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Car loan - to take or not?
wachiras
#21 Posted : Monday, October 05, 2009 2:53:00 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 9/12/2006
Posts: 27
Buy a car only if you can afford to pay cash! Because the only thing you'll worry about is the depreciation as oppossed to interest on the car loan as illustrated by mkristo. You may compare the money you'll spend on servicing,fuelling,insurance etc to what you spend on your gal friend. Do you really expect to gain profits from her? But you still buy her things anyway. Anyway the car will serve you and thats what you need. After all,its a utility and thus cannot appear on the same page as investment. You are better off comparing the car to a pair of shoes that you purchase to walk in. They give you comfort plus image depending on the style and fashion but you'll still need to buy polish or wax to maintain them,and they are definately not an investment. Remember,the same car you want so much to buy may be directly responsible for transpiring you to the next level (if u get wat i mean).
Phaoro
#22 Posted : Monday, October 05, 2009 8:24:00 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 10/6/2009
Posts: 164
Invest in 'stock market and make about 30% in a year'

I am a newbie,can someone explain how you get 30% return on investment in a year,I would sure like to know smile


Marriages are made in heaven. But so are thunder and lightning.
Mkimwa
#23 Posted : Monday, October 05, 2009 9:35:00 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 10/26/2008
Posts: 380
@Phaoro..

Simple.

Bought safaricom at 2.6 and sold at 3.85.

or bought Kenya Re at 10.2 last week,will sell at 13.5 by next year October.

or many other shares..
mkristo
#24 Posted : Tuesday, October 06, 2009 9:57:00 AM
Rank: Member

Joined: 9/7/2007
Posts: 168
Location: Nairobi
@Mkimwa and all,

Today let me give you my actual experience.

My income is not very high. I do something like 50K net per month. The day I thought of getting a car I indeed had options like getting a loan from my bank; as a matter of fact they were chasing me to really get one and was very tempted to. I could have gotten something like Ksh 800,000 or even a Million if I would have taken it for a longer period.

That amount would have gotten me a nice Toyota Premio,Pajero IO,or even Toyota NZE,Golf etc. These cars are the imported secondhand that have done an average of 40,000 to 60,000KM. Some will even be on the 80 and 90,000 range. I would be feeling nice that I have a close to latest model of car since I managed to get a loan of 1Million from the bank.

Instead I took a different route. I decided to keep some shillings away. When I reached Ksh 250,000,I started looking for a car that would fit that budget. I was looking for one that is decent,probably not very fashionable,but in good condition and can go wherever I wanted it to go. I had also said that if I cannot find that kind of car within that budget,I would still take time and save some more till I get what I was looking for.

Believe it or not,I got what I was looking for and I believe it is in the same range in terms of utility if not better,as those secondhand imports from Japan I had mentioned earlier.

I managed to get a well maintained 1996 Peugeot 405 for Ksh 250,000. It had only done 51,000km. The car is infact quite economical unlike what many people believe. On long trip I have managed to do 14km/l,although town drive can be down to 10km/l depending on the road condition but it does not go below that.

When it comes to insurance am only paying Ksh,12,500 per year as opposed to something like 50,000 if I would have gotten a 1M car. i am not paying a loan for it so that is out.

When it comes to service,I have seen that some 405 parts are relatively cheaper than Toyota parts. that is a fact,you can check in shops at Kirinyaga road. Additionally,405 has longer service intervals and its parts last much longer than a number of Japanese cars (Toyota),thus compounded I end up spending much less than if i had gotten the other cars i mentioned earlier. Remember my example on the calculations. Now this fact holds even more so for cars liek Mercedes Benz. It parts rarely break down.

Of course,I have had to put up with people's perceptions of a young jamaa like me driving an old car,but by the way if looked at it,you would not think it is that old. It looks as good as new,drives and handles as new,so that compensates for only inadequacies of having it.

one day,when my wealth increases,since I am still investing,I will be able to go to the showroom and purchase cash,a Mercedes Benz. that's my dream car,but for now,i'll keep this old Pujo since it is sufficient and it costs me relatively less to keep.





each day is a gift from God; I dont know if I will be here tomorrow; should I be,I'll make the most of it for God's glory; should I be not,pick up and keep the legacy
smano
#25 Posted : Wednesday, October 07, 2009 8:20:00 AM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 12/13/2006
Posts: 2,589
@wachiras,the same mat might be the one that transpires you....really,that's beside the point,you're trying to tell this guy not to buy the car coz it might kill him?

