17 with $4500
10-15-2007, 07:20 PM
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17 with $4500
Okay, well I've been reading the investing forum for a while now and just registered with the site and I'm looking for a little advice. I'm just trying to get some ideas about what I should do because I don't want to spend all my money based on emotion.
So, I worked 2 jobs over the summer (55 hours/week) at $7.50/hour. Now I'm working part time and in my senior year of high school. I get about 17.5 hours in every week at a local bank. When I turn 18 I plan on working 40 hours a week there and then doing valet at a casino.
First of all, I have about $4500 saved up. I am going to need a car by summer at the latest. I am going to go straight to college after the summer. There is an s2000 at a dealer for $16000 with around 50k miles on it. I will probably live at home for the first couple years of college and do general classes at a decent university near my house. I am going to have to pay for college with mostly with student loans because I don't think my parents have much money saved for college (if any).
I was wondering if anyone could give me some helpful advice as to what to do. Emotion is driving me to getting an s2k, but I definitely know there could be better ways to spend my money. Thanks in advance guys. (especially if you've read this whole thing!)
So, I worked 2 jobs over the summer (55 hours/week) at $7.50/hour. Now I'm working part time and in my senior year of high school. I get about 17.5 hours in every week at a local bank. When I turn 18 I plan on working 40 hours a week there and then doing valet at a casino.
First of all, I have about $4500 saved up. I am going to need a car by summer at the latest. I am going to go straight to college after the summer. There is an s2000 at a dealer for $16000 with around 50k miles on it. I will probably live at home for the first couple years of college and do general classes at a decent university near my house. I am going to have to pay for college with mostly with student loans because I don't think my parents have much money saved for college (if any).
I was wondering if anyone could give me some helpful advice as to what to do. Emotion is driving me to getting an s2k, but I definitely know there could be better ways to spend my money. Thanks in advance guys. (especially if you've read this whole thing!)
10-15-2007, 07:23 PM
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congrats man on savings so much in H.S. Really take a lot of discipline. I'd suggest getting a used, fuel efficient vehicle....maybe a used Civic? You can't afford to get a S2000 (ins will probably be $200/month for you).....if you really want a sports car i'd suggest a used miata, really fun car to drive.
10-15-2007, 07:30 PM
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The S2000 would be way too much for you to comfortable afford to drive. Buying it is only where the drain on your wallet begins. Insurance will kill you and if not that the cost of maintenance. A set of tires is a grand.
Get something cheap and reliable that doesn't put you in such a high insurance bracket.
Get something cheap and reliable that doesn't put you in such a high insurance bracket.
10-15-2007, 07:35 PM
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does anyone have an idea as to where to put the extra money I have after I buy a car? Thinking about getting something for around $10,000(2001-2004 v6 mustang/2000+ eclipse). Putting about $1-2k down, What should I do with the rest? It's just sitting in saving now.
10-15-2007, 07:45 PM
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You won't listen to me because your 17 and think you are entitled to it, but 10 grand on a first car is a lot of money. I think 6-7k is plenty. You can buy a 2000-2002 accord/civic/integra with that $ that won't give you any problems for years.
I never spent more than 5 grand on a car until I had several more times that making money for me. If you haven't figured it out yet, and you will, working overtime etc. will never add up to anything substantial unless you put that money to work for you.
I worked every summer since I was 16 and about half of the christmas's. Most of the time it was 60 hours+ and in warehouses, front yards, etc. Not a lot of fun. I was tempted to buy s2000's and overly expensive motorcycles as well but if you were/are like me you worked too hard for that money to throw it away at a depreciating asset that will cost 100's a month just to keep going.
You can still have a lot of fun with 5-10 grand in vehicles. My senior year in college I had a 02 CBR954RR, 02 RSV Mille, and a 94 integra GSR 4dr, total value about 15 grand. I didn't get that way by accident or by buying s2000's the first day I had enough money to do so (certainly thought about it though). For the record, I usually only kept a 5k$ car and 5k$ bike for transportation and made profit of each because I spent a lot of time planning/researching.
Probably way too much information but even with "just" 4500 what you decide to do with it may define your financial future based on those habits.
I never spent more than 5 grand on a car until I had several more times that making money for me. If you haven't figured it out yet, and you will, working overtime etc. will never add up to anything substantial unless you put that money to work for you.
