9. Save $100-$200 per month – Get rid of expensive car finance, sell car and get a cheap, personal car lease
You could sell your current car, or get to your car dealership and get a cheaper car, or a 5-year old car (usually half as expensive, who cares about the latest model?), or transfer your finance into a (new) car lease. A small penalty could be refinanced in the new lease or finance. The more fuel-efficient and the lower the car maintenance costs, the more you save in the long-run. If you choose a car that consumes half as much and you spend on average $300 per month on gas, you will save $150 per month. Thus, choosing a smaller car, also makes you save on fuel costs and car insurance costs. A car lease rather than a finance could also save you 30-40% more on payments, and also saves you on car maintenance costs. You could also try to get your employer give you a corporate car or negotiate a deal whereby they take over your car (lease) and you provide some part of the lease payments as a somewhat reduced wage.
Drive your car longer. The buy new versus used debate often overlooks the most important factor–how long you own your car. Drive it as long as you safely can for substantial savings.
Buy a used car; the new ones depreciate $10-15,000 as soon as you drive off the lot. Consider buying a one-or-two-year-old car. If the factory warranty is still good, you could get a car with 95 percent of its life left for 20 percent to 30 percent less than the cost of buying new.
Never buy a new car. Yes, I can easily afford a new car but when you know that you lose 20% of the value of the car by just riding it off of the lot. It is CRAZY not to buy a 1 year old car that looks brand new at a 20% reduced price.
I cut my household bills by around $463.00. The transit system in my city has a bus and railway, so I got rid of my car. I was able to make a deal with my credit union to have the car picked up. They resold it, applied the amount to the loan, and placed the rest in a personal loan--no repo on my credit (it shows as paid off and the personal loan is active on my report). It's a small amount that I owe, so if I subtract $53.00 per month (the loan payments) from the $463.00 I was paying out, I'm still doing really good. It's a sacrifice, but if you don't have any kids, need money, and can do this, you may want to consider it...
Earn $200-$400 per month by offering carpooling to your colleagues - if you are at work, offer other people to pick them up and drive together to work, like $200 per month. 2 guys bring in $400 per month. They keep their car at home or sell it and you drive them to their work and back.
Rent out your car to friends or family, like for $30 per day, you use your car 3 days out of 7, the other days, other people use your car. They pay the gasoline and the daily rent. If during 10 days per month, your car is rented out at $30, you make $300 per month, however, your car maintenance-cost goes up, thus only do this with a leased car. This could help you pay for the lease payments.
Refinance your auto payment. If a year or more has passed since financing a vehicle, researching refinancing the loan. You may find that you can get a loan for at least .5% less than what you have now.
If you have a business, it is even more advisable to get a business operational car lease, you could be deducting the lease payments as car rental payments from the corporate profits, including deducting fuel costs and insurance for the car.
If you have significant savings earning a low interest rate, consider making a large down payment or even paying for the car in cash. This could save you as much as several thousand dollars in finance charges.
Consider purchasing a used car from an individual you know and trust. They are more likely than other sellers to charge a lower price and point out any problems with the car.
Remember there is no “cooling off” period on new car sales. Once you have signed a contract, you are obligated to buy the car.
Know your credit score before you shop. You'll be able to shield off a dealer's higher interest rate offer because your credit score is "too low."
Take someone with you for negotiating support. Agree beforehand: No impulse buys and no discussion of exactly what you are prepared to pay.
Let car dealers haggle with each other. Email, fax or phone several car dealers. Make it clear that you're contacting several dealers and you'll buy from the dealer that makes the best offer.
Negotiate the price of a new car, the price of your trade-in and your financing separately. A dealer will try to roll one or more of these transactions together. Don't let him.
Nail down the price you'll pay for the vehicle first. Then talk about incentives and rebates.
Be prepared to walk away from a deal. You know within a few hundred dollars what you should be paying, and every minute spent discussing a figure significantly higher than that is wasted.
Get pre-approved for an auto loan before car shopping. That way if a dealer wants your financing business, he's going to have to beat the best rate you've found on your own.
Bite the bullet. Sell your old car privately, get someone else to assume the lease or stay with the thing until it's paid off.
Shorten the length of your car loan by making biweekly payments. Since the auto loan is a simple interest loan, you reduce the amount of principal with each biweekly payment that's made.
Search the Internet for a wholesale seller in your area. Formerly leased vehicles are often sold wholesale at deep discounts.
Don’t lease a vehicle just because you can get a lower payment. You don’t own the car when you lease and you may find it very expensive at the end if you have gone over the miles and/or there are repairs needed.
You can save thousands of dollars over the lifetime of a car by selecting a model that combines a low purchase price with low financing, insurance, gasoline, maintenance, and repair costs.
Before buying any used car:
a. Compare the seller's asking price with the average retail price in a "bluebook" or other guide to car prices found at many libraries, banks, and credit unions.
b. Have a mechanic you trust check the car, especially if the car is sold "as is."
Consider purchasing a used car from an individual you know and trust. They are more likely than other sellers to charge a lower price and point out any problems with the car.
Leasing a car is very complicated. When shopping, consider the price of the car (known as the capitalized cost), your trade- in allowance, any down payment, monthly payments, various fees (excess mileage, excess "wear and tear," end-of-lease), and the cost of buying the car at the end of the lease.
If you would decide to business-car lease a sports-car, like a Corvette, it is very likely the tax collector will deny the deductions for business use only, however, you have to book the sports-car as a marketing expense, by placing logos on the car about your company and do some company events with it, thus the car is for promotional purposes, the car lease payments could be fully deductible, talk to your tax adviser.
Also, instead of looking for a new personal/business car lease, shop on the internet for pre-used personal/business car leases, this will allow you to get an even cheaper lease for a somewhat older car, like 2-5 years old, thereby saving you money as well. Always check such lease contracts with an attorney prior from taking over the lease. Also, your insurance may be somewhat cheaper as well with a somewhat older car (1 or 2 models older). That $600 per month new Corvette personal car lease, you may get at $400 per month when the car is several years old. Another advantage is that if you take over an existing lease, you may only have to sign for 3 years rather than the usual 5 years. And since it is a car lease, car maintenance is not our problem.