Like he/she mentioned,the buy decision has been made,question is loan or cash? Personally I'd take Wendz's perspective - it's better to use other peoples money if you can manage the repayments and invest your cash elsewhere which you can always fall back on.

Let me say that since I got a car on loan,I discovered the convenience of a car cannot be overestimated. It really depends with whether you can live with the inconveniences of public transport (even a car has them but they mostly equate to costs) or not. It's like staying near tao and paying more rent for a smaller place than living in Koma/Rongai where you can get more space for less. In this world there's always a compromise you have to make coz it's not perfect - the choice boils down to you.

smano
BEER IS LIVING PROOF THAT GOD LOVES US AND WANTS US TO BE HAPPY!
wachiras
#26 Posted : Wednesday, October 07, 2009 12:26:00 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 9/12/2006
Posts: 27
@smano. I was just pointing out a fact with no pun intended. There are many other means of arriving at the next level and a car just happens to be one of them. That's not meant to discourage anyone from buying one though.

I believe its much better to buy utilities such as cars on a cash basis as opposed to loans. You dont have to start with a very expensive model. Go for the cheapest you can afford and keep upgrading as you save/earn more cash from your investments

Did you know that cheaper the car the car the less it depreciates so long as you maintain it in good condition. If today you bought a car at 250k its very likely that you may be to sell at 270k one year down the line. On the other hand if you buy a car at 1m and try to sell it after one year,you'll be very lucky to get 800k. The longer you keep the more money you loose.
Mkimwa
#27 Posted : Wednesday, October 07, 2009 2:25:00 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 10/26/2008
Posts: 380
Interesting perspectives..

I didnt state what car,i.e. whether showroom,imported second hand,or used in kenya. I roughly know how much i want to spend,and what car i want.

Generally,if find that most things that are of personal use cannot be quantified. The utility out of paying rent,furniture,having a car cannot be quantified,because the benefits are not monetary. So at one point in life,you need to decide to buy something,spend and move on. That is what i am doing. and therefore decision was made to buy a car. I have done the CBA,it makes sense to me.

All the same,the perspectives shared are interesting and worthy noting.

I have done the maths for both options.. still dont know what to make of it,will post it later.
salf
#28 Posted : Friday, October 09, 2009 7:23:00 AM
Rank: Member

Joined: 10/3/2008
Posts: 5
I strongly believe that you only buy a personal car cash if you have no better use for that cash. Loan is the way to go because all other expenses for the car are same except for the interest you pay. Buy the car on loan.


without a vision,a people perish
McReggae
#29 Posted : Friday, October 09, 2009 8:34:00 AM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 6/17/2008
Posts: 23,365
Location: Nairobi
Mkimwa,

Wewe nunua gari bana,life has got no rewind button so live it to the fullest,the interest I pay on ma car loan cannot replace the convenience ma car accords me. You plan your investments happy with what you got,when you go for business negotiations,those around the table will always accord you some respect!!!


The chief value of money lies in the fact that one lives in a world in which it is overestimated.
..."Wewe ni mtu mdogo sana....na mwenye amekuandika pia ni mtu mdogo sana!".
salf
#30 Posted : Friday, October 09, 2009 10:01:00 AM
Rank: Member

Joined: 10/3/2008
Posts: 5
Guys come to think of it,the cash you are using to buy a car has taken you monthly savings to bring it to a certain figure,say 300k. That means over this time,this cash has not been adding value,infact you have been loosing considering inflation. Then you tell me to use the same hard earned cash to acquire a liability? No way! I will always drive a personal car on loan. I better crack my head kabisa on how better i can invest my savings rather than purchase a liability which has no returns.

without a vision,a people perish
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