Well, I tried and tried to fix the comment form so it would show your line breaks, and I just can't figure it out. Lots of times when I hit a wall like this, if I just give it a little time it'll become clear, so that's what I'll try. I know it's annoying, but one day I'll have it fixed. I like having my own website, though at times like these I wish I had stayed at the free Wordpress blog. Every tiny problem means hours on the Internet trying to find a solution. *sigh*
In one week, the Little Bubba got the car door slammed on his fingers, ripped his hand open with barbed wire, got dive-bombed by a kite, fell of the front porch, and a bunch of other little owies I can't remember. That kid has a bullseye painted on his back and fate has the darts. It's gotten so every time I hear a thud or a shout I run straight to him. Good news is his little 8-year-old self is still "going good, great, happy" with his girlfriend.
The hubs is looking for a pickup. The van is getting more and more difficult to drive, so thank goodness we had a pretty good tax refund. We had decided to pay cash for an older vehicle rather than take on a car payment (you may remember that I have enough trouble keeping the bills paid as it is), but this afternoon we went looking and there's just not that much to choose from in the older pickup department. And let me just define "older" for you by saying the '97 Saturn I bought last year is the latest model I've ever owned.
I guess people either trade in their pickups every couple of years or they just keep them till they fall apart. The guy at Automax almost talked us into a 2007 Nissan Frontier by telling us he could get the payment down to $150 a month. But man, I just don't know. One-fifty a month when I was paying zero will be hard to swallow, especially when I figure in the insurance thing. So what are your thoughts on buying an older vehicle that may need more repairs, or making monthly payments on a newer one?
Saturday, April 3, 2010
He has a girlfriend?! *thud*
ReplyDeleteI hope the bulls-eye wears off soon. I know how that feels and he has my sympathy!
As for the newer truck - that's a tough one. I don't like the thought of adding another obligation, one that can be repossessed if you miss a couple of payments. At the same time, being nickeled and dimed to death by constant repairs on an older truck is also a worry. I would probably opt for the older one, for the simple reason that even if it nickels and dimes me, it's MINE and not the bank's, and they can't take it back if I don't pay. If I don't pay for repairs, it's still sitting in my driveway patiently waiting for me to get the money to fix it.
That's my $.02. :)
Have an awesome Easter tomorrow! *hugs* to you and all the family. :D
I have to agree with you, DarcsFalcon. At least if you unexpectedly run out of money, the vehicle is still yours. My husband has been unemployed for over a year, and a lot of people are out of work right now. One of my co-workers said his wife just lost her job. You can't necessarilly count on having the same income in the future that you have now.
ReplyDeleteI'm in the "I'd rather own it outright" camp with vehicles. Even when things seem stable and that they can't be disturbed, they can. We live in uncertain times. Anything can happen and if you miss a couple payments, it's really messy really fast.
ReplyDeleteBut that's me.
Happy Easter.
When it comes to trucks, I don't think I'd want to buy one used. The reason is that we use trucks where I work, and we abuse the hell out of them. When we put one hundred thousand miles on one, they're one hundred thousand REALLY HARD miles. Seriously, we destroy them. And that's typical for work trucks.
ReplyDeleteWell, those are the two considerations I was trying to choose between! I think we may use our down payment money to pay cash for a used truck, hard-rode or not, to get us through for a while. It's just a little too tight right now, and anything's better than the van.
ReplyDelete