I worked every summer since I was 16 and about half of the christmas's. Most of the time it was 60 hours+ and in warehouses, front yards, etc. Not a lot of fun. I was tempted to buy s2000's and overly expensive motorcycles as well but if you were/are like me you worked too hard for that money to throw it away at a depreciating asset that will cost 100's a month just to keep going.
You can still have a lot of fun with 5-10 grand in vehicles. My senior year in college I had a 02 CBR954RR, 02 RSV Mille, and a 94 integra GSR 4dr, total value about 15 grand. I didn't get that way by accident or by buying s2000's the first day I had enough money to do so (certainly thought about it though). For the record, I usually only kept a 5k$ car and 5k$ bike for transportation and made profit of each because I spent a lot of time planning/researching.
Probably way too much information but even with "just" 4500 what you decide to do with it may define your financial future based on those habits.
10-15-2007, 07:51 PM
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Thanks for the advice. I'm actually taking the motorcycle class this weekend. I was thinking about a bike, but my parents have an older ninja600 with only 9k miles on it. I might have to get a job that forces me to put miles on my vehicle so buying a honda wouldn't be a bad idea.
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10-15-2007, 10:58 PM
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I'm 28, and I've been through the recent-college-grad-who-thinks-he-can-afford-anything rollercoaster. I'm the proud owner of a seven year old S2000 that in many ways I wish I had never purchased. Sure, it was fun for a few years... then the novelty wore off, I got tired of risking my life in the pursuit of fun on group drives, and now I drive it back and forth to work on days I don't ride my bicycle.
Sure, it's pretty, and it's nice to have enough power to pass almost anything else on the road, but, honestly, I would have done much better over the last five years had I just lived within my means, bought a cheap car, and eliminated all debt from my life. It's absolutely amazing how quickly you can accumulate wealth once you finally crawl your way out of debt. Compounding works in both ways -- if you can make a few percent per month in the stock market, it builds up quickly. If you have to pay a few percent per month in interest, well, it all goes away pretty quickly, too.
If there's any single piece of advice I could give any young person, it would be this: don't ever choose to go into debt for any reason. (With one exception: student loans are investments; sports cars are toys.) Live within your means, and enjoy what you have. Life is all about delayed gratification.
Of course, honestly, had someone told me this when I was an eager 21 year old taking delivery of my S2000, I wouldn't have listened. I'm impressed, mbunse, that you're asking these questions at all. Congrats, you're going to be very wealthy one day.
- Warren
Sure, it's pretty, and it's nice to have enough power to pass almost anything else on the road, but, honestly, I would have done much better over the last five years had I just lived within my means, bought a cheap car, and eliminated all debt from my life. It's absolutely amazing how quickly you can accumulate wealth once you finally crawl your way out of debt. Compounding works in both ways -- if you can make a few percent per month in the stock market, it builds up quickly. If you have to pay a few percent per month in interest, well, it all goes away pretty quickly, too.
If there's any single piece of advice I could give any young person, it would be this: don't ever choose to go into debt for any reason. (With one exception: student loans are investments; sports cars are toys.) Live within your means, and enjoy what you have. Life is all about delayed gratification.
Of course, honestly, had someone told me this when I was an eager 21 year old taking delivery of my S2000, I wouldn't have listened. I'm impressed, mbunse, that you're asking these questions at all. Congrats, you're going to be very wealthy one day.
- Warren
10-16-2007, 12:53 AM
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One more thing, in fact. If your school happens to be so close to your home, you might want to consider skipping the car entirely. Maybe you can make do a few more years with borrowing the parents' cars?
IMO, cars are a necessary evil for many people, but if you live close it's not difficult to ride a bike or take public transportation. Just remember that gas, insurance, registration, parking fees, parking tickets, maintenance and all the rest cost an arm and a leg. If you're only using it to drive back and forth to a school a couple miles away, you can save yourself an amazing pile of cash by simply choosing alternative transportation.
- Warren
(who rides his bike 30 miles round trip to work, twice a week)
IMO, cars are a necessary evil for many people, but if you live close it's not difficult to ride a bike or take public transportation. Just remember that gas, insurance, registration, parking fees, parking tickets, maintenance and all the rest cost an arm and a leg. If you're only using it to drive back and forth to a school a couple miles away, you can save yourself an amazing pile of cash by simply choosing alternative transportation.
- Warren
(who rides his bike 30 miles round trip to work, twice a week)