Elaine King

My Dream:

My dream is to buy my very own, brand new car. Right now I have a fairly new car, a 2012 Hyundai Accent in red. Unfortunately when my dad bought this car he needed a fairly cheap car and fast. This car is a manual, no power locks, no power windows, and didn’t even come with a radio. Since then when my dad was in possession of the car a dear ran into him at a stop sign and dented the front bumper which causes the whole bumper to shift.  He has since given the car to me and I have had it for almost two years. It’s the perfect first car for anyone; I learned to drive a stick, that’s pretty awesome! But I’m about to graduate and I would love a new car, one with at least air conditioning.

I know my dream isn’t realistic any time soon but my dream is to buy a 2016 Toyota 4Runner SR5 in Nautical Blue Pearl. I love bigger cars like trucks and SUVs but I am a small person and sometimes those can be intimidating. I also would like to have some chance of parallel parking; I knew that wouldn’t happen in a truck. The 4Runner is a nice sized SUV, not too big and not too small. It is the perfect size, especially for a family, because let’s be honest, by the time I can afford one of these I will have a family.

This car runs at $35,785 and includes part time 4 wheel drive, a V6 engine, and is a five speed automatic. The car gets about 17-21 miles per gallon, which is not a lot compared to my car now. I want it in blue because it is one of my favorite colors.

How others achieve this dream:

Buying a new car can be pretty intimidating. Most people don’t have $36,000 in cash so it is important to look into a loan. DMV.org says it is important to know how much you can afford for a down payment and from there you can figure out how much you can afford each month with a loan. They also say interest rates favor larger down payments. It is also important to keep some extra money handy to cover the taxes on the new car.

Next, most people will either sell or trade in their old car, this way you can use that money on your new car. Kelley Blue Book says there are pros and cons to each option. If you decided to trade in your old car it may be the easier option but you should remember that the dealer has to resell the car so they might now give you as much money as you wanted. If you decide to sell the car you can potentially get more money but you must be patient.

In the blog, Stacia’s Success Blog, she wrote a post titled, How to Reach Your Money Goals. In this post she asks you to determine what it will take to reach your goals and to implement them. She gives advice such as don’t be afraid of the numbers, always know your numbers, because if you don’t you are probably losing money. She also says that you need to keep your books in order, make sure your budget is up to date.

Current Personal Finances:

Month expenses

Budget Projections and Variations:

If I save $200 from each month, it would take me 15 years to save up enough cash to buy this car in full. But nobody buys a car in cash and the car would cost much less because it would be 15 years old. But if I put the average down payment of a car, twenty percent, I would only need $7,157 up front. Then if I trade in my old car, according to Kelley Blue Book I can get $6,887 for it. With an average Interest rate of 3.18% and over 5 years, my monthly payment would be $334.74.

It would then take about two years to save up the $7,157 for a down payment if I set aside $334.74 each month. But this would be I would only have $130.26 of left over money each month.This many not be a big enough buffer. But overall, it would take me about 7 years to fully purchase my dream car.