How much did you make before you could justify a $35k-$40k car? I keep pondering over a BMW but feels irresponsible.

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This varies significantly based on your passion with cars

I got 35k car when I was making 80K because I really wanted it

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Agreed. I wanted a Wrangler and didn’t care. That said, I’m more frugal than most in other areas (e.g., not a huge fan of spending big bucks to eat out)

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I bought a 63k Porsche 911 (used car, before taxes and stuff, original sticker ~110k) @ 114k TC and have never regretted it

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Same situation, same timing, similar TC when I pulled the trigger. Still get a smile on my face when I drive it. No regrets at all.

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I would want to make enough $ that the car is only 10% of my income. So $350k-$400k.

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I bought a used 30k BMW when I got promoted to manager (was making about $170k). Kept it for 6 years. Now I’m making $225k and just bought a new (used) one for $44k. They’re fun cars to drive!

I’m more passionate about cars than about anything else.

That being said, anything that approaches the 50% mark of your income is where even I start to question it (I.e. 50k car on 100k, etc).

Now like others say, this greatly depends on your other expenses, savings...etc.

I personally have a 50k car that I bought at 90k, but now I make 125.

I still have enough to live alone, max out my 401k and IRA, which I needed to know I could do before buying it...

Overall, it depends (lol), but if you live in a lower cost of living, I say splurge, as long as you STILL SAVE. I’m not getting younger so I want my twenties to be filled with fun memories in fun cars.

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50% won’t work for most people
But say you make 100k, live at home. It’s not insane to consider a 50k car while you’re young.

Not every choice in life needs to be the best one 😉

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I made about $350K the year I bought my first $40K car. Leased a $60K car four years later when I earned about $850K.

I like my cars being a negligible expenditure.

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My wife grew to hate the Toyota but I still like it just fine. She drives the nicer car.

If it truly makes you happy then go for it and make the budget work. But it’s an extremely deprecating asset that is highly substitutable for a much lower cost 🤷🏻‍♂️ you do you

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I’ve been leasing 40K cars since I made 114k even doing it I paid off my undergrad student loans, MBA loans and bought a house 🤷🏼‍♀️

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😯

Lease if your lifestyle affords. I prefer to lease as I have new car envy and don’t want to pay for something for 5 years to realize value on something that doesn’t have a warranty. Especially German and luxury. Went X3 to 530i and now X5. Don’t regret the decision.

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True but leasing gets expensive if you drive a lot. Granted most of us consultants only have so much free time and outside COVID, some of us aren’t even home most days!

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in ‘16 at $105k base i purchased a ‘13 328i convertible (sticker price $56k) with 24k miles for $25k ($7k down, $20k 5yr note @ $350/mo). in ‘21 at $195k base, my target is a ‘17 cayenne with 20k-30k miles for $40k-$45k with around $15k down as i’d really like to stay at/around/under $450/mo

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Im more interested in your income cagr

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We should start a car bowl

likefunny

Lord, I hate threads like this. Everyone says ‘I make $500k and bought a 1997 Honda Civic for $200..’
If you love cars, splurge a little and get something you like.
I would love to buy a Porsche 911 GT3RS, with a Weissach Pkge. But it costs a little less then I make...so that’s a huge no go. But if I made triple...then it would take a lot for me not to get one.
Again...if you love cars, then prioritize it.

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Hahaha. ‘Make believe’. You’re funny.

I make north of $350k and can’t justify upgrading (still drive a 2011 Honda that’s worth under $4k). That being said I spend way too much on travel, food, clothes etc., so I would say budget very anally and and spend your disposable income on what makes you happy

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I’ve had a few bmw’s... You didn’t ask for my opinion but I’ll give it to you anyway; they drive nicely and they look cool but the original price tag is just a down payment on the thousands of dollars you will spend on maintenance. They design these cars to keep making profit on you, I recently gave up and traded in for more practical cars.. it’s not worth it but sometimes you need to get that first luxury car out of your system to feel comfortable driving something not as “cool”

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I’d consider a lease in your situation.. I’ve always looked down on leases because no equity/expensive/interest/etc.. but if you pay $20k to drive a nice car for a year or two and it scratches your itch, it will save you from diving into a $60k mistake

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Bought 40k cars making 80k out of college. No regrets - I am a huge gear head though.

likefunny

Bought a 30k car in the beginning of 2020 when I made 75k. Luckily, I make 150k now.

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Switched companies

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I bought mine for $42k when I was making about
$120k. Got it out of my system and bought more affordable cars since then. You are only young once.

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I try to look at my expenses in aggregate and compare them against my income to ultimately gauge comfort.

I was making ~ 200 TC when I bought my first car (CPO Lexus). I would have purchased it sooner, but was living in big city where driving wasn’t common.

Everyone values different things. If you rarely go out to eat or drink, you can likely justify spending more on a car or rent. For that reason it’s hard to assign a general % of salary rule to one specific item. A friend of mine has zero nice things (lives in a dumpster of an apartment), but has 5 rolexes.

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Really just comes down to what other expenses you have and if you can afford the upkeep tbh. If you’re just barely making ends meet then adding in a luxury car with a high payment plus high upkeep costs isn’t the move but if your expenses are low and there’s room in the budget go for it. Salary doesn’t have a lot to do with it besides looking at overall budget. I’ve seen fresh college grads driving luxury vehicles because they live at home and have next to zero expenses.

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I bought a CPO Benz, 2 years old and saved a good chunk. It’s under warranty. I spent 30k with everything (tax, registration, dealer fees). I make over 200k and still contemplated if it’s worth it. I didn’t buy a BMW because consumer reports listed it as #1 most expensive maintenance.

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Income isn’t the main factor. It’s how much money you have. You should only buy a car if you can pay cash for it. Do not go into debt for a stupid depreciating asset. Buy a reasonable and reliable car CASH, and take all money you were going to spend on the payments and put it into high growth ETFs.

Once you’re rich and have fun money, spend whatever you want to spend without denying your net worth.

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Great point. Fortunately I appreciate vehicles that appreciate

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