAs) or at the state’s department of insurance. It demands a considerable sum of money but at least due to the internet, you do not have to waste your time in queues.
What has no less significance is where to buy a car. The most up-to-date way is buying through the internet suggesting lots of sites trading in cars. Another way out is to pay the service of a car dealer but there is a great chance to be tricked in this case. And the easiest way of car purchasing is a deal with a private owner because it enables you to examine a car at once and settle all the questions with the seller himself.
Based on the above-mentioned data we can conclude that Honda Accord bought for $21, 542 will cost $34, 443 including all costs for maintenance, warranty, and insurance with an average cost for a mile of the drive at 49 cents. As these data show it is not a cheap matter to own a car. It demands financial and moral certainty and acceptance of responsibility and existing risks.
References
Auto Finance Tips. Web.
Auto Warranty Tips. Web.
True Cost to Own (TCO). Web.
Car loan financing tips and scams. Web.