Collaborative Post
Passing your driving test can be exciting. All of a sudden, a world of opportunity has opened up. You can go anywhere you like, change your job, visit friends, take a road trip. All you will need will be your first car.
But getting your first car offers up a whole lot of decisions and areas that will require careful research. Getting the right car can be tricky as cars can be costly to buy, and then end up being excessively expensive to run.
Here is a guide to getting the best car for your budget.
Decide On Your Budget
Picking your first car may be very dependant on the amount of money you have saved up in your bank account. Owning a car outright will mean that you don’t have to worry about making a loan repayment each month. But this may come at the expense of the quality of the vehicle that you are looking at. If your funds are limited, you may end up with an old and unreliable car which may end up costing you a fortune in repairs.
Taking out Car Finance may be a better option. You will be able to break down the cost of your car over a period of a few years. That way, you will have a small monthly payment to pay, but you will get a much better car that should be a lot more reliable.
If you are going down the route of paying for your car with finance, think about how much you can afford to pay each month.
Getting approved for finance will be dependant on your credit score. This may affect the amount that you will be able to borrow.
New Vs Used?
A new car will come with a warranty, and during the first few years, you may not need to have the car road-tested. New cars don’t hold their value so well though. Once you have driven your new car it will start to deplete in value. Within the first year, it will lose a fair chunk of the price you paid for it.
For that reason, it is often worth buying a car that is a couple of years old. Often, after three years or so, many drivers sell their cars on and get a new one. This means that there are plenty of nearly new second-hand cars to be had.
A third option may be to buy an older car from a private seller. You could get a car for next to nothing, but you do need to consider whether it will last the course, or whether it will need lots or repairs.
Check Out The Price Of Insurance
Insuring your first car can be a bit of a nightmare. It’s no secret that first-time drivers get stung by insurers. Shop around and get quotes before committing to buy a car. Insurance costs massively differ depending on the make, model, and age of the car.