Just bought a public transport subscription, instead of a car.
Feel sort of poor, but oh well.
Discussion
For how long ?
Quit the gym membership, no more car, and only €12 per month more, to ride public transport anywhere in Germany.
That nets me a few hundred € more per month, on average. Worth it.
Cars are so crazy expensive.
Calculated it out, assuming we bought a used car for €25k and drove it 10 years, that's savings of €477/month.
Would never buy a used car for more than max 8-9k, more to the 5k range...
The problem with public transport is, that it's cost scales inversely to the cost of cars.
If I ride with my family with 3 persons for example, in the car it's 1/3 of the cost per person as to compared to 1 person, in public transport it's 3x the cost of a single ride....
My son and my husband have a car, so if we go someplace as a group, we don't take the public.
And three of us have student tickets, that we already have to pay.
This is a fact. Money pits and a tax source for govs. If you can live without one it’s a massive saving, especially over time. Classic, appreciating cars are perhaps a different kettle of fish but still need a maintenance budget.
Own nothing, be happy.
What about a used car?
We only buy used cars. My last one just died on me and won't be replaced.
Me too. I only buy used cars. But 25k € for a used car is too expensive
If I buy one for €10k, I would still save €352/month, but it probably wouldn't last 10 years.
Same difference.
That's why i prefer old japanese cars. They cost less, they last for many years. Easy to fix, IF something needs to be repaired. Not easy to find spare parts though...
€352/month is €5725/year.
That's a lot of money, for someone like me.
We're making more income than most people, so I don't really understand how so many other wives are driving snazzy SUVs around.
I don't understand why everyone around us is living the lifestyle of the rich and famous. Where the heck do they get all of the money for that?
Smells like people owe loans to the banks...
Must be.
People obviously thought they had a stable economy and things continue to be as usual, so they thought they can afford a loan to make their silly dream true.
No one guarantees a stable economy though...
2014 Toyota Verso with 168k km and 147 PS going for €8.500.
Yeah, I'll walk.
I got rid of my car in 2005. Raised 4 girls and home schooled on an income considered below "poverty" in Virginia. A small economy car was $400/mo back in '05. The expense is ridiculous now - and the govt can hack into new cars remotely and disable stuff (and so can others - some white hat videos demonstrating the danger).
I got a bicycle. It is actually faster than a car within an 8 mi circle. We had just one car for the family. Also great improvement in health!
Yeah, I can ride my bike, but it's quite hilly. Might invest in an e-bike, when the prices finish coming down. Just bus and walking, for now.